Brian Kelly Talks Notre Dame Fall Camp 2014 Day 1

Brian Kelly met with the media after the first day of fall camp 2014 giving some minor injury updates as well as some very early impressions of the team after their first day of work.

Here’s the video from Kelly’s session as posted on the WatchND YouTube channel along with some notes and highlights.

• Kelly was happy with the tempo of the practice and the team’s ability to run a lot of plays for the first day of camp.
• For the wide receivers, Kelly said that this week will really be about fundamentals. Kelly will be working with the receivers closely for the first couple weeks while Mike Denbrock recovers from his surgery.
• Kelly didn’t single anyone out as standing out or impressing after the first practice stating that it usually takes a couple days for someone to really standout.  He did say that the team was miles better than the first day of spring practice and retention was very good from the spring to now.
• Kelly is looking for the team to really come together during the off-campus portion of training camp at Culver Academy.  HE said that leadership will develop at some point, but the first week with the team away from campus is really about the team coming together.
• In terms of the development of Everett Golson, Kelly said that he is waiting for Golson to get to the point where he is fearless as opposed to fearful of the quarterback position.  He said that Golson isn’t quite there yet, but he is getting close to that point.
• In terms of Jaylon Smith’s role, Kelly said that he will have a much expanded role in this year’s defense including playing some inside linebacker as well as playing on the edge.  He also noted that Smith is one of the more well respected players on the team despite being just a sophomore.  He said that Smith can be a leader and wouldn’t rule out the possibility of Smith being named a captain.
• Ronnie Stanley was taken off the field and needed an IV but he expects him back on the field tomorrow.
• Kelly said that he thinks Will Mahone will be looking at other options when asked about whether or not he will be back.
• Kelly said that he loves the new FieldTurf that was installed over the summer.  He said it looked visually appealing and that the team was excited to play on it.