Position Previews - #9 Tight End

We are continuing the Notre Dame Football 2009 Positional Previews by counting down 10 positions. You can read about the 10 positions and an explanation of the rankings here. In short, #10 is the position that I am least confident/most worried about heading into the season, while #1 is the position I am most confident/least worried about. Ability, depth, and intangibles all factor in.

Today we hit up #9 - Tight Ends:

Depth Chart: First, lets go over the depth chart that was released last week at the beginning of fall camp:

Fast Facts:

• Tight End University - Notre Dame's last 2 starting Tight Ends were both early 2nd rd draft picks in the NFL (Anthony Fasano in 2006 and John Carlson in 2008). The tight end that came to campus the same year as Fasano as freshman? Greg Olsen, current Bears tight end and former first round pick after transferring to Miami from ND (his brother lost QB starting job to Brady Quinn, prompting both to transfer). Rudolph will almost assuredly be a first day NFL pick as well in a couple of years (all 6 foot 6 inches and 260 pounds of him.)
• Returning Starts - Rudolph (pictured) started every game last season, and performed well late especially. Good to have your frontline starter back for his sophomore season. Past Rudolph, there are zero returning starts at tight end.

Talent: The frontline talent is clearly there with Rudolph and the speedy Ragone. Both were top ranked tight ends (Rudolph a top 25 overall recruit, as well as top TE in the nation in 2008, earning 5 star status by Rivals), and bring protypical size and fantastic pass catching skills. Golic and Eifert have fared well thus far, but are a little "light in the seat" and need to gain about 30 pounds and mature physically. Eifert in particular has impressed, but he is likely a year away from contributing. Golic is likely a year from being a serviceable backup.

Changes: Last year at this time, Mike Ragone (pictured right) was the likely starter at Tight End. He then tore his ACL, forcing Kyle Rudolph into the lineup. Of course, Will Yeatman and Joseph Fauria were

both in the mix as well to be the starter after Ragone, both of which were 4 star and very talented players themselves. Yeatman was suspended after the Michigan St game for the entirety of the season and eventually transferred, while Fauria soon followed with a transfer this past spring, citing the administration's disciplining of Yeatman in the fall and himself for a rumored "streaking" incident during the spring. And of course, heralded 2006 recruit Konrad Reuland (4 star Californian) transferred in late summer 2008 after he was beaten out by Fauria and Yeatman in the spring. The departure of Will Yeatman was the biggest blow to the position in my opinion. Yeatman was the best blocker of the tight ends, whereas Ragone and Rudolph were better pass catchers. The 3 of them (Rudolph, Yeatman, & Ragone) would have made a mean combination - perfect for Weis's 2 and 3 tight end sets. All that said, losing 3 tight ends within the span of a year - all 4 stars or better - is tough for depth.

Depth: We finally understand why I ranked this unit at #9 - the lack of depth. Weis's affinity with using multiple tight end sets is a basic tenant and key to his offense. Weis uses relatively consistent and basic plays that can be run from every formation - thus keeping the defense from easily recognizing tendancies or plays via "formation confusion". Weis likely uses more or as many formations as any college offense. Obviously, you have to have talent to make this work. Flexibility with tight ends, running backs, and WR are all much more important than more consistent formation offenses like the spread or option. With only 2 fully ready and playable tight ends, the Irish are shorthanded at Weis's favorite position (formationally at least). The starting talent is fantastic, but after Rudolph, there is nothing but unproven youngsters or injury prone what ifs.

Goals: Stay healthy. Plain and simple. Ragone in particular needs to stay healthy and get past his mental issues due to his repaired knee. Ragone and Rudolph are very good receivers, and we are going to need both of them pulling some safety and linebacker attention to make way for Golden Tate and Michael Floyd. Rudolph is a beast and will begin to get major national attention this season. If (combined) these guys can catch 45 balls - that would be fantastic production and clearly indicate that the offense is functioning with the balance of the great New England teams - known for spreading the passes around to any and everyone.

Final Analysis: Rudolph is likely the next great Irish Tight End in the NFL. His frame, speed, and maturing body are on track to be another or even better version of Seattle Seahawks starter John Carlson. But can he get some support from Ragone, walk on Bobby Burger, and possibly freshman Eifert? Can all of the aforementioned stay healthy? If health were not a concern, this unit would be ranked in the top 5.