Notre Dame Leans To The Left In Overall Strength
If one had to name the No. 1 strength on the 2016 Notre Dame team, what would it be?
Two quarterbacks — DeShone Kizer and Malik Zaire — who probably both could lead Notre Dame to double-digit wins this season if called upon?
How about a deep running back corps where the fourth-team option, Justin Brent, was a top-100 recruit three years ago?
Maybe some might turn to the kicker/punter tandem of Justin Yoon and Tyler Newsome, who both ranked in the top 15 nationally last year in their categories of field goal accuracy and punting distance, respectively (plus, with no rush against him, Newsome was one of the stars of the Blue-Gold Game with a 50-plus average).
Or maybe the cornerback situation, led by senior mainstay Cole Luke and the addition of sophomore Shaun Crawford, sidelined last year with a knee injury, could be a surprise.
However, if this were based on the evaluation of pro scouts alone, the answer seems pretty simple: the left side of Notre Dame’s offensive line with the rangy 6-7½ senior Mike McGlinchey at tackle and the powerful junior and former five-star recruit Quenton Nelson at guard.
The relatively low-key Fighting Irish offensive line coach Harry Hiestand will understandably tap the brakes on such praise at this point. When asked this spring about the disparity between the left side of his line compared to the far more inexperienced right side that has tackle Alex Bars with two career starts (at left guard) and seniors Hunter Bivin or Colin McGovern with zero at right guard, Hiestand kept his poker face.
“I don’t think either side has the world licked, to be honest with you,” Hiestand said of comparing the left versus right. “… From an experience sense that is true, but it’s a work in progress. I wouldn’t say there’s a drop-off. It’s all got to get better.”
Under head coach Brian Kelly, Notre Dame has always had a future first-round pick at left tackle with Zack Martin (2010-13) and Ronnie Stanley (2014-15). McGlinchey has similar type of long-term ability, while Nelson might be Notre Dame’s top guard since Aaron Taylor lined up there in 1992 before shifting to tackle a year later en route to winning the Lombardi Award.
“His size and strength and toughness are exceptional,” the 35-year coaching veteran Hiestand said of Nelson. “What I like best is how important it is to him to be successful.”
“Those two players are really good — really, really good,” Kelly said. “Mike’s been our most efficient blocker and Quenton is in the best physical shape he’s been in, moves extremely well. … We’re very, very fortunate.”
It has a chance to rank among the finest left sides ever assembled at Notre Dame, which is saying something. Here are the gold standards on the left side since the post-World War II era — and it’s no accident the Fighting Irish were champions or in championship contention in all of these seasons:
1. George Connor/Bill Fischer (1946-47) — This is one reason why these two teams are considered the greatest of all time at Notre Dame. Left tackle Connor and left guard Fischer are both in the College Football Hall of Fame — and both won the Outland Trophy during their careers, with Connor the first such recipient.
2. Frank Varrichione/Ray Lemek (1953) — Head coach Frank Leahy’s final unbeaten team at Notre Dame featured this tandem on the left side. Five-time Pro Bowl pick and first-round choice Varrichione was at tackle. Future captain Lemek, who played nine years in the NFL and also made the Pro Bowl, was the guard.
3. Paul Seiler/Tom Regner (1966) — They were two of Notre Dame’s top three picks (first round) in the 1967 NFL Draft after helping the Irish to a national title. Left tackle Seiler was the first at No. 12, while Regner was third at No. 23. In between at No. 15 was nine-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Alan Page.
4. Andy Heck/Tim Ryan or Dean Brown/Tim Grunhard (1988) — This one gets extra credit because Notre Dame’s most recent national champions were able to flip both sides for specific situations (the positions were listed quick and strong side, as opposed to left and right).
First-round tackle pick Heck (a former tight end) and fifth-round selection/guard Ryan were often listed on the left side, but quite regularly — like on quarterback Tony Rice’s 65-yard touchdown run in the win at No. 2 USC in 1988 — the left side had 11-year pro and second-round guard Grunhard with tackle Brown on the left side.
5. Zack Martin/Chris Watt (2011-13) — This combination started three consecutive years on the left side, highlighted by advancing to the BCS Championship game in 2012. Martin already has been in the Pro Bowl twice in as many years, while Watt, who has started eight NFL games despite being slowed by an injury, has moved to center.
It can almost be overlooked how effective Stanley and Nelson were on the left side last year. If McGlinchey and Nelson can pick up where that tandem left off in 2015, Notre Dame’s lean to the left should remain a prominent strength.