I caught up with a couple different people close to the football program last night and this morning to get their opinions on a few things. This wasn’t necessarily a case of me digging around for specific information, just more a case of shooting the bull with a couple people and bouncing ideas/notes off each other.
A few takeaways from my conversations:
--- Hearing the first-team quarterback reps are still being divided pretty evenly between Shane Buechele and Tyrone Swoopes.
Obviously, talk of the QB competition was a hot topic after last night’s War Room, in which OB’s Anwar Richardson reported that Swoopes holds the edge for the starting spot after the first week of practice.
One person I spoke with said the team has not been given any indication from the coaches on which way they may be leaning at this stage of camp. As mentioned above, the reps have been pretty even and the players on the team haven’t been told that one is out in front. Would they even care? I’m sure opinions will vary, but from what I’m told, the players just want to win and they’ll rally behind whichever quarterback is on the field.
--- This isn’t exactly “news,” but one person had an interesting take on the quarterback situation. And I tend to agree with his opinion.
In his eyes, the coaches have nothing to gain and everything to lose by starting Swoopes over Buechele. If Buechele struggles, there’s still room for improvement and the coaches can point toward his youth and any growth over the course of the season as positive developments. If Swoopes starts, the coaches better be extremely confident that he’s going to get the program turned around, because if he’s out there and struggles yet again, that could be tough for the coaches to overcome. Not to mention the fan backlash that will come from the decision. Lots less to lose by starting Beuchele.
One person I spoke with late last night speculated that the praise for Swoopes earl y in camp could be a coaching tactic to (a) take some pressure off Buechele and (b) make Notre Dame prepare for both quarterbacks. Pure speculation on his part and it was more just him and I having a casual conversation about the QB situation, but it does make some sense.
---- I was told by someone in the college coaching circles that one highly-regarded offensive-minded head coach told him this summer that if he had to pick a QB to run UT’s offense, it would be Swoopes. Mind you, this coach has zero ties to Texas, I just thought that was interesting.
--- As for the first few days in full pads, one person told me the coaches are “killing them right now.” That same source said he hopes the coaches back off a little bit in plenty of time for the season-opener to allow guys to recharge their batteries. Word is that some players felt last year’s pre-season camp was so intense, for so long, guys were worn down when the season-opener finally rolled around.
--- Overall, the people I spoke with are both impressed with the team through the first week of practices. It will obviously come down to improved quarterback play, one person said, but team morale is totally different than the last two years.
“Everybody feels like part of the same team versus it being older guys or younger guys,” one source said.
--- If quarterback is the biggest question mark the team is facing, the situation at defensive tackle is probably second on the list. The true freshmen have stepped in and, for the most part, held their own, but one source had an interesting note.
The guys are good, he said, but they’re still young and there is still concern if they’re ready to hold up for the every-down grind of playing at this level.
“Even though their babies, you can rotate them in. Even if they’re 330 pounds, you have to remember that Malcom Brown 330 is not high school 330. A couple of them should probably be closer to 280. But they can rotate them in and keep them fresh, maybe give them five or six plays at a time.”
--- Interesting quote about the running backs …
“They’re all really good. All of them. They don’t get as much love, but even Tristian Houston is really good and Kyle Porter is a hoss.”
--- Brandon Hodges is about to get passed up and the young pups aren’t about to look back, I’m told. As I mentioned last week, Denzel Okafor has been the guy who has most impressed since the freshmen arrived on campus. That point was reiterated to me again late last night.
He’s running second team at right tackle behind Tristan Nickelson, who has had a solid camp. Nickelson battled an ankle injury in the spring and is now fully healthy. One source said Nickelson made dramatic strides from last year because he spent time working with Hassan Ridgeway when Ridgeway was training to get ready for the NFL, and Nickelson worked hard this summer to improve his footwork. Saturday’s scrimmage and the coming days could be key for offensive line depth chart projections.
--- The talk of Jerrod Heard playing at wide receiver has been a hot topic of late. Sources confirmed to me again last night and this morning that Heard began doing some work at the position right after spring practice ended in April. Apparently Heard is all in and feels this may be his best way to help the team and put himself in position to have a professional career.
One thought I threw out there, and one source agreed …
In the first few practices, when Heard was working at quarterback, there was little work in the passing game when he was on the field. Just about every play was either a zone read or scramble by Heard.
In the worst case scenario, should something happen to Swoopes and Buechele and the coaches needed to go back to Heard in an emergency situation, he could probably easily transition back to a running quarterback, similar to what Baylor did against Texas last year with converted wide receiver Lynx Hawhtorne. He wouldn’t exactly need a ton of reps to be ready, and by moving him out of the equation that gives the staff a better chance to evaluate Swoopes and Beuchele.
A few takeaways from my conversations:
--- Hearing the first-team quarterback reps are still being divided pretty evenly between Shane Buechele and Tyrone Swoopes.
Obviously, talk of the QB competition was a hot topic after last night’s War Room, in which OB’s Anwar Richardson reported that Swoopes holds the edge for the starting spot after the first week of practice.
One person I spoke with said the team has not been given any indication from the coaches on which way they may be leaning at this stage of camp. As mentioned above, the reps have been pretty even and the players on the team haven’t been told that one is out in front. Would they even care? I’m sure opinions will vary, but from what I’m told, the players just want to win and they’ll rally behind whichever quarterback is on the field.
--- This isn’t exactly “news,” but one person had an interesting take on the quarterback situation. And I tend to agree with his opinion.
In his eyes, the coaches have nothing to gain and everything to lose by starting Swoopes over Buechele. If Buechele struggles, there’s still room for improvement and the coaches can point toward his youth and any growth over the course of the season as positive developments. If Swoopes starts, the coaches better be extremely confident that he’s going to get the program turned around, because if he’s out there and struggles yet again, that could be tough for the coaches to overcome. Not to mention the fan backlash that will come from the decision. Lots less to lose by starting Beuchele.
One person I spoke with late last night speculated that the praise for Swoopes earl y in camp could be a coaching tactic to (a) take some pressure off Buechele and (b) make Notre Dame prepare for both quarterbacks. Pure speculation on his part and it was more just him and I having a casual conversation about the QB situation, but it does make some sense.
---- I was told by someone in the college coaching circles that one highly-regarded offensive-minded head coach told him this summer that if he had to pick a QB to run UT’s offense, it would be Swoopes. Mind you, this coach has zero ties to Texas, I just thought that was interesting.
--- As for the first few days in full pads, one person told me the coaches are “killing them right now.” That same source said he hopes the coaches back off a little bit in plenty of time for the season-opener to allow guys to recharge their batteries. Word is that some players felt last year’s pre-season camp was so intense, for so long, guys were worn down when the season-opener finally rolled around.
--- Overall, the people I spoke with are both impressed with the team through the first week of practices. It will obviously come down to improved quarterback play, one person said, but team morale is totally different than the last two years.
“Everybody feels like part of the same team versus it being older guys or younger guys,” one source said.
--- If quarterback is the biggest question mark the team is facing, the situation at defensive tackle is probably second on the list. The true freshmen have stepped in and, for the most part, held their own, but one source had an interesting note.
The guys are good, he said, but they’re still young and there is still concern if they’re ready to hold up for the every-down grind of playing at this level.
“Even though their babies, you can rotate them in. Even if they’re 330 pounds, you have to remember that Malcom Brown 330 is not high school 330. A couple of them should probably be closer to 280. But they can rotate them in and keep them fresh, maybe give them five or six plays at a time.”
--- Interesting quote about the running backs …
“They’re all really good. All of them. They don’t get as much love, but even Tristian Houston is really good and Kyle Porter is a hoss.”
--- Brandon Hodges is about to get passed up and the young pups aren’t about to look back, I’m told. As I mentioned last week, Denzel Okafor has been the guy who has most impressed since the freshmen arrived on campus. That point was reiterated to me again late last night.
He’s running second team at right tackle behind Tristan Nickelson, who has had a solid camp. Nickelson battled an ankle injury in the spring and is now fully healthy. One source said Nickelson made dramatic strides from last year because he spent time working with Hassan Ridgeway when Ridgeway was training to get ready for the NFL, and Nickelson worked hard this summer to improve his footwork. Saturday’s scrimmage and the coming days could be key for offensive line depth chart projections.
--- The talk of Jerrod Heard playing at wide receiver has been a hot topic of late. Sources confirmed to me again last night and this morning that Heard began doing some work at the position right after spring practice ended in April. Apparently Heard is all in and feels this may be his best way to help the team and put himself in position to have a professional career.
One thought I threw out there, and one source agreed …
In the first few practices, when Heard was working at quarterback, there was little work in the passing game when he was on the field. Just about every play was either a zone read or scramble by Heard.
In the worst case scenario, should something happen to Swoopes and Buechele and the coaches needed to go back to Heard in an emergency situation, he could probably easily transition back to a running quarterback, similar to what Baylor did against Texas last year with converted wide receiver Lynx Hawhtorne. He wouldn’t exactly need a ton of reps to be ready, and by moving him out of the equation that gives the staff a better chance to evaluate Swoopes and Beuchele.
