Robert Hainsey stuck his nose in the pile and shoved forward, old Notre Dame teammates Aaron Banks and Ian Book in tow.
When a mass of humanity surrounding ex-North Carolina running back Michael Carter appeared to slow down a couple yards shy of the end zone in Saturday’s Senior Bowl, Hainsey, the former Irish offensive tackle, grabbed onto a defender trying to tackle Carter and kept pushing.
The pile hit the end zone for a 12-yard touchdown run in the third quarter of the National team’s 27-24 win in the Senior Bowl, giving Hainsey, Book, Banks and fellow old teammates Daelin Hayes and Ade Ogundeji a win. Each of them played meaningful snaps. And the consensus is the week of practice and the game in Mobile, Ala. helped their NFL Draft outlook.
Hainsey, a starter at right tackle for Notre Dame from the 2017 Citrus Bowl through 2020, played guard and center in Saturday’s game and took practice reps at tackle, guard and center during the three padded practices. He and Banks, who repped at left guard all week, frequently played on the line together.
Following the week of practice, Book was named the National team’s top quarterback on Friday as voted by a group of defensive backs. He started the second half and was 5-for-11 for 48 yards and an interception on a Hail Mary attempt.
After two three-and-outs where he scrambled three times, took a 9-yard sack and threw no official passes, Book settled in and led the touchdown drive that ended in Carter’s run. His longest passing gain was a 16-yarder on a fourth-and-3 slant to UCLA’s Demetric Felton.
“He reminds me a lot of Colt McCoy, who has been in the NFL for a long time,” NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah said during the broadcast.
Yahoo! Sports’ Eric Edholm listed Book as one of the week’s winners in his postgame reaction and labeled him as a Day 3 prospect.
“On short and intermediate passes, Book was highly accurate, threw crisp spirals and generally speaking gave his receivers a chance to maximize their yards after the catch,” Edholm wrote. “The problem came on deeper throws, where Book wasn’t as accurate and his passes fluttered more.
“But overall, it’s hard to say Book didn’t open some eyes. He won’t be for everyone, and his downfield passing will limit his overall appeal, however Book’s playmaking ability and vastly improved passing ability over the past few years must be respected.
“It wouldn’t be stunning if he goes as early as Round 4. Book reminds me a bit of Chargers fifth-rounder Easton Stick, but perhaps with a bit more juice.”
Book took snaps from Hainsey on a couple series. Hainsey started at right guard and had a key second-level block on Carter’s 27-yard run in the first quarter. He was reliable in pass protection. Like Book, Hainsey’s week drew strong reviews. Jeremiah listed him among 10 winners from the week of practice.
“Hainsey was one of the most consistent prospects this week,” Jeremiah wrote. “He played with good hands and a firm base, taking snaps at guard and tackle. The team that picks him will be getting a very polished player. It didn't go unnoticed that the Notre Dame guys worked after practice every single day, and I was told Hainsey's interviews with teams were outstanding.”
Banks allowed a pressure on his first series and was driven into the ground on a second-half rep, but he cleared a linebacker out of the way on Carter’s touchdown before Hainsey and others pushed the pile into the end zone.
On defense, Hayes and Ogundeji each had a sack against Texas A&M offensive tackle Carson Green. The former had three total tackles, two of them in run defense on his first series, and played mostly as a stand-up edge rusher. He sped by Green in the second quarter and hit former Wake Forest and Georgia quarterback Jamie Newman for a 5-yard loss. He was credited with a half-sack, along with UCLA’s Osa Odighizuwa.
“Hayes did a good job rushing inside and outside,” Jeremiah said during the broadcast. “Nice job showing that quickness and some bend-ability once he gets to the top of his rush.
Ogundeji started at defensive end and took snaps at three-technique tackle in his final series. On his opening drive, he put pressure on Texas A&M quarterback Kellen Mond when he was an unblocked defender on a play-action bootleg to force a checkdown. He later dislodged from a block to assist in bringing down Newman on a failed foruth-and-1 attempt.
“Length? Check,” wrote TheDraftNetwork’s Kyle Crabbs of Ogundeji. “Hand counters? Check.”
Notre Dame was originally slated to have seven Senior Bowl participants. Receiver Ben Skowronek injured his foot in Wednesday’s practice and did not play. Left tackle Liam Eichenberg had previously accepted an invite but did not participate in practices or the game for unknown reasons.
----
• Talk about it inside Rockne’s Roundtable.
• Learn more about our print and digital publication, Blue & Gold Illustrated.
• Watch our videos and subscribe to our YouTube channel.
• Sign up for Blue & Gold's news alerts and daily newsletter.
• Subscribe to our podcast on Apple Podcasts.
• Follow us on Twitter: @BGINews, @BGI_LouSomogyi, @Rivals_Singer, @PatrickEngel_, @MasonPlummer_ and @AndrewMentock.
• Like us on Facebook.