Positional Previews #10 - Offensive Line

We are kicking off 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 start out with #10 - the Offensive Line.

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

Fast Facts:

• 100 combined returning starts on the offensive line is the most in all of Division 1A football (tied with Virginia Tech)
• Avg recruiting star rating on Rivals of the starting unit: 4 stars. One 3 star (Duncan), one 5 star (Young), and the other 3 were 4 stars each.
• 2007 and 2008 were the two worst rushing years in Notre Dame history, based on YPC and total yards.
• Frank Verducci is the new Offensive Line coach, as well as "Run Game Coordinator". His background is as an Offensive Line coach in the NFL most recently, and before at the University of Iowa.

Talent: The talent is clearly there. Recruiting rankings aren't perfect, but on a larger level when applied to groups of players, they definitely can be a solid barometer of talent. Sam Young - all 6 ft 8 and 330 pounds of him - is listed as the #14th overall pick in Todd McShay's early 2010 mock NFL Draft. That would be the highest an ND player has been drafted in quite some time - higher than Brady Quinn even. Trevor Robinson could be the lineman with the most potential of all - including Sam Young. The Nebraskan has a mean streak and early reports of his fall camp work have been nothing short of glowing.

Changes: Frank Verducci - new Offensive Line coach - is known as a technician. He's been instructing

these linemen at a much more granular level of detail than they have been used to with John Latina. As opposed to the "Get tougher!!" constantly being yelled by Latina last year, Verducci might say, "Keep your inside arm closer to your body and weight shifted forward!". He is plenty tough but with more substance and detailed instruction. A change was definitely needed, and Weis even went as far to name Verducci the "Run Game Coordinator". That means Verducci will oversee the RB coach Tony Alford, and be the "run game guru". He will work closely with Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator Charlie Weis to make sure the run game is working and fits into Weis's plan. What's not to like about more focus and accountability for the run game amongst the coaches?

While 4 of our top lineman from last year return, there was a change in the starting lineup. Former 2 year starting center Dan Wenger has been pushed to 2nd string, being replaced by former LG Eric Olsen. Chris Stewart moves from starting RG to LG, and sophomore stud Trevor Robinson moves to starting RG spot. This is Verducci and Weis's move to get the best 5 linemen on the field at one time. The move came after lots of film study dissecting/grading the play of each lineman during the winter. So far the move has been positively received by the offense (except for Wenger I suppose).

Depth: Not ideal, but decent. There are unproven players waiting in the wings, but seemingly a solid number of guys with talent. Many of them have been injury prone, or have just been nowhere near the field. Ideally we get backup tackles Matt Romine and Taylor Dever some solid playing time this season, as we lose both starting tackles for next season (both guards will return).

Goals: During the offseason, Coach Weis did a statistical summary of the offenses of BCS caliber programs. The result was that every one of them was above 4.0 yards per carry. This stat is more important than total rushing yards, which can be skewed by play calling strategy,

etc. Can you get 4 yards running the ball on 3rd and short, or on 1st down? BCS programs can answer that question with confidence, while the Irish can't yet. Being in the 2.2YPC range in 2007, followed by 3.3 YPC in 2008, the question is in 2009, can we get to 4.0YPC? That is the magic number. If we can, BCS bowl is the destination. If we cannot, Gator Bowl or worse awaits us. I feel there will be no better indicator for our season than yards per carry.

Continued improvement in pass protection will also be key. With our passing game, we are going to make people spread out and defend our WRs before we run the ball, typically. In 2007, we gave up an NCAA record 58 sacks. In 2008, drastic improvement brought that number down to 22 sacks. This year, the Irish need to get to about 15, and we will be in great shape to protect Jimmy.

Final Analysis: Many people might be surprised that a unit with upper classmen and the most combined returning starts in the country would be ranked as the #10 in the position countdown. The problem is - are returning starters from the two most dismal rushing seasons good? I think the answer is a mixed bag. Experience always, undoubtedly helps. But what makes us think this unit can change this year? So I am pessimistically optimistic I guess . . . hopefully they will prove me wrong.