Brian Kelly Notre Dame Spring ’15 Presser Notes 3/24

Brian Kelly addressed the media on Wednesday following Notre Dame’s latest practice. Here’s the full video of his presser from the fine team at WatchND along with some notes below.

• Kelly talked a lot again today about Notre Dame being able to be more physical in practice due to the depth that the Irish have in the trenches. We talked about this over the weekend and Kelly brought it up again today in his opening remarks.
• Nothing major on the injury front – nothing that will keep anyone out for the spring other than Joe Schmidt and Jarron Jones who we knew were out for spring. Jarrett Grace was out with a concussion which is a tough setback for him following his long journey back.
• At the quarterback position, Kelly said that he likes how the quarterbacks are working in the classroom. He also said that the fundamentals that were missing last year are right in Mike Sanford’s wheelhouse and they are improving already this year. He mentioned that in the past under Chuck Martin pass protections were stressed and under Matt Lafleur concepts were a point of emphasis.
• Torii Hunter Jr has the ability to play all three wide receiver positions if need be, but Kelly would prefer that he play the X receiver or slot position in the offense.
• Kelly said the staff feels very confident in Durham Smythe as a pass catcher. Tyler Luatua was mentioned as the 2nd tight end with more blocking skills but hasn’t established himself as a pass catcher like Smythe. Nic Weishar was listed third, but Kelly said that Weishar still needs to get bigger. Chase Hounshell was mentioned as the 4th tight end.
• Alex Bars and Collin McGovern were both mentioned as possible 6th offensive linemen who could be used in unbalanced lines at times for the offense this year.
• Deshone Kizer has been working as the holder on PAT’s and FGs. Given the struggles with holding last year, hopefully, this will shore up the kicking unit.
• Amir Carlisle and Greg Bryant will get a look at kick returner, but they have opened it up to everyone and there isn’t a front runner right now. Kelly said they will pick four or five guys and have them focus on their return skills over the summer.
• Kelly said that things are “so much different than were they were at this time last year or anytime during the season,” with Elijah Shumate and Max Redfield They aren’t seeing the missed assignments that forced both out of the starting line following the Arizona State game.
• They have seen improvement from Steve Elmer in his ability to sustain his blocks. Kelly said Elmer was sloppy at times in the past, but they have seen a lot of improvement on that front. Nick Martin is stronger and more effective than he was a year ago so far in camp.
• Alex Bars and Quenton Nelson drew high praise from Kelly as well. Quenton Nelson was described as being “explosive, strong, and can overcome a defender.” On Bars, Kelly said he is so far above the normal red-shirt freshman from a technical perspective. Kelly said it will be hard to make a call between the two as they are fighting for the left guard position. Kelly wants to get them both in the game and said Bars might play some tackle.
• Kelly said Jerry Tillery was far and away the story of spring. He has been running with the first group so and in three on three drills he was tough to block. Based on Kelly’s comments, the Tillery defensive line experiment really sounds like it could stick. Kelly specifically praised Tillery for how well he uses his hands already for a young defensive lineman already.