Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/531612
BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2015 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 27 be Kyle Brindza's successor for the starting placekicking duties. The No. 1-rated kicking prospect in the country by Kohl's Kicking and the 2014 Ray Guy ProKicker.com first- team All-American would be the first Irish freshman kicker to start in that capacity from day one since Nick Tausch in 2009. 2. NG/DT Jerry Tillery — Originally projected as an offensive tackle, the 6-6, 300-pound early enrollee was shifted to de- fense and lined up exclusively with the first team at nose guard this spring in place of Jarron Jones, who was recovering from Lis- franc surgery. Tillery was the top individual story this spring on defense and is likely to see about 25-30 snaps per game. 3. TE Aliz'e Jones — With the gradua- tion of Ben Koyack, there is plenty of oppor- tunity to complement junior Durham Smythe in this tight-end-friendly attack. The USA Today first-team All-American Jones report- edly is up to 240 pounds on his 6-5 frame and possesses the skills to have impact as a flex tight end. 4. S Nicco Fertitta — Jones' teammate at powerhouse Las Vegas Bishop Gorman, the 5-9, 175-pound Fertitta is arriving as a safety but is earmarked to be a special teams demon in the mold of 2007-09 mainstay and former walk-on Mike Annello. Kelly projected that Fertitta will be a starter on all four special teams units. Similar projections by the Irish head coach about then receiver James Onwualu in 2013 and safety Drue Tranquill last season proved accurate. 5t. WR CJ Sanders and CB Shaun Crawford — This tandem instantly became two of the five fastest players on the team upon their arrival. Although their respec- tive position groups will make it difficult for both to crack the two deep, either could find a role right away on special teams, from serving on coverage units to playing as top return men. ✦ Long Time No See On Oct. 14, 1944, Notre Dame crushed Dartmouth 64-0 in front of 34,645 fans at Boston's Fenway Park. Seventy-one years later, Notre Dame's longest stint between appearing in one edifice will end when it faces Boston College Nov. 21 in venerable Fenway for its Shamrock Series outing. The last time Fenway hosted any football game was Dec. 1, 1968, when the AFL's Boston Patriots (now New England) defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 33-14. Reportedly, Fenway Park has only 37,495 fixed seats, which prompts a $400 face value per ticket. Since 1982, it would be only the fourth Notre Dame game with less than 40,000 in attendance. The other three were 1996 versus Navy in Ireland's Croke Park (38,651), at Wake Forest in 2011 (36,307) and last year's Navy game (36,807) at Landover, Md. — Lou Somogyi Notre Dame Vs. Georgia Tech: The Side Show In 1999 and 2000, current Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson led Georgia Southern to Division I-AA (now the Football Championship Subdivision) national titles while running his vaunted triple-option offense. That landed Johnson the head coaching position at Navy, where he would also thrive before moving to Georgia Tech in 2008. In 2006, current Notre Dame defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder was hired as head coach at Georgia Southern. One of his first moves was scrapping the triple-option — which an infuriated Johnson took personally. He had Navy put Georgia Southern on the schedule. "VanGorder had made some comments that he didn't think too highly of the offense, and Paul called me up and said, 'I need to talk to [athletics director] Sam [Baker] and get Georgia Southern on the schedule,'" recalled longtime Georgia Southern athletics administrator Roger Inman in an interview with USA Today. "I said, 'Why do you want to play us?' And he said, 'Because I want to beat the hell out of Brian VanGorder.'" The two coaches never did meet. Johnson took the Georgia Tech job after the 2007 season, and VanGorder de- parted for the NFL after his 3-8 debut at Georgia Southern. Nine years later, Johnson will have his chance Sept. 19 when his Yellow Jackets face VanGorder's Notre Dame defense. — Lou Somogyi Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson has a score to settle with Irish defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder. JOHNSON PHOTO BY DANNY KARNIK/GEORGIA TECH ATHLETICS; VANGORDER PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA When the Irish take on Boston College Nov. 21, it will mark their first football game in Fenway Park since 1944. PHOTO BY LARRY BLANKENSHIP