Notebook: Sporting News Names Three Irish Players Preseason All-Americans
Preseason college football All-America teams continue to roll out — and continue to be kind to Notre Dame.
Sporting News' team — the latest one — has three Irish players on its first team: sixth-year senior guard Cain Madden, junior running back Kyren Williams and junior safety Kyle Hamilton.
Notre Dame is the lone school with three first-team selections. It is one of six programs with three players spread across the first and second teams. Alabama and Ohio State were the only two with four.
Notre Dame plucked Madden, a 2020 Associated Press All-American, out of the transfer portal in June. He was a 31-game starter at Marshall, which matches the total number of returning starts on the Irish’s offensive line. He transferred using the extra year of eligibility the NCAA awarded all 2020 college football players last fall.
“The top-rated guard by Pro Football Focus last season gives the Irish valuable experience in the interior, and this should help offensive line coach Jeff Quinn re-tool what is typically a dominant line,” Sporting News’ Bill Bender wrote.
Williams is included as an all-purpose back. He ranked ninth nationally in rushing yards and was Notre Dame’s third-leading receiver in 2020.
“Williams is one of the best multi-purpose players in the FBS,” Bender wrote. “He rushed for 1,125 yards and 13 TDs, but he also caught 35 passes for 313 yards and a TD out of the backfield. Williams will be active in both of those roles as a junior as the Irish work to settle their QB situation.”
Hamilton is considered a top-10 prospect in next year’s NFL Draft. He led Notre Dame in tackles (63) last season and added six passes broken up. He played more often in the box as a sophomore and made 4.5 tackles for loss.
“Hamilton is one of the most talented players in the country,” Bender wrote. “He averaged more than 50 tackles the last two seasons, and that’s come with 5.5 tackles for loss and five interceptions. He’s a playmaker, and he gives new defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman a dominant chess piece to work with in the secondary.”
Three Notre Dame Players Make PFF50
Hamilton and Madden have been popular preseason honorees.
Both made Pro Football Focus’ top 50 college football players for 2021, along with Notre Dame senior offensive lineman Jarrett Patterson.
Hamilton’s No. 9 ranking was the highest of the three. Seven of the names above him are defensive players, including four defensive backs, though he’s the top true safety on the list.
“Hamilton stands at 6-foot-4, 221 pounds, and he is one of the most explosive safeties in the game,” PFF’s Anthony Treash wrote. "His 42-inch vertical may have helped land him on Bruce Feldman’s 2020 Freaks List, but he also pairs his physical skill set with great eyes in coverage, making him a certified playmaker.
“Hamilton has compiled 16 combined pass breakups and interceptions and 15 passing stops as a true freshman and sophomore. Better yet, he was responsible for only three explosive pass plays of 15-plus yards over that span. The Notre Dame safety has generated the third-most WAA among players at his position over the last two years.”
Madden followed at No. 27 and third among offensive linemen. Only Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum (No. 3) and Ohio State tackle Thayer Munford (No. 14) ranked higher.
“He started at right guard for Marshall over the past three years, providing great pass protection in each campaign,” Treash wrote. “His grades in that facet came out to 84.6, 79.0 and 82.0. And he was performing at unprecedented levels as a run-blocker in 2020, posting a 93.0 grade in that facet.”
Patterson is No. 48 in the PFF50 and the eighth-ranked offensive lineman. The 21-game starter at center is moving to a new position in 2021, though the exact landing spot is not completely settled. He started all 13 games in 2019 and the first eight of 2020 before a foot fracture ended his junior season. He did not participate in on-field or padded work during Notre Dame’s spring practices.
“Patterson made his debut as the starting center in 2019 and performed exceptionally well. He ranked 11th among Power Five centers in PFF grade and didn’t allow multiple pressures in any of his 13 starts,” Treash wrote. “He was even better in 2020, ranking sixth among Power Five centers in PFF grade.
“He’s also one of two returning Power Five interior offensive linemen to log at least 650 pass-block snaps without surrendering a sack in their college career.”
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