Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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players. "Now, that training table is in there, Coach Longo is one of the best, [offensive line] Coach [Harry] Hiestand is one of the best. "These guys have everything going for them. They're coming to Notre Dame at the right time, the right situation with the right staff, where they have everything in place to develop a football player." our defense [in practice]," admitted Kelly of the shortage while fearing injury. "… It impacts the way you practice. You don't get a chance to tackle quite as much, and all those things begin to show themselves when you're below the scholarship numbers." Tackling A Problem This influx of the offensive line quintet immediately addresses a line shortage — particularly at tackle — that became apparent in December during preparations for Alabama in the BCS National Championship Game. Beyond the starting five, the lone healthy offensive linemen were sophomores Conor Hanratty and Nick Martin, who had to be the first options at either guard or tackle spots, respectively. That limited Notre Dame's contact work, and Alabama's physical play on Jan. 7 took control. "I didn't feel comfortable going live against Early enrollee Steve Elmer was the first of the offensive linemen to pick the Irish, committing in September of his junior year. photo courtesy U.S. Army All-American Bowl One of the prime needs in this year's recruiting cycle was offensive tackle. Few positions have absorbed more attrition and tragedy at Notre Dame the past four years than offensive tackle. This has included the transfers of Alex Bullard (Tennessee) and Jordan Prestwood (Central Florida), and now junior Tate Nichols' football career might be over because of injury, accord- ing to Kelly. Saddest of all was 2010 USA Today firstteam All-American Matt James tragically dying in a spring break accident during his senior year of high school. That left freshman Ronnie Stanley — who missed the back portion of 2012 after undergoing elbow surgery — as the third scholarship tackle in the four recruiting classes from 2009-12, behind starters Zack Martin and Christian Lombard. Sophomore Nick Martin, Zack's brother, filled in as the third tackle during bowl preparations, but he will vie for the vacated center position this spring. As an early enrollee, Elmer can help the second unit at tackle this spring. McGlinchey's height and reach make him a natural this fall at tackle with Stanley. The wild card is Bivin, who is rangy and athletic enough to play in space at tackle, yet starred at center in the Under-Armour AllAmerican Game. "Generally speaking, McGlinchey and Elmer would be outside, and then you've got the