Notre Dame Football Practice Report

Notre Dame held its second practice of the 2023 season today, and we were able to see the first five periods. Here are our thoughts and observations from today's practice.

OFFENSE

*** Watching the quarterbacks, we saw some interesting things today. Most of it was individual and a few routes on air, but they did a drill where the quarterbacks had to move around and throw off platform and with a different arm angle. Sam Hartman and Kenny Minchey both do this effortlessly, and with surprisingly good zip. This is an area where Steve Angeli struggles. He's really not a change your arm angle kind of guy.

*** The quarterbacks worked on a lot of different footwork drills today in the run game. Without giving away too much, the quarterbacks will be asked to get the ball to running backs in a lot of different ways, and today they were working on the footwork and timing on those different ways.

*** We talked a lot about the running backs yesterday and we saw more of them today, because they were one of the few positions that did drills that allowed them to ramp up speed. The explosiveness from this group really stands out, and they all catch the ball very well today. They spent a lot of time working in the pass game during drills, both in pass pro (saw a lot of this, which was good) and they also continue to work on different routes out of the backfield.

*** Sophomore Jadarian Price again showed a great burst, but we saw him working on cutting today, and I liked the agility he showed. He's not just a one-cut runner with speed, he showed me some elusiveness. We got to see more from Devyn Ford today in this regard. Ford lacks the explosiveness of the younger backs, but in the drills we saw today his ability to make smooth, quick cuts really stood out. He also caught the ball well.

*** We saw freshman Braylon James fight the ball a bit in the spring, but in the first two practices I've been much happier with his growth here. He's catching the ball much cleaner and his speed stands out in drills. His footwork was a bit more efficient today as well.

*** Got to watch Eli Raridon work through drills today where he had to cut. His speed off the line and when working across the field is very, very good. What I was happy to see today, however, was him cutting off both knees (meaning different directions) and he didn't look hesitant at all. He was making quick cuts and got out of his breaks clean. He's a really, really impressive athlete that is probably the most physically imposing tight end on the roster. Holden Staes had a similar day to yesterday: fast, smooth, catches the ball very well.

*** Watched a lot of offensive line drills today, here are my thoughts:

*** Freshman Charles Jagusah does not have a lot of bad weight on him. Like all freshman there is obviously some reshaping that will happen, and his conditioning will need to improve, but his 330 pounds is more about him just being massive. He moved very well working out of the shoot and when working get off drills today. I like his first step and he works his feet well through contact. There is a lot of technical work that is needed, I mean a lot, but the natural tools are really outstanding. Classmates Sam Pendleton and Sullivan Absher both moved very well today. Pendleton is much further along than the other freshmen from a footwork and hand play standpoint, which isn't a surprise since he went through spring practice. What I like about Pendleton, however, is how smooth he is for a 314-pound kid. Absher needs a ton of work with his footwork, which we already knew, but despite being 326 pounds he was very quick working through drills, and he's very long.

*** Senior Tosh Baker was impressive during drills today. He is moving much better than I've ever seen him. In the past, Baker has struggled to bend and he's been really tight when he moves. It seemed he struggled to handle all the weight he gained, but in the practice today I saw him move better than ever. He's smooth working laterally, he's coming out of his stance with some burst (and he's keeping his pads low) and he just looks more athletic.

*** Both Andrew Kristofic and Rocco Spindler went through drills with purpose today, and they were moving well. Spindler had another strong day and he's getting talked about a lot by IB because of how much he's improved, but Kristofic also looked very good going through drills. He's practicing with confidence from what we saw today.

DEFENSE

*** Much of the defensive roster spent the beginning of working through different turnover circuit drills, in space tackling/pursuit drills and then individual drills. We really didn't get to see the defensive players really turning loose, but there were some things we could see today.

*** I spent most of my time viewing the defense with a look at the linebackers, and that is where I'll focus most of my report on the defense.

*** Fifth-year seniors Jack Kiser and JD Bertrand are both moving around very well. They are the leaders in each drill, their fundamentals working through drills was sound, and Kiser is showing a bit more of a burst this year despite having an extra 10 pounds or so, which was good to see. Watching him on the tackling sled he was showing good pop and lower body power. The other fifth-year linebacker - Marist Liufau - is certainly moving around well in drills. We were told this summer when looking for intel that he was a bit faster and explosive this year now that he's a year further removed from the injury that cost him the 2021 season. I can see that in drills today, he's moving well.

*** Freshman Jaiden Ausberry is a really impressive athlete. Watching him run around he moves different than the other linebackers. He and classmate Drayk Bowen are both very explosive athletes, and Bowen impressed me working through drills today as well. His downhill burst is outstanding and he is already showing good footwork efficiency in drills. With Ausberry, there's just a smoothness that goes with that explosiveness that makes me think he can absolutely stay outside and play in space. Fellow freshman Preston Zinter has the best frame of all the linebackers from a size standpoint. He is long and has the potential to move to Vyper down the road if he needs to, but I think he can stick at linebacker from a movement standpoint. He's not as explosive as his classmates, but he moves well, shows good change of direction and he's got some pop.

*** When I saw that Rylie Mills was up to 306 pounds I was curious if he'd lose a step. I had a chance to watch him go through drills today and my concerns have been alleviated. Mills weight gains are good, and he didn't add any bad weight that I could see. He showed a really good burst working through drills, especially with his initial burst off the line. Junior Gabriel Rubio showed me a good vertical burst today and he's going through drills with some fire. He's not as laterally athletic as Mills, but his first step has improved.

*** Seeing Jason Onye up close adds even more intrigue about him as a player. He's a very well put together 290+ pounds. His length is really impressive and his get off in drills impressed. His lateral quickness and change of direction need work, but his vertical burst stands out in drills in a big way.

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