Weis, media drenched in open practice
SOUTH BEND -- Charlie Weis, his hoodie drooping after a late-morning downpour, pointed a bony finger in the direction of Chad Klunder.
"His last name is spelled K-L-U-N-D-E-R," the Notre Dame head football coach volunteered.
Fortunately, Saturday's practice -- other than the weather -- had gone well enough that Weis didn't point out that Klunder rhymes with thunder and, yes, blunder.
Klunder's title at Notre Dame is director of football operations, but he's more like the director and the secretary and the gofer and pop psychologist and weather man. It was his recommendation that Saturday's session take place outdoors rather than in the cozy Loftus Center.
If only he had listened to WSBT meteorologist Rick Mecklenburg: "Showers and storms, with the best chance in the morning."
Oops.
Perhaps Weis' only solace was that this was the one practice this spring he had chosen to let the media stay beyond the stretch-and-scratch stage. So the media, some of whom did not have jackets in the 48-degree weather, some of whom even lacked umbrellas, got drenched too.
The other thing that made Weis smile is that seven practices into the 15 scheduled spring sessions, he seems to genuinely like this team.
Here then is what we know about the 2007 Irish as spring practice reaches its midpoint:
1. There is no front-runner yet at quarterback.
And that is by design. Each of the four starting quarterback candidates -- junior Evan Sharpley, sophomores Zach Frazer and Demetrius Jones, and freshman Jimmy Clausen -- spend one week as the No. 1, one week as the No. 2, one week as the No. 3 and one week as the No. 4, so that all get an equal opportunity and so that it will take the entire spring to whittle four to two.
What we don't know is how the two, who head into fall on the outside looking in, will react.
"It's not like depth charts never change," Weis said. "And there are injuries on top of that. But that's part of being a backup. You've got to accept your role and have yourself ready if your number's called."
2. Jimmy Clausen can indeed throw more than 10 yards.
The nation's No. 1 prospect in the last recruiting cycle and No. 1 target in the current rumor cycle finally threw a pass longer than 10 yards in front of the media. He didn't exactly air it out, though. Most of the passes were short to mid range, no longer than, say, 20 yards. So is he really hurt? Is he really not hurt?
Well, what he did show was a presence in running a team and some zip and consistent accuracy on the passes he did throw. And when his receiver fell down on the slippery, wet grass, Jimmy Clausen had the presence of mind to throw the ball away -- even if it was just a drill.
3. The young offensive line continues to impress.
Fifth-year senior John Sullivan is still considered the top center prospect at his position in the 2008 NFL Draft, but it appears he won't be on an island as far as talent and savvy are concerned. Sophomores Dan Wenger, Sam Young, Matt Carufel and Eric Olsen; juniors Paul Duncan and Mike Turkovich; and Northwestern transfer and Penn High product Thomas Bemenderfer have all turned Weis' head in practice -- for good reasons.
"Friday, one of the things we were working on was building stamina," Weis said. "Ironically, the group that held up as well as any position was the offensive line. That was encouraging."
4. George West is catching on.
In Weis' first season at Notre Dame (2005), he started two 6-foot-5 receivers in Maurice Stovall and Jeff Samardzija. If the 2007 season started today, it would be 5-10 David Grimes and 5-8 George West.
Grimes, ND's leading returning receiver, has been the spring exclamation point at a position with many intriguing question marks, but question marks, nonetheless. West, one of last year's three early enrollees, has now separated from the pack to be the No. 2 receiver.
5. Nate Whitaker is alive and kicking.
The 5-foot-9, 165-pound sophomore walk-on from San Diego doesn't yet have a bio either online or in an ND media guide, but he has been battling all spring with sophomore Ryan Burkhart from NorthWood High for place-kicking duties and recently pulled ahead.
Freshman Brandon Walker joins the kicking derby in the fall.
Weis put some pressure on Whitaker in Saturday's practice, seeing if he would crumble under the weight of being at the top of the depth chart. So Weis had the team all gather around him at the end of practice as he attempted a 40-yard field goal that determined whether the entire team had to run wind sprints or not.
Whitaker nailed the kick, and he was mobbed by his teammates.
"If he missed it, they'd all be running," Weis said. "He's the most popular guy in the clubhouse right now."
6. The secondary is deep.
Seven scholarship safeties, six scholarship corners will be joined by freshman safety Golden Tate and injured freshman corner Gary Gray in the fall. Quietly, subtly, Weis has been stocking his weakest link with numbers and pedigree.
Gray, incidentally, made a strong impression in the first few days of camp before suffering a spring-ending arm injury.
"There's very good competition going on in the secondary," Weis said.
7. The Irish players think the 3-4 adds up.
It's not just the new alignment under first-year defensive coordinator Corwin Brown that ND defensive players are embracing, it's the simplicity and it's the aggressive approach.
Weis loves it too, because it's the philosophy he is used to from his NFL days -- right out of the Bill Parcells/Bill Belichick coaching tree. He understands the nuances better than last year's 4-3 scheme under deposed defensive coordinator Rick Minter. And if something is broke, he is better equipped to fix it.
Now the question is how will recruits respond?
"I think some players will really embrace the concept and be willing to commit (early) because of the 3-4 before the season," CSTV recruiting analyst Tom Lemming said. "But I think other guys may want to wait and see what it really looks like once the season begins.
"If Notre Dame has a really aggressive, productive defense, then you're going to see elite defensive prospects flock to Notre Dame. Offensively, they've never been in a better position as far as offensive players wanting to come. But on the defensive side of the ball, they've got more of a selling job.
"It's really a matter of the coaches selling them on the fact they can develop defensive players into pros, because everything else -- as far as recruiting is concerned -- is in place."
For what it's worth, Darius Fleming -- a standout 6-3, 230-pound defensive end/outside linebacker from Chicago St. Rita High -- was at practice Saturday, donning a Notre Dame jacket and an ND logo on his jeans. The previous weekend he visited Notre Dame unofficially, staying at Irish recruit and Penn High center Braxston Cave's house.
8. Expect the outside linebacker competition to spill into the fall.
Right now, the inside linebacker positions are manned by established players -- seniors Joe Brockington and Maurice Crum, with young players like Toryan Smith pushing. Outside, though, there are some promising possibilities, including sophomores John Ryan and Morrice Richardson and reborn senior Anthony Vernaglia. But it will take some time for starters to emerge there, given everyone's relative playing inexperience.
A nice complication in the fall will arise when freshmen Kerry Neal and Brian Smith are expected to push to get in the mix.
9. The Irish training staff is underworked.
And that's a good thing. The Irish are as healthy as a team as they've ever been under Weis. Other than Gray (broken arm), the only player who didn't take part in Saturday's session was sophomore nose tackle Chris Stewart.
The 6-5, 325-pounder spent the practice time laboring on the exercise bike, with a towel over his head to fend off the rain.
10. Maura Weis is boss.
But sometimes Charlie Weis still gets his way. Maura's idea for Saturday night entertainment was a movie. Her husband wanted to watch the NCAA men's basketball Final Four. He won -- this time.
"Thank goodness she gets it," Weis said.
[More
at www.southbendtribune.com]
