From 4-8 and no bowl game to 8-1 and ranked #3 in the college football playoff rankings- that’s how far the Notre Dame Fighting Irish have come from last season to this one. For Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly, his seat was warming, and the pitchforks were out less than a year ago.
Now there’s plenty of people saying this is the best coaching job he’s ever done/the best Notre Dame Fighting Irish team he has ever had in his eight seasons on the job.
It’s an astounding turnaround, with the vibe and feeling drastically changing since even September. It wasn’t until late in the first month of the season that the Irish were even ranked in the top 25. At the beginning of last month, we did a podcast with Adnan Virk, host of ESPN College Football Final, and got the national Notre Dame Fighting Irish vibe.ย
Just a few weeks ago, national media weren’t really feeling the Fighting Irish in even the New Year’s Six mix, let alone national title conversation. My my how things have changed so rapidly, and why they have is multifaceted.
Let’s take a look and how and why.
โI donโt think itโs any one thing, I think itโs guys committed to our mission of excellence, said Irish safety Drue Tranquill.
โPreparation wise weโre not letting things get bigger than they are. Each guyโs assignment is their main focus,” said left tackle Mike McGlinchey. “Theyโre not thinking about things they canโt control.”
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish actually weren’t all that far off last year, and the infrastructure was already there
As disastrous as 2016 was, the Irish weren’t as far away as you might remember. Six of their eight losses were by just eight points or less; i.e. a one possession game. This year, they’ve just figured out how to close, and the leadership all around, in every phase, is much improved.
The talent has always been there- you know how stellar the recruiting class rankings have been. Now they’re putting it together again, with class stacked on top of class. Facilities wise, ND is top notch. The stadium renovations and upgrades are nothing short of transcendent. The practice facility, and strength & conditioning program is among the nation’s elite.
Now we’re seeing the fruits of that labor.
Heisman trophy candidate Josh Adams is the primary example of how the augmented strength program has produced tremendous results.
Committing to the run, Finally!ย
Kelly admitted after the Miami of Ohio win that he finally had an epiphany about committing to the run game. He was showcasing his dry sense of humor of course, but Kelly is obviously a very pass happy coach traditionally, and this season has brought a change in philosophy. They’re not just beating teams, they’re routing them. ND isn’t just winning with a stellar running attack, they’re dominating with a very physical style of rushing the football right over their opponents.
โAbsolutely, Itโs something we preach each and every day is to out hit our opponents,โ said McGlinchey about taking pride in the way that the Notre Dame Fighting Irish are winning.ย
โWe talk a lot about how the toughest line wins the game, weโve done that this season and we hope to continue that success.โ
https://twitter.com/PaulMBanks/status/926939965698736128
Added Tranquill:
“We want to punish our opponents- that is our mission each and every week,” added Tranquill. “Thatโs our mindset, a Fighting Irish mindset of dominance.”
McGlinchey is a NFL first round draft pick level talent, as is left guard Quenton Nelson.
“He’s played, obviously, off the charts in terms of how we’re grading him. But there was a glimpse to that potential and the way he trained in this off-season,” said Kelly of Nelson.
“He was so far out in front of everybody in terms of the way he trained this year running, in the weight room, everything that we did, he was clearly ahead of everybody. So there was a glimpse, and you could see that something was in store for him in terms of a great year.”
New Coaching Staff, with everybody buying in
Kelly replaced both coordinators this off-season, and he’s had to swallow his pride, check his ego a bit in delegating some authority this season. It’s all been worth it though as the results speak for themselves. That example of leadership trickles down to the players, who are also being pushing aside self-interest for the interests of the team.
It’s been a total buy-in, and it’s present at all the macro and micro levels of the Fighting Irish program right now.
“Our strength and conditioning has been un-matched across the country,” added McGlinchey.
“Weโve done such a good jobย finishing teams and getting after it early.”
Paul M. Banks runsย The Sports Bank.netย and TheBank.News, which is partnered withย News Now.ย Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times,ย NBC Chicago.comย andย Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly toย WGN CLTV andย Chicago Now.
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