Mike Elston: A Quiet Force Behind Notre Dame's Defensive Rebirth
Much has been lauded about the six new on-field additions to the Notre Dame coaching staff this year, especially defensive coordinator Mike Elko, and rightfully so.
Meanwhile, the one assistant remaining from head coach Brian Kelly’s original staff that he brought with him in December 2009 has remained a highly valued member of the Fighting Irish 2017 renaissance.
The “other” Mike E on defense — line coach Mike Elston — has been a vital behind-the-scenes mainstay in a number of capacities, including as the recruiting coordinator and de facto defensive coordinator in 2016 after Brian VanGorder was dismissed following the 1-3 start. The defense demonstrated tangible improvement the rest of the season while Elston served as the linebackers coach. The recruiting also held together for the most part, and even finished surprisingly strong in the top 15, despite a 4-8 finish.
This year, Elston was shifted back to his former stomping grounds as the defensive line coach, where he mentored standouts such as Stephon Tuitt, Louis Nix, Kapron Lewis-Moore and Sheldon Day, among others, from 2010-13.
Some opinion held that when Kelly hired Elko as his new coordinator last winter, the new man had carte blanche on who he could bring with him. Per Kelly, though, keeping Elston on the staff “wasn’t negotiable,” with Elston himself interviewing for the coordinator role.
“He was staying,” said Kelly of Elston. “It was some of the other coaches on the staff … He was going to be part of the staff moving forward. He's been involved with the program in every facet of the defense. He's a very bright coach. He relates well. He's done just a fabulous job of retooling our defensive line.”
Today, formerly up-and-down players such as seniors Jay Hayes, Andrew Trumbetti and Jonathan Bonner are at the top of their game, while youngsters such as sophomores Daelin Hayes, Julian Okwara and Khalid Kareem, plus freshmen Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa and Kurt Hinish, have made valued contributions in the rotations.
Above all, junior nose guard Jerry Tillery has become a consistent force in the middle at both plugging the gap and with his playmaking skills at getting a push in pass pressure. His development under Elston has been conspicuous.
Entering the 2017 season, the defensive line was deemed potentially the top concern for the Irish, especially after graduating its top two players, Isaac Rochell and Jarron Jones, to the NFL. Instead, the line has become a strength for the No. 5-ranked Irish, who are 10th in scoring defense (16.1 points per game), 16th against the run (116.6)— after not finishing in the top 70 the past three years — 11th in turnovers gained (17) and 15th in the red-zone, highlighted by stops inside the 10-yard line on third-and-one and fourth-and-one the past two weeks versus USC and NC State that dramatically shifted momentum.
None of this surprises Kelly, who has had Elston on his staff since assembling his staff at Central Michigan in 2004.
“When he was involved in the defense [in 2016], I got a chance to spend more time with it last year, I was able to see what his influence was with our players, the way he coached them,” Kelly said. “I was able to relay that on to Mike Elko.”
A double dose of Mike E on the Irish defense has been an impetus to a remarkable transformation.
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