Notre Dame's Offensive Line Understands The Standard It Must Live Up To
Notre Dame has had good offensive line play throughout the last decade, and at times the line play has been downright brilliant.
The standard is so high that even when the line is just good, like it was in 2018 and 2019, it is viewed - rightly - as a bit of a disappointment.
According to Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly, the offensive linemen on the 2020 squad not only are aware of that standard, they embrace it.
When talking about the line, Kelly praised how well the unit works together on and off the field. That is to be expected from a line that returns 114 career starts.
The Notre Dame head coach praised the size and physicality of the interior blockers. He discussed the experience, talent and pass protection skills of veteran tackles Robert Hainsey and Liam Eichenberg. Kelly also praised Joshua Lugg, who played well in his five starts last season after Hainsey went down with a season-ending injury.
The notable part of his interview, at least to me, was Kelly talking about the high standard of offensive line play. That is something that was missing during the 2019 season, but Kelly embraced it during this week's press conference.
More important, however, is the fact the players embrace that standard and hold themselves to it, which Kelly said they are. That is exactly what every source I've spoken with this spring and summer has also confirmed, this is a motivated group of blockers that expect to be dominant in 2020.
Note: All video and highlights are provided by Notre Dame Athletics.
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