Todd Lyght Assesses Notre Dame's New Defensive Backs: Part I
It hasn’t taken long for the man with one of the most perfect football playing careers you can find to make his mark in the coaching industry as well.
As a former star at Notre Dame, Todd Lyght was a national champion (1988), a two-time consensus All-American (1989-90) — one of only 16 in program history — and later a benefactor to the University with his own scholarship fund.
In the NFL, no Notre Dame defensive back was ever selected higher (No. 5 overall). Lyght then played 12 years and was both a Super Bowl champion and a Pro Bowl selection.
Now in only three seasons at his alma mater, the 49-year-old Lyght, who just recently entered the coaching ranks, is earning a similar reputation in his new profession. After helping sign a seven-man secondary in 2016, led by current All-American cornerback candidate Julian Love and speedster Troy Pride Jr., plus starting safety Jalen Elliott, Lyght was selected by Rivals.com as one of the nation’s top 25 recruiters with another seven-man harvest in the secondary.
The group is highlighted by safety candidates Derrik Allen and Houston Griffith, both of whom Lyght already foreshadows as future NFL players. No position group for the Irish in this recruiting cycle received a higher ranking from Rivals than safety (No. 4 nationally).
Lyght actually began recruiting the Georgia native Allen when the latter was a 10th-grade cornerback and took a March 2016 visit to campus with his father on "Junior Day."
“You could see in 10th grade that one day he’s going to play on Sunday,” said Lyght, who understandably does not take playing at the next level lightly. “Usually we don’t offer 10th graders, but I knew he was such an outstanding talent I ended up offering him before he left.
“We had a staff meeting the following week and everybody was like, ‘Oh man, we should have offered Derrik Allen when he was on campus.’ I was like, ‘Don’t worry about it. I already got that done.’ ”
One of the other reasons why Lyght extended the offer is because the 6-2, 215-pound Allen is the archetype student-athlete whose father Derrik Sr. graduated from West Point and mother Chinita from the Ivy League. Despite tremendous in-state and SEC pressure, Allen never wavered, per Lyght, after committing on February 13, 2017.
“When you talk about recruiting in this day and age with this generation … Sometimes it’s more about emotion, and I think Derrik knew exactly what he wanted from start to finish,” Lyght said. “He would text me back, ‘Coach you don’t have to text me all the time. I’m good’ — which is rare, because a lot of guys want the attention and want the focus on themselves. Derrik was the complete opposite. ‘Once every three weeks is fine. I’m not going anywhere.’ ”
Meanwhile, Griffith is the highest rated player by Rivals (No. 43 nationally) in Notre Dame’s 27-man class. His father, Howard, played fullback eight seasons in the NFL — including two with Lyght’s Los Angeles Rams in 1993-94.
The Chicago native played his final two seasons at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. Because of Griffith's talent, talking part in an advanced strength and conditioning program at that level of football, having already dealt with being away from home for the first time, and now as an early entrant who will be part of Notre Dame’s 15 spring practices that begin March 6, Griffith is projected by Lyght to help in various capacities as a freshman.
Usually, a college rookie will be plugged in at only one spot so he can learn it thoroughly, but Lyght said the 6-foot, 194-pound Griffith’s versatility and football IQ will have him all over the place this spring.
“We’re going to start him in the boundary [cornerback], going to play a little bit of strong safety, little bit of free safety, little bit of nickel, and find out what suits him best and his skill set,” Lyght noted.
“Coming from a program like IMG where they have such a good weightlifting program and a speed and conditioning program, he’s a little bit different than a lot of the kids that come in like a Tariq Bracy, where the strength and conditioning program is not as strong as IMG.nBut for him, he’s been through that hard work and that dedication that it takes to play at a high level. IMG is one of the premier high school programs in the country… The intensity is tougher.
“With his position versatility, he’s going to have an opportunity to play not only on special teams but defense early.”
The third and final safety, 5-11, 196-pound Paul Moala from nearby Mishawaka Penn High School, will not come in with the fanfare of Allen and Griffith. However, Lyght and new safeties coach Terry Joseph both envision Moala potentially playing special teams right away. No single position in football is better suited for special teams action than safety, where last year freshman safeties Jordan Genmark Heath and Isaiah Robertson both earned monograms, as did rising senior Nicco Fertitta as a freshman.
With the growing numbers at the safety position — including sophomore Alohi Gilman now eligible after transferring from Navy, where he started in 2016 — Lyght and the staff are contemplating some potential moves there to get the best athletes on the field in some capacity.
They did that last year too when captain Drue Tranquill downshifted from safety to rover, where he excelled. A possibility this year could be Robertson, who enrolled early last year.
“Isaiah Robertson is a player I think that could move and be a really outstanding rover due to his length and his size,” said Lyght of the 6-1 ½, 195-pound safety who apprenticed behind Nick Coleman last year. “Isaiah doesn’t really weigh that much, but he plays much heavier because he’s so physical at the point of attack and the way he steps to contact and the way he brings ball carriers down. I could see him being a player that could move down to the second level and play that rover spot.”
Tomorrow: Part II, Cornerbacks
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