Rockne's Roundtable

I HAVE ONE WORD TO DESCRIBE ND's COACHING STAFF ----ROOKIES

Except they are far from it.

Lou,

Good article. There is really one issue----Brian Kelly is most comfortable with
an up-tempo, spread offense with some "read option" capability. To run that offense, we need a quality passing quarterback who can run and a quality receiving corps. Now, Brian Kelly has to know

a) is that quarterback on campus and can I develop him; or

b) if he is not on campus, I have got to go and recruit him now.

Frankly, what other choice is there? Anything else is gag-bag since he
has been and will continue to be forced to compensate and improvise to
try to make up for what he really needs. It works against medium to poor
defenses; it does not work against quality defenses.

You have spoken to Brain Kelly; you have asked him questions;
is there any chance you could talk to him "off the record" and say, Brian, find a quarterback that can run your system!!!

Its like a basketball coach who runs and recruits for an up-tempo
style of play and then forgets about having a quality point guard.

Bluntly, Brian Kelly is not stupid, nor is he blind. What, in
heaven's sake, is the problem?

Good post, Lou, and pretty biting. As well it should be.

Some additional things I learned:

First, it's not reassuring, after a blown win -- because that's what it was -- for the head coach to lead with how hard the team played. This kind of grasping at straws is what Weis settled into, and it marked the beginning of the end. Watching Kelly on the podium, I was struck by how vulnerable he looked and how canned most of his comments were. For the first time, I felt that, despite his best efforts, he might not be as successful at ND as he's been elsewhere.

Second, the two identical years I was reminded of were Faust's second and third years, where he maxed out his win total at 7. But the 7-5 83 season with the Liberty Bowl victory over BC felt a lot better than the 7-5 season, which ended in a loss to SMU in the Aloha bowl. I sure hope we have not seen Kelly max out his win total these last two years.

Third, we got a scary glimpse of what playing an athletic and, at least, equally good team without Michael Floyd, Jonas Gray and a QB that could make it happen looks like. Rees was as shaky as he's always been against tougher teams and Hendrix did not provide the same boost as he did against Stanford -- and, to be fair, he was hardly given the chance. But it was clear Kelly did not have the confidence to place the burden of winning on Hendrix, and Kelly did want this game.

Fourth, there is no doubt Kelly has put his heart and soul into trying to make ND a top flight program. What is concerning is that, despite his and the staff's best efforts, and despite their experience and, as I perceive it, competence, this 2011 team did not respond sufficiently well to their coaching to move to the next level. Will this be a constant feature over the next 3 years, or is Kelly bringing in kids who will be able to handle his approach -- the so-called elite RKG's?

Fifth -- and this is not from the game -- someone posted Golson's HS highlights earlier in the week and I watched them. As effusive as I was in my praise for Andrew Hendrix after the Stanford game and as hopeful as I felt after watching the Devin Fuller tape, my sense now is that Golson -- if he can do it -- is the one with the complete set of tools to lead this offense. Does he have the size, durability and ability to do it at the speed of the college game? I have no idea. But, in terms of pure athletecism and quarterbacking skills, he's clearly got the most to offer. Let's hope he develops and can do it on this level.

It was a disappointing loss and, like four of the other five losses, didn't have to happen. ND, with its talented senior class that had been ranked number two when recruited, had enough firepower to go 11-2. You are right, the QB situation is what derailed them. Though I think Kelly was placed in an awkward spot. Crist didn't develop, Rees overachieved for awhile, Kelly had to record wins and Hendrix and Golson were not the kind of instant phenoms who could go right in and make history.

I think Kelly handled the situation as well as he could have, excpet for not giving Hendrix more face time in blowout games. But, as you pointed out, QB still remains the team's weakness. I think, next year, Kelly must bite the bullet and move away from Rees, or else his contract will not be renewed in year 5. Four 8-5's is not going to cut it.

Lou,

Unfortunately everything you just said is 100% correct.

Great article. Its hard to argue with it. On the other hand, I do believe with average quarterback play, this team would have finished with no more than 2 losses and we would all feel fairly if not very satisfied with the season. That is with no other changes, in spite of some serious holes. The D played well enough for this team to be undefeated--really.

I really like Tommy Rees. I think he is a very good football player, who in the right situation could be a real glue guy that solidifies a BCS level offense, similiar to Tommy Clements ( I am not making a direct comparison just type-casting of the ultimate field-general type QB). However, throughout the year Rees has demonstrated why he will be a back-up next year, maybe dropping as far as third team. @012 schedule will be brutal but for the development of the program ND needs to show it can utilize SEC-type athletes at all positions. Time to pull out the stops and live with aggressive QB mistakes instead of playing safe and then make the same mistakes over and over. Thanks, Tommy, and please to look to how Dayne Crist handled his situation. Be a positive force for the team.

Lou - good analysis. I look forward to your next article. This year reminds me of 1972 - when Ara never found his quarterback. However, it was the loss of Jonas Gray that seemed to most de-rail the offense late season.

It is poignant that Kelley - known for preparing multiple quarterbacks - seems to have fumbled this year. I say "seems" because my hunch is there is a story behind the curtain of this team that we are not likely to know soon. Both the qb issue and the turnovers ... indicate to me some inner turmoil within the team that was never resolved.

My hope - we come out of the Spring game with a quarterback - not a controversy.

I think we are fine for next year. I would like to have a better idea of the QB position but look at LSU this year. They didn't look great offensively the first half of the year and they were ok. The defense will certainly need to be great next year. But if they are, the offense just needs to protect the ball and score a few TDs.

I have a lot of faith in Golson. He is a great athlete and obviously very smart. I think he can come in next year and run this offense without a big step back. If he doesn't turn the ball over it will be a step forward.

Its the same thing with the CB situation next year. How can it get any worse than it was this year. The CBs were repeatedly beaten throughout the year. If we put 4-5 star Frosh out there next year, it couldn't be much worse than this year and COULD be remarkably better.

I think we are 2 years away from where Kelly wants this team to be. But BCS is in the picture for next year even with the tough schedule.

If you hold your opponents to under 20 pts, you don't have to be great on offense. Have faith Irish fans!!! This team is looking more the part of being great than I've seen in the past 5 years. They have the athletes and talent. The coaches need to put them in the right place to make plays. They didn't in the 2nd half of the FSU game.

I see parallels also but that 87 team won big gmes before faltering down the stretch. What Ive not seen yet from Kelly is how to gameplan against better teams in big games. Holtz was a master at it.

Im not yet certain Kelly has the magician's touch. Time will tell.

Very solid points, Joe.

Lou, I don't think I'm on the same page with you here as far as some of the conclusions or implications you have drawn, or at least hinted at. I'm going to expand on Joe's point to look at much of the season. Games are often won on ebbs and flows of field position, ability to sustain drives, and then capitalize on opportunity. Starting with turnover yardage differential and special teams yardage differential, Notre Dame had to have one of the worst cumulative rankings in D-1. Now part of that is quarterback-related, part of it coaching and part of it some remarkable bounces of the ball. None of that, however, is determinative of future success, or lack thereof. Special teams can improve, and there were signs of that as the season progressed. Funny bounces? Well, you have to assume that a few will go your way eventually. Which brings us to the quarterback piece, and therein lies the rub. In last night's game we saw an example of a slightly above average QB get to the red zone and be able to put the ball where his receivers could make plays, and they made exceptional ones. Conversely, ND's below average QB could only do that one out of three times, and the two failures were costly. In a four point game, that simplifies the differential.

I don't feel the need for all the hand-wringing about the state of the program, as if this is just one more example of ND's downward spiral. This was a team that was beaten somewhat decisively (though hardly completely outplayed) by two teams with an exponential edge at the quarterback position, and three other games with an abysmal turnover differential, erratic quarterback play, and substandard special teams performance. They were not pushed around in the trenches, as was the case in many prior years, and that's an essential foundation. The other problems can be fixed. That's not to say they will, or that this staff is capable of doing it, as that remains a big unknown. And, most certainly the entire quarterback situation is an enormous question mark. But these are not problems resulting from coaching staffs over their heads at the college level, or lacking the work ethic necessary at this highest level, or incapable of building a comprehensive college program. They are black marks on the staff's performance to date, but they are well within the range of correctable situations, and until it is clear that they won't be by the current incumbents, I'll look forward to the next season.

HamOnWry22. This is one of the best posts I have read today. Very reasonable and very insightful. Also, I agree. Thank you for this very good try at talking some people in off the ledge