Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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28 PRESEASON 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY ANDREW MENTOCK T here's little reason to pay atten- tion to 2020 NFL mock drafts at this point in the year. As the college football season starts and actual games are played, top-tier players will surface that many draft analysts aren't familiar with. As those players emerge, more accurate draft boards will begin to take shape. During the offseason, Notre Dame seniors Khalid Kareem (strongside defensive end) Liam Eichenberg (left tackle) and Tommy Kraemer (right guard) all have been mentioned as pos- sible first-round NFL Draft selections. While all three possess the talent to become a first-round pick one day, it's senior defensive end Julian Okwara whose draft stock is most likely to as- cend. Overall, NFL Draft projections do not seem to line up with the potential breakout season that he is primed to have — with many mock drafts leav- ing him out of the first round. That's not to say the Okwara hasn't been mentioned as a first-round pick. Back in May, Will Brinson of CBS Sports published a mock draft that had Okwara as the 10th overall pick by the New York Giants. While draft stock may be a fun topic for fans to debate, it does not yet concern Okwara if his talent and potential are earning him the praise he deserves from analysts. He and his teammates do their best to ignore what national pundits have to say. "We don't really need outside voices telling us what we need to do," Okwara said. "I think we all do a great job of just staying away from all the critics and stuff like that." During the season, there are other potential accolades Okwara will also try to ignore: the Notre Dame single- season and sack records that were first recorded in 1982. Among his 12.5 tackles for loss, Ok- wara finished his junior season in 2018 with eight sacks. That was tied for eighth at Notre Dame since 1982 and gave him a career total of 10.5 sacks. Former Notre Dame standout de- fensive end Justin Tuck set the record in 2004 with 13.5 sacks and a career total of 24.5, before turning profes- sional and leaving with one year of college eligibility left. While Okwara continues to set high personal goals this season, he knows that those will occur only if he puts the responsibilities to his team first and continues to adhere to the tutelage of defensive line coach Mike Elston. "All that stuff will come as long as we do our job and everybody's bought into what we need to do," said Okwara, who was named one of the team's seven captains shortly af- ter the start of fall camp. "I definitely have some personal goals, but it's camp right now and I'm just really focused on that and making sure ev- erybody's on the [same] page. "Everybody has to execute the game plan for that production to come." The main part of his game he must clean up is the number of plays he leaves unfinished. According to head coach Brian Kelly, Okwara missed 27 sack opportunities in 2018. If he finished on just six more, he would have set the Notre Dame single- season sack record since 1982 — and he would have been among the top five in the Football Bowl Subdivision. "There were sometimes where I would touch the quarterback and just either fall off, run by him, not retrace my steps," Okwara said. To correct this, he has watched film and worked on his technique, all with the intention to stay on his feet more often. Okwara said he ended up on the ground too much last year, an is- sue corrected by improved footwork. While putting pressure on the quar- terback is an integral part of Okwara's game, it's far from the only way he will have an impact. He still needs to make plays against the run, drop into coverage at times and do his best to make sure the quarterback doesn't make plays outside of the pocket. "There aren't a lot of [quarterbacks] that are going to pull the ball and try to outrun Julian Okwara," defensive coordinator Clark Lea said. "That's just not where offensive success is found." As a captain, along with fellow defensive end Kareem, another part of his role is holding his teammates accountable, setting expectations and making them better. Outside of maybe his own position group, the greatest impact Okwara can have is on the players who line up across from him every day dur- ing fall camp: tackles Eichenberg and Robert Hainsey. The same goes for the impact they can have on him. "Liam and all those guys are prob- ably [some of] the best tackles in the country," Okwara said. "It's awe- some going against those guys. They work their technique every day, so this is a great opportunity for us D- ends to work our technique and just get better every day." Since Okwara set foot on campus as a raw Rivals four- star recruit, he has steadily enhanced his abilities. Dur- ing his freshman c a m p a i g n , h e played but didn't register a sack. The following year, he made his way on the field in a re- serve role and registered 2.5 sacks and an interception. As a junior, he became a force and is now amongst the single- season sack leaders at Notre Dame. As the season nears, Okwara could be on the brink of a senior year com- pared to that of former Kentucky pass rusher Josh Allen — the sev- enth overall selection in the 2019 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars. In 2017, Allen's numbers were seven sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss — both lower than Okwara's as a junior. Allen came back as a senior in 2018 and had 17 sacks and 21.5 tackles for loss. If Okwara puts up numbers anywhere close to that, he will likely be Notre Dame's top single-season and career sack leader since 1982 and a surefire top pick when the 2020 NFL Draft takes place next April. Better yet, no one will remember what draft analysts did — or didn't — have to say about him back in Au- gust and September. ✦ TEAM FIRST Julian Okwara has a chance to achieve personal glory, which will come as long as the Fighting Irish reach their goals Okwara enters his senior season as a team cap- tain and is poised to build on his career total of 10.5 sacks. PHOTO BY ANGELA DRISKELL