Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
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106 ✦ BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2015 FOOTBALL PREVIEW DEFENSIVE BACKS The play of Notre Dame's safeties was the most important develop- ment during spring practice. However, the Irish safeties had to overcome numerous setbacks to reach this point. Redfield and Shumate found themselves on the sidelines last November, benched in favor of a banged up Collinsworth and then -freshman Drue Tranquill. "We felt like we weren't getting the kind of production we wanted there," Kelly said after benching Redfield and Shumate. Season-ending injuries to Collinsworth and Tranquill allowed the maligned pair to get back on the field, and they made the most of their opportunities. Redfield and Shumate took the lessons learned from the tough 2014 season and improved their individual and collective skills this spring. "I like our safeties," said Kelly of the starting duo. "Their development is clearly evident and so much different from where we were this time last year or any time during the season. "We don't see the missed assignments; we see two guys that have clearly grasped the whole of what we're doing out there. They've settled into two solid football players back there for us." A trio of players coming off major injuries will likely serve as the primary backups. After beating out Redfield, sophomore Drue Tranquill tore his ACL during last season's loss to Louisville. Tranquill, who played the entire second half with the injury, has made significant progress from the injury and should be ready to go once fall camp comes around. "If we didn't have a training staff, he'd be full go tackle. He's a nut," Kelly said prior to spring practice. "We had a guy when I was at Cin- cinnati who came back and played in our bowl game in four and a half months after an ACL. He would have beat this kid to it. He could play. That's the kind of physical ability that he had and the way he's rehabbed and trained. He could be cleared to play. That's just unheard of." Senior Nicky Baratti is coming off a second straight shoulder injury, which cost him all but three games last season. If healthy, he will push for a role in the two-deep. "He's doing really good," Kelly said. "He's gone through some tack- ling drills, too. Not player to player, but you've seen some of those black tackling dummies, he's been through those and he's doing pretty good. We get him through the spring and let's play him in the fall." Graduate transfer Avery Sebastian is a wild card on the back end. Sebastian was a four-star recruit that started four games as a sopho- more at Cal, racking up 56 tackles. He injured his Achilles two games into his junior season and played just nine game over the past two years. If he is back to 2012 levels, Sebastian could quickly climb up the depth chart. If Notre Dame is able to get all three of these safeties back to full strength, it will quickly become one of the deepest positions on the roster. ✦ QUICK FACTS Position Coach: Todd Lyght (1st year at Notre Dame) Returning Starters: SS Elijah Shumate (14 career starts), CB Cole Luke (13) and FS Max Redfield (12) Departing Starters: CB Cody Riggs (11) Projected New Starter: CB KeiVarae Russell (26) Top Reserves: S/NB Matthias Farley (23), SS Drue Tranquill (3), CB Devin Butler (2), S Avery Sebastian (6, at California) and S Nicky Baratti Waiting Their Turn: CB Nick Watkins Newcomers: CB Nick Coleman, CB Shaun Crawford, S Nicco Fertitta, CB Ashton White and S Mykelti Williams Moved In: S John Turner (Moved from Sam LB) Other Departures: S Austin Collinsworth (13), S Eilar Hardy (2), CB Josh Atkinson and CB Jalen Brown FYI: Notre Dame's secondary is ranked as the No. 5 unit nationally by Lindy's Sports College Football National 2015 Preview and No. 13 nationally by Athlon Sports Col- lege Football Preview … Redfield was named a preseason first-team All-American by Phil Steele's 2015 College Football Preview … Russell is rated as the No. 9 cornerback in the country by Lindy's … Last season, eight different players made at least two starts in the secondary … Russell and Farley combined for 22 starts for Notre Dame's dominant 2012 defense, which finished in the top 10 nationally in scoring defense and total defense … Fertitta is the son of Lorenzo Fertitta, the Vice Chairman of Fertitta Entertainment, which owns Ultimate Fighting Championship. MATTHIAS FARLEY PROVES HIS WORTH Fifth-year senior Matthias Farley enters 2015 with an important role on the Irish defense. Not only will he begin fall camp as the starting nickel back, he will serve as a leader and a jack-of-all-trades defender. During the 2012 and 2013 seasons, Farley made 19 starts on the back end and reg- istered 49 tackles each season. He struggled to stay healthy in 2013 and had issues in man coverage. He came off the bench in two of the final three games. After the 2013 season, Farley moved to cornerback, the third position he played at Notre Dame. He was a wide receiver his freshman season, although he did not see any game action, before moving to safety. His time at cornerback was short, but Farley quickly found a home in Brian VanGorder's defense. The veteran settled in at the nickel position, and he appeared immediately comfortable. Farley made five tackles in the opener versus Rice and picked off a Driphus Jackson pass late in the second quarter to set up a Notre Dame touchdown. Farley served as the emotional leader against Michigan, coming up with a key tackle for loss on a second-and-three screen pass in the first quarter, forcing a third down the Wolverines could not convert. Michigan missed the ensuing field goal attempt and the Irish went on to win 31-0. For the season, Farley racked up career highs with 53 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and four interceptions. "The nickel back position is really, really big with all the personnel you see in college football today," defensive backs coach Todd Lyght said. "He's going to be a big part of what we do this year." As a safety, Farley often played hesitantly, unsure of what he wanted to do. It kept him from displaying the decisiveness needed at the position. That was not an issue for him as a nickel back. "Maturity, confidence, just all the things that a football player gains by being in the program, knowledge of defensive football," head coach Brian Kelly said of Farley's improved play. "The benefit of being close to the ball. "He's in a really good position where he is. With the knowledge that he gained playing up to this point, it's just accumulation of all of those things really coming together." Like the rest of his defensive mates, Farley now enters his second year in Van- Gorder's defense. He fully expects his play, and that of the rest of the defense, to dramatically improve. "It's huge, it's going to make everybody progress a lot faster," Farley said. — Bryan Driskell Farley settled in at nickel back in 2014, establishing career highs in tack- les (53), tackles for loss (6.5), sacks (3.5) and interceptions (four). PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA