Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
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72 ✦ BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2016 FOOTBALL PREVIEW OFFENSIVE LINEMEN The left side crystallized during the spring, but so did center with Mustipher, an outstanding student who majors in computer science engineering. Sophomore Tristen Hoge, a former USA Today first-team All-Amer- ican was expected to pose a strong challenge at center, but Mustipher seized command of the spot from the outset and capped the spring with an outstanding performance in the Blue-Gold Game. The compact 6-2¼, 305-pound frame allows him to have a low base for leverage, part of why Hiestand shifted him from guard. "He's got the body type for it," Hiestand said. "He's thick and strong, and has really good quickness, and he's really smart. … We knew that he would eventu- ally be very good there. He's progressing really well. "Sam's an older player, a more experienced player and has established himself with some pretty good consistency. Tristen's pushing him for sure. … He'll continue to close that gap on Sam." A fourth definitive starter is junior Alex Bars at right tackle. Like Hoge with Mustipher this spring, Bars gave Nelson an excellent challenge at left guard last year, and he even started a couple of games for the injured Nelson before suffering a fractured ankle versus USC Oct. 17 that put him in a walking boot for more than two months. Bars remained somewhat hampered during the spring while recover- ing from the surgery, but after starting out in March at right guard, he settled in at right tackle. For Hiestand, strong line play begins on the outside with the tackles, and with McGlinchey and Bars — the team's two tallest players — he believes he has found his duo. Seniors Hunter Bivin and Colin McGovern also have competed at right tackle, but Bivin is better suited, per Hiestand, to playing in "close quarters" at right guard rather than in space. McGovern missed about five practices with an injury, and he too seems more comfortable at guard. "For what we need for our team, definitely," Hiestand replied when asked if Bars will stay at tackle. "He needs to play tackle. We need another guy to play tackle. … We have to have guys that can protect on the edge at tackle when the game comes down to that. "Many guys can do it on first and second downs. On third downs, pass situations, you need to have enough range to cover that edge. … Alex has to be able to do that for us. It's been a process to get Alex back off that broken ankle. We're kind of progressing in and not overloading him too soon." Bars enrolled as a prospective left tackle in 2014, and his combina- tion of footwork, fluidity and power prompted head coach Brian Kelly to refer to him as one of the best offensive line prospects he's seen in his 25 years of coaching. Bars has lined up everywhere except center — and maintains he has no preference — but he believes it has helped him get a better under- standing of collective assignments up front. "Understanding defenses has been huge," he said. Kelly described moving Bars back out to tackle a "significant" adjustment. "Especially when he's going against Isaac Rochell and some guys that are big and physical and fast," Kelly said. "He's one-on-one a lot more. Inside [at guard], you're in so many more combination scenarios where you have some help. You're on an island a lot more out there. "I think he's starting to sense and feel how much of that falls on his shoulders. Getting adjusted to that and being technically sound in everything he has to do on a play-to-play basis is a lot for a young player." With Bars, Bivin and McGovern, Hiestand says he has "three guys for two spots right now," and is not ruling out rotating them. Bivin could well be the starting right guard, but he also is the third tackle option on either the left or right side. "If they're even, they're both going to play because they're both good enough to help us," Hiestand said of the Bivin/McGovern duo at right guard. Rounding out the 10-man scholarship two-deep from the spring were junior Jimmy Byrne at left tackle, sophomore left guard Trevor Ruhland and fifth-year senior left guard Mark Harrell, who has played virtually every position during his career, including center. While much is made of the disparity between the potentially stel- lar left side and the trying-to-find-itself right side, Hiestand remains even-keeled. "I don't think either side has the world licked, to be honest with you," he said. "We have to get better. … I wouldn't say there's a drop- off. It's all got to get better. It will come in time. [The right side] will make up ground because they want to do it." "It's not a concern with me," Bars echoed. "Coach Hiestand will figure it out." The track record hasn't indicated otherwise. ✦ Nowhere in college football is a true freshman less likely to play than along the offensive line. The necessary requirements of advanced strength, developed technique and exceptional knowl- edge are usually too steep for a big man to make an impact early. Since 2008, 26 of the 28 Notre Dame offensive linemen recruited were redshirted, including eventual first-round picks Zack Martin and Ronnie Stanley. The two exceptions happened to be early entrants who were able to participate in spring practice as freshmen: guards Trevor Robinson (2008) and Steve Elmer (2013), and they started three and four games, respectively, their first season. It would appear the incoming trio — tackles Tommy Kraemer and Liam Eichenberg, and guard Parker Boudreaux — is des - tined to follow a similar path of redshirting, especially because none was an early entrant during the 2016 spring semester. Nevertheless, at the conclusion of spring Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly indicated that the right side of the offensive line under coach Harry Hiestand is still unresolved enough to where he wants to keep an open mind about putting a fresh - man into the mix. "Harry could disagree with me and that would be fine — I think Kraemer is going to come in and compete over there," Kelly said. "I think Parker Boudreaux is going to come in and compete. "… Maybe I'm ahead of myself, but I think those guys are going to get in there and compete with those guys as well." Kraemer was rated a five-star prospect by 247Sports, Eichenberg was a standout at the Under Armour All-Amer - ican Game Jan. 2 in Orlando, Fla., and Boudreaux had the highest Nike Football Rating (a measure of overall athletic ability) out of any offensive lineman at the prestigious The Opening held in Oregon in July 2015, including a 5.1 in the 40-yard dash, a 30.3-inch vertical jump and a 20-yard shuttle covered in an impressive 4.41. Whereas the rangy 6-6 Eichenberg is strictly a tackle, probably on the left side, Kraemer could downshift to guard if needed, which might give him a better shot to help on the right side early. — Lou Somogyi "We can be very good, we can be very bad. It's all up to us and how hard we work." JUNIOR LEFT GUARD QUENTON NELSON ON THE 2016 OFFENSIVE LINE Head coach Brian Kelly believes that incom- ing freshman Tommy Kraemer, who was rated a five-star prospect by 247Sports, will compete for playing time right out of the gate. PHOTO BY ANDREW IVINS FRESHMAN HELP NOT RULED OUT