Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
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BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2015 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 93 Kelly was prophetic in his preseason com- ments on Smith, who was able to meet the lofty expectations placed upon him. Smith led the Irish defense with 112 tack- les and nine tackles for loss, and was second on the team with 3.5 sacks. He was out- standing in Notre Dame's 31-0 victory over Michigan, finishing with 10 tackles, one of them for a loss. Smith racked up 44 tackles in the final four games of the season, includ- ing nine in Notre Dame's 31-28 victory over LSU in the Music City Bowl. His strong sophomore season earned him second-team All-America honors from the Associated Press. Te'o did not earn All- America accolades until his junior season. Next Phase: Leadership Smith earned All-America honors despite learning a brand new defense and being sur- rounded by a linebacking unit and a defen- sive front that kept changing over the second half of the season. He tried to take on more of a leadership role, but as a sophomore he was not quite ready for that much responsibility. For all of Smith's production as a sopho- more, the Irish defense as a unit collapsed. Over the final five games of the regular sea- son, with Smith producing at a season's best clip, the Notre Dame defense allowed 38.8 points and 479.8 yards per game. It was the worst stretch of defensive football in Notre Dame history. Now a junior, Smith will be asked to build on his All-America season, to produce even more on the field and to provide forceful leadership. "He has not been able to bring anybody with him yet," Kelly said, referring to his star linebacker's ability to pick up his team- mates. "That's the next thing that we'll be working with Jaylon on — to bring some guys with him. "The Larry Bird rule that I use all the time is make others around you better. He's not there yet, but that will be the next stage for him." It's not that Smith did not attempt to be- come a leader last season. In fact, leadership was something he spent much of the season trying to establish. At no point was that truer then after Mike linebacker Joe Schmidt was lost to a season- ending ankle injury in the third quarter of the Navy game. However, Smith was a bit overwhelmed by the extra burden that was thrust upon him. "He tried to make some calls for the first time and wasn't very successful," Kelly said after Note Dame's 31-28 loss to Louisville. "We had a talk with him after the game, and we had to restructure his thought process. It's part of the process of learning, and he wants to be part of making those calls and making those decisions. "You've got a guy that wants to be as- sertive and thinks he's making the right de- cision. He's growing; he's ascending as a player." Going into a second season in Van- Gorder's complex defense is going to help the entire unit. Arguably no player will ben- efit more from that than Smith, who is also more comfortable playing on the inside. "From a confidence standpoint, it is nice going into a second year with the same de- fense," Smith said. "This was my first time being able to prepare in offseason with the same defense that we ran in the previous year. "It is just confidence and just everyone really counting on each other." The Foundation For Notre Dame to reach its potential as a team in 2015, the defense will have to make major strides. In order for that to happen, Smith is going to have to play like a star. He will enter his junior year ranked as the No. 1 outside linebacker in the nation by Lindy's and is listed as a first-team pre- season All-American by Sporting News. If Smith plays well and can raise the level of his teammates, the Irish defense should be able to elevate its play enough to give Notre Dame an opportunity to compete for a spot in the college football playoffs. Smith wants to make sure the Irish de- fense is able to reach that level, and he will continue to put in the work to make sure that happens. "Coach VanGorder says it all the time — we need physical players here," Smith explained. "We have a bad reputation of be- ing soft and smart guys at Notre Dame, but along with that, we have to have that mental and physical mentality. "We have the capacity, but it is just about turning that switch. It is something that we are emphasizing, and as a leader I am on them every day." ✦ INSIDE OR OUTSIDE? Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly and defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder have been adamant that Jaylon Smith will remain primarily as an inside linebacker. In VanGorder's defense, the Will line- backer, where Smith played in 2014, is a play-making position. "He's playing well inside. He could be a Mike or a Will," Kelly said. "He's starting to see things now very, very well inside, and he's doing a very good job." Kelly has left the door open for Smith to move around, depending on the situation. Despite his production on the inside, Smith remains ideally suited to thrive on the outside at the Sam linebacker. His range, speed and playmaking ability are unmatched on the Notre Dame roster, and perhaps across the entire nation. In 2015, Notre Dame will play against a variety of offenses, and VanGorder will look to maximize Smith's impact by moving him around. This approach also helps prevent opponents from game plan- ning to keep him away from the football. As a sophomore, Smith was still learning to play inside and couldn't be moved around a great deal. As the season wore on, teams were able to figure out ways to run or throw away from him in key situations. With a year under his belt in the VanGorder defense, Smith is able to expand his role. He can be used more as a weapon to attack opponents. "The different sub packages will determine where he's playing," Kelly. "We feel like when we're in our base defense, he'll be inside. "When we get into some of our sub packages, we can choose where he plays. He can be on the outside, and he can be on the inside, depending on what we want to do. "We've firmly established that we can move him around." Smith's versatility is a coach's dream and it helps VanGorder and the Irish defensive coaches get their best 11 players on the field in all situations. Wherever he ends up, though, Smith will be asked to be the Irish defense's most dynamic playmaker. — Bryan Driskell Smith has the athleticism, skill and versatility to play inside or outside, which will allow defenisve coordinator Brian VanGorder (right) to move him around and maximize his impact in each game. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA