SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Mike Denbrock wants to build a dominant mindset in Notre Dame’s offense.
That can be a built difficult for a new offensive coordinator to do with a projected starting quarterback, Riley Leonard, that’s sidelined with an injury working in spring practices against a defense that’s returning experienced players at every level that gets more advanced every year defensive coordinator Al Golden stays at Notre Dame.
The challenge from Denbrock to his offense is to make plays consistently with fewer mistakes. He wants the offense to be the steadying force of the team that also plays aggressively.
“Wednesday, we had a short-yardage goal line period where we couldn’t really be stopped,” Denbrock said Saturday after spring practice No. 8. “That’s the mentality. But then we did another team pass period where we couldn’t complete a pass. That consistency needs to continue. That dominant mentality that we carry with us in the run game has got to carry with us to the pass game as well. When we get that, we’re going to be hard to deal with.”
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That kind of inconsistency is what leads Denbrock to joke that he both loves and hates the progress the offense has made so far this spring.
“I love our attitude towards work,” Denbrock said. “I love our ability to learn. I love our competitiveness. We’ve got really, really good unit strength as far as on the offensive side of the ball. The details are a little fuzzy. The more those come into focus and the more we continue to learn and grow, and I think more than anything how we adjust the base scheme based off what the defense is doing, those things come with time.
“We’re kind of in the process of that, so when we get it right, it looks really good. And when we don’t get it quite right, it can get pretty ugly pretty fast. We’ve just got to continue to work on it, we’ve got to rep it, we’ve got to show them it.
“Obviously, playing against coach Golden’s defense every day doesn’t help our learning curve, because he’s got so much scheme-wise. I love it. It’s going to prepare us really well for the fall. But right now, it makes it a little bit painful here and there.”
Despite the inconsistencies, Denbrock said, the Irish are exactly where he’d expect them to be. By the time they get to the Blue-Gold Game on April 20 in Notre Dame Stadium, he expect them to have started digging into the details of how to make adjustments.
“We’re in that process,” Denbrock said. “We’re still kind of in the, ‘Well, yeah, I know what to do on that play.’ If I ask you, one of the players, they’ll tell me exactly what they’re supposed to do. But there could be some adjustments based on the look that we’re seeing from the defense that need to be made or need to be communicated to people around them. Those sort of things are things that are going to take some time to get to.”
Finding the right personnel for Notre Dame
Many of Notre Dame’s skill players have mentioned how much more the offense has been using 11 personnel with one running back, one tight end and three wide receivers this spring. That’s a reflection of what LSU did last season under Denbrock when five wide receivers logged more snaps than the No. 2 tight end. But it’s also a reflection of the personnel available to Denbrock this spring.
The Irish are without starting tight end Mitchell Evans and No. 2 tight end Eli Raridon has been taking it easy through spring practices as the staff tries to keep him healthy. And they Irish are heavy on slot receiver options even with sophomore Jordan Faison doing limited work with the team while playing lacrosse.
Denbrock’s not ready to commit to any go-to personnel at this point.
“We’re halfway through spring and the evaluation is of everybody on the offensive roster and who presents themselves in a way that we know we can rely on to make consistent plays,” Denbrock said. “Maybe that’s [running back] Jeremiyah Love being more versatile in his role. Maybe that’s two tight ends. Maybe that’s four wide receivers. Whoever emerges and proves that they can consistently play winning football for us and be as dynamic as we need, especially the guys on the perimeter, to be, we’ve got to utilize those guys in any way we possibly can. If that means manipulating personnel groups or what that looks like, we’re kind of in the process of trying to determine that right now.”
Denbrock showed some of the possibilities of creating production out of the slot at LSU last season. Malik Nabers, who led the Tigers in receptions (89) and receiving yards (1,569) lined up in the slot for a little more than half of LSU’s passing plays. So did Kyren Lacey, who caught 30 passes for 558 yards and seven touchdowns.
The philosophy is simple for Denbrock. Even when a team is playing nickel defense, the nickel is often the third-best defensive back in coverage. That can lead to mismatches even if it’s not a safety or linebacker trying to cover the slot.
“If I can get my best guy matched up on their third-best cover guy, I think that’s a pretty good matchup,” Denbrock said. “Things like that that we do to manipulate formations and try to create matchups like that are a big piece of getting those guys involved more and getting them the touches that they’ve earned.”
With Faison, fellow sophomore Jaden Greathouse and Marshall graduate transfer Jayden Harrison all used to playing in the slot, Denbrock should have plenty of options to use there. But he’s open to moving around, particularly Greathouse.
“Greathouse has been as pleasant a surprise,” Denbrock said. “His versatility is off the charts. He can play outside. He can play the boundary. He can play the field. He can play the slot. Him, in particular, is a guy that we’re going to have to kind of use mixed all over.
“If you watch our offense at the last place I was, the receivers rarely just lined up in one spot. We’re flipping guys around and using motion to create different things like we just discussed as far as matchups and things like that. He’s a really smart kid, and he’s a kid that can play all of those spots, which is pretty cool.”
Keeping up at quarterback with Riley Leonard, Steve Angeli
The second surgery on Leonard’s right ankle hasn’t kept the Duke transfer completely sidelined. He’s been on the field throwing footballs to teammates during practices and performing handoff drills while moving at a slower pace with a brace on his right ankle.
“The players love him,” Denbrock said. “The locker room is 100% supporting him in everything that he’s going through. It’s pretty remarkable to me that he’s out here tossing it.”
While Denbrock has been encouraged by Leonard’s ability to grasp what the Irish are doing on offense, he knows talking about it and going out and doing it are two different things.
“It’s hard to judge how much is really being retained,” Denbrock said. “Is he a good learner? He’s a great learner. Does he understand football? Absolutely understands football. Understands adjustments on the board. You get him on the board, he’s great. You watch film with him, he’s great. He’s got really good answers.
“You get out here and the bullets are flying for real, I don’t know till we see it. Where he’s actually at with his learning of and adjusting and being able to adjust what we’re doing. That will come with time.”
In the meanwhile, junior Steve Angeli is making the most of his first-team reps at quarterback and continuing the momentum he gained with a fine Sun Bowl performance.
“Steve’s done a great job. He really has,” Denbrock said. “There were a couple instances today where some things we talked about over the course of the last week came to fruition. He adjusted a protection, he got us in a good check and we scored a touchdown. Those things, that progress from him, in particular, has been really, really good.
“The consistency now for him, in particular, needs to just continue to be as good as it can be.”
Confidence in Notre Dame’s evolving offensive line
Notre Dame’s offensive line lost its two starting offensive tackles to the NFL Draft and a three-year starting center to the transfer portal, but the unit hasn’t disappointed Denbrock. The Irish have continued to roll with a starting lineup of sophomore left tackle Charles Jagusah, senior left guard Pat Coogan, junior center Ashton Craig, junior right guard Billy Schrauth and grad senior right tackle Tosh Baker, but that’s subject to change heading into the fall.
“I’ve been as pleased with that group as I have with any group so far during the spring,” Denbrock said. “I love the direction that they’re headed. Those guys are tough. They like to play the style of football that we’re playing. They’re pretty good at it.
“Just the communication alone, the ability of those guys, even though there’s some new faces in there, to communicate with each other and be on the same page has been really, really good. I’m excited about where the offensive line’s headed.”
Extra points
• With the NCAA expected to pass new legislation to allow headset communication between the coaching staff and quarterbacks on the field, Notre Dame is preparing for that possibility. Denbrock has been using it with Notre Dame’s quarterbacks this spring.
“The kids like it, because it keeps me from yelling at everybody else,” Denbrock joked. “Because I gotta talk to the quarterback. I think it’s got some advantages to it. Some quick reminders to the quarterback once you get the play call in, provided I’m not stuttering into the headset too much, helps them, especially young quarterbacks.
“Hey, based on gameplan, let’s keep our eyes on the weakside. Whatever it happens to be. Give them a little something to help them in their journey of getting the play executed the right way. That’s helpful. Getting them the play and the information as early as you can in the play clock gives them a chance to kind of settle in and get everybody else lined up.”
The communication also allows the quarterbacks to have their eyes somewhere other than the sideline when trying to get the play call.
“They’re actually just looking at the defense or getting the offense lined up,” Denbrock said. “When he gets his information that he needs to give to the line, he’s communicating that. Then he’s getting everybody else, making sure the formation’s set. I think actually in the long run, it will help us run more plays than less.”
• Denbrock wants to find more ways to get the ball in the hands of Love, which led to the Irish putting him in wide receiver drills this spring. It’s not a position switch but an opportunity to expand his game.
“We’re trying to evaluate. Is there something where we can play some two-back stuff and use him out of the backfield a little bit more as a threat?” Denbrock said. “He needs to touch the ball. We’ve got some really good backs beyond him. He’s really good, and we’ve got some guys who are really good beyond him.
“In an effort to get your best 11 guys on the field and give yourself the best opportunity to play against the really good teams as good as you possibly can, you gotta have your best players out there. The more he learns and the more versatile he can become, the more we can use him in different spots. So that’s the goal.”
• Even though Denbrock sometimes avoid saying LSU by name, he plans to be at the NFL Draft in Detroit on April 25 when quarterback Jayden Daniels and wide receivers Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. all have a chance to be selected in the first round. It will be Denbrock’s first time attended a draft.
“I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
• Some of the improvement Daniels made on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy last season came from using a virtual reality headset from a Germany company called Cognilize that created a platform that’s been compared to a flight simulator for quarterbacks. Denbrock said he’s hopeful that Notre Dame can get something similar for its quarterbacks.
“I thought it was very helpful to [Daniels]. It’s kind of like reps when you’re not out there actually physically having to do all that much,” Denbrock said. “It would probably make me sweat, because I’m fat and out of shape. I don’t think it’s that taxing on them, but at the same time, the mental reps that they can bank, the different looks and the different things that we could give him to try to help his development and his vision.
“Whether it’s a movement key or a coverage recognition or whatever that happened to be, up to even putting him in opposing teams’ stadiums before we went on the road to play, so he could familiarize himself with where the 40-second clock was and all that kind of stuff, I thought was very helpful.”
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