Senior Leadership
7/30/99
by Brian Burke

What would you call Notre Dame's last successful season?  If you're going to
be real demanding you'll say 1988.  But for the sake of argument let's just
say that most of us thought after the 1993 season the Irish had a pretty good
team.  What did that team have?  Obviously lots of good players, but more
specifically lots of good seniors.  Bryant Young and Jim Flanigan on the
defensive line, Jeff Burris, John Covington, and Greg Lane in the secondary,
Clint Johnson and Lake Dawson at the receiver spots, solid linebackers Pete
Bercich and Brian Ratigan, Aaron Taylor and Tim Ruddy leading a dominant
offensive line... The fabulous recruiting haul of 1990 had developed into a
formidable group of seniors that brought ND to within a David Gordon 41 yard
field goal of the national championship.  Even when up against supposedly
superior talent (a la FSU) the seniors stepped up (the O-line, Jeff Burris
especially) and had big games when they had to.  (I know, I know, if only they
could have done it the following week.)  Now fast forward.
     Before the 1998 season the so-called experts would not have been
surprised to see Notre Dame go 7-4.  After all, Michigan, Arizona St.., and
LSU seemed clearly to be more talented, and losses to Michigan St.., USC,
Purdue, and Boston College all seemed like definite possibilities.  Probably
the biggest reason the Irish started off 9-1 before running out of luck with
with 20 some seconds left in that ninth win, was the strong senior class.  The
seniors of 1998 were considered the top group of incoming freshmen when they
arrived on campus in 1995, although the two biggest prospects, Randy Moss and
tailback James Jackson never made it to South Bend.  Nevertheless, by the time
they became seniors, Notre Dame had a core of players with game experience who
had proven they were dependable.  Having seniors Kory Minor, Bobby Howard, and
Jimmy Friday as the linebackers meant less mental mistakes because of their
experience.  Whether they were an under-achieving group or not, it's probably
safe to say that having seniors (or 5th year player) Mike Rosenthal, Tim
Ridder, Jerry Wisne, and Luke Petigout on the offensive line meant that Autry
Denson would get his yards.  Speaking of experience...
     Notre Dame's linebackers might be more talented and have more potential
than last year's.  The same might be said about some of the offensive linemen.
 Tony Driver and Tony Fisher may very well be bigger and faster than Autry
Denson.  So why is there a more uneasy feeling at all these spots compared to
last year?  There is a lot that we just will not know about until they strap
it on August 28th, and we probably still won't know until at least a week
later.  As Mike Ditka once said, "Potential just means you haven't done
anything yet."  What is so under-rated in college football (which in nature is
not like college basketball where sophomores fly to the pros) is strong senior
leadership, and this year's group of seniors is not considered stellar by any
stretch of the imagination.  So who is going to lead this team?  Jarious
Jackson?  He's the only guy anyone could come up with to be a captain, but he
cannot do it alone.
   There are several players that by now were expected to assume leadership
roles, but are any of them thought to be possible first, second, or even third
round draft picks?  Raki Nelson came to Notre Dame out of high school as a
receiver apparently comparable to the likes of David Boston and Peter Warrick. 
Unfortunately he never became that big play maker many thought he would be. 
Deke Cooper has been solid but again not spectacular, and taking time away
from the team for academic reasons might have slowed his progress some.  The
two USA Today 1st team All Americans, Jason Ching and Brad Williams have
overall been disappointing.  Ching has been injured for much of his time at ND
and has had trouble keeping his weight up.  Williams may finally in his
senior year, emerge as the force he was thought to be.  Ronnie Nicks is
another name.  If he had stayed healthy, perhaps he would be considered the
anchor at linebacker as opposed to Anthony Denman.  Deveron Harper has had to
play out of position at corner because of need, and despite being a clear
starter, he has yet to snag an interception.  Joey Goodspeed might become one
of the leaders, if he can catch a football first.
     So if the senior class lacks the type of dependable personnel from last
year, where do the leaders come from?  Notre Dame is fortunate enough to have
a strong group of 5th year players, along with Jackson, Lamont Bryant, Bobby
Brown, A'Jani Sanders and Antwon Jones, that could pick up the slack.  Also,
ND's leadership might come from the other side of the senior class by means of
experienced juniors such as Anthony Denman (who now is really a necessary
leader) and Jabari Holloway.  In any event, it has to come from somewhere. 
Ironically, the strongest leadership from this year's senior class may come
from the biggest pre-season question mark: the offensive line.  Up the middle
the line features senior left guard Jim Jones, a weight room work horse who
knows the system, senior right guard Mike Gandy who has some starting
experience and performed well last year in Jerry Wisne's absence, and senior
center John Merandi, the only returning starter on the O-line and quite
possibly the most valuable player of his class.  It will be crucial for these
three to make the line as a whole into a cohesive unit.
     So, amidst all this pre-season optimism, keep in mind that this football
team will only go as far as their leaders take them.  Who the leaders will
turn out to be is far from obvious.  We'll find out soon enough.

Of course I may be wrong, I have been before.  If you'd like to agree/disagree
with me, please feel free to email me at Brian.D.Burke.68@nd.edu