Notre Dame Practice Notes – April 3rd

Analysis and observations from the Notre Dame spring practice

Notre Dame wide receiver Jaden Greathouse / Angela Driskell, Irish Breakdown

We had another session of practice this morning. Per usual it was the first five periods, and a good chunk of that was used to practice special teams and tackling. Here is what I saw from the Irish practice, with our focus being on the skill players on offense and the back seven during the defensive period.

OFFENSE

*** Riley Leonard was out at practice today, which I was quite surprised by. He wasn't wearing pads, but he had a jersey on and he went through drills. Leonard had a big brace on his ankle, and he was walking awkwardly, which could be a result of pain in his ankle, but could also be a result of not being able to bend because he's wearing a heavy stabilizing brace. Either way, I was surprised to see Leonard on the field so shortly after having surgery on his ankle.

*** From a performance standpoint, I was very impressed with how Leonard threw the ball today. He was pinpoint with his throws, both on the move and in the pocket. He drove the ball into the midsection of his receivers on slant routes, was sharp on out throws and had two great deep balls. He threw a gorgeous Over route during routes on air, and the last throw we saw from him in practice was a bomb on a Post route. It looked like it was going to be a bit long, but the receiver kept running and perfectly hit him in stride. Leonard also threw a very well placed back-shoulder throw on a Wide Fade route as well.

*** Steve Angeli was solid during the day, throwing the ball well on the move and being accurate on out breaking routes. He was a bit high at times over the middle, but Angeli also threw two perfectly aimed Corner routes. That's a route he's been spotty with in the past, but he was absolutely on point with those throws today. Freshman CJ Carr was very sharp during the drills we saw today. Carr also had a gorgeous corner throw, arguably the best of the day, when he hit the slot receiver not only in stride, but the timing was such that Carr actually kept the player in bounds. I didn't see much of Kenny Minchey today, but he did throw well on the quick movement throws I saw and he had a relatively well placed back shoulder throw to a slot receiver.

*** Overall the quarterbacks as a whole were pretty sharp today. 

*** Freshman Kedren Young was back at practice today. He didn't have shoulder pads on, but he was moving around well during individual drills. Junior Jadarian Price caught the ball very well during RVA drills, but his route running was very sharp. That's an area where he continues to show good improvement. Price was very explosive working change of direction bag drills and during route work.

*** Sophomore Jaden Greathouse continues to set the pace at wide receiver. He was impressively quick during bag drills and routes, and he's been the No. 1 receiver to take a rep during drills at each practice we've been to, including today. Greathouse caught the ball very well during drills, his footwork was efficient and his burst really stood out both during drills and in one-on-one periods. Greathouse is showing better long speed this spring than we saw during the fall, and that was evident today. Classmate KK Smith continues to impress, showing good quickness in drills and he catches the ball clean. Senior Deion Colzie caught the ball well today, which was good to see after his hand injury. He was quick and efficient working through drills and he was very physical during the 1-on-1 tackling period. Colzie did a really good job dipping his shoulder and driving the defensive back forward. Transfer Kris Mitchell showed good vertical speed and he caught the ball very well, and fellow transfer Jayden Harrison continues to impress with his explosiveness.

*** Freshman Micah Gilbert was smooth during drills, but the best part of his practice was he was working down the field routes well today. He's been catching the ball very well and shows good route running ability, but today we got to see him. turn it loose with some deep routes. Freshman Cam Williams is still very mechanical working through drills, especially route drills. You can tell he's not overly comfortable as a route runner yet, and that keeps him from really standing out in drills. Then we get to the RVA period, and the offense was working on more vertical routes, and that's when Williams shines. When he can just let it rip he shows really, really impressive explosiveness, and he had an excellent one-handed catch during this period as well.

DEFENSE

*** After stretch, the offense and defense went through a one-on-one tackling period. A trash can was between them with a ball on it. The two players would stand on one side of it. The offensive player would grab the ball and they would immediately go towards each other. There were wins on both sides, but overall the offense dominated this period. I was impressed with how physical the offensive players were, but the defensive players - as a unit - weren't quite as good as they need to be from a wrapping up standpoint.

*** One player that really stood out during this period was Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa. He went one-on-one with Jack Larsen, and the freshman linebacker did a great job of getting low, exploding his feet through contact and driving Larsen back. In most instances a win by the defense was more of a stalemate, but when KVA went through this he drove defenders back. Drayk Bowen was the other linebacker that impressed during this one-on-one period. Bowen also showed good instincts and communication during the motion drill, where the defense was focused on recognizing movement and adjusting before the snap. Adon Shuler, Luke Talich and Christian Gray were other defensive players who had good wins during this period.

*** Shuler looks very comfortable working with the first group. He is quick with his communication, he has shown good tackling form all spring (and that continued today), and his movement athletically is impressive. Shuler runs downhill very well, but during coverage drills he also showed a good ability to change direction as well as opening up and running. He was commended multiple times for quickly diagnosing what he saw during the motion period, and making the proper check. Talich also stood out during this period, and his ease of movement at 6-4 is impressive.

*** Sophomore Christian Gray was playing in the boundary today, and as expected he looked good. Gray is Notre Dame's most physically gifted cornerback right now (of the healthy players), and he's noticeably more explosive and moves better than anyone else. This is true during drills and when doing anything in a one-on-one setting. Gray also shows very impressive instincts and a strong feel in coverage. What surprised me today was how physical he was during the tackling drills and when working on the sled.

*** During the motion period Notre Dame lined up with its back seven in tact. The first group during that period was Drayk Bowen at Mike, Jack Kiser as Will and Jaylen Sneed at Rover. Xavier Watts was the field safety and Adon Shuler was the boundary safety. The next Will in was Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, and the next Rover in was Jaiden Ausberry. Luke Talich (boundary) and Ben Minich (field) were the next safeties in during that period.

*** One young player that really caught my eye today was Kennedy Urlacher. He's very, very strong and physical for a first year player. He absolutely whipped Williams during the one-on-one tackling period. Urlacher arrives at the ball with a lot of force, and the power he shows working the sled was noticeable as well. While Notre Dame might want to redshirt him (a guess), I'll be surprised if that is possible. I have a hard time seeing Urlacher not earning a key role on some special teams units this season based on how well he runs and how well he strikes during practice.

SPECIAL TEAMS

*** Jaden Greathouse was the No. 1 punt returner today, and he looks just as sharp fielding punts and returning them as he does playing wide receiver. KK Smith was the second player to get a look as a punt returner. He was followed by Jaden Mickey, Jadarian Price and Jayden Harrison.

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