Notre Dame allowed reporters to watch the first 30 minutes of Tuesday’s practice. There was not any scrimmaging or one-on-ones in that time span, but here are a few notes from what @Patrick Engel and I saw.
• Offensive tackle Josh Lugg was back and participating today after straining his neck in Thursday’s practice. Safety Kyle Hamilton was back in action as well after sitting out the final portion of Thursday. Neither issue was considered serious. Wide receiver Braden Lenzy was in cleats and pants, but not pads and was not participating in drills we saw.
• After stretching, kicker Jonathan Doerer and Joshua Bryan went to practice field goals against a full kick-blocking unit. Doerer looked good overall from short range, missed from about 45 yards but hit his final attempt of the period from 51 yards out with plenty of range. Bryan’s 50-plus yard attempt hit the crossbar and tipped in. Jay Bramblett and Michael Vinson were the holder and snapper, as usual.
• The defense then went outside into position group drills. The linebackers went to work on tackling and lateral agility drills, while the defensive line practiced occupying double-teams. It’s much more technical work than it is a chance to observe and evaluate, but it was still hard not to notice defensive tackle Howard Cross’ quick first step.
•A random roster note: defensive end Jordan Botelho has changed jersey numbers from 17 to 12. The roster is updated to reflect it.
• It’s not always indicative of who is on the first team and who is on the second team, but senior cornerback TaRiq Bracy was lined up next to junior Cam Hart during individual drills. Sophomore Clarence Lewis was working alongside sophomore Ramon Henderson. Again, that does not denote a swap between Bracy and Lewis on the first team. But it is definitely of note to see Bracy getting quality reps at the position.
• Jack Coan gets better and better each time we see him. Right after the team left stretching lines, the wide receivers worked with the quarterbacks in routes on air. Coan throws a tighter spiral than sophomore Drew Pyne and freshman Tyler Buchner, and he puts it on the money. The other two miss their target from time to time, but Coan puts the football in a place receivers are able to turn and run upfield much more easily.
• No changes at the top offensively. The offensive line was the same as it’s been since freshman Blake Fisher returned from concussion protocol; Fisher at left tackle, junior Zeke Correll at left guard, senior Jarrett Patterson at center, graduate senior Cain Madden at right guard and Lugg at right tackle. The receivers who ran with the first-team offense in a two-minute drill on air were the usual suspects, too; senior Avery Davis in the slot, seniors Kevin Austin Jr. at boundary and senior Joe Wilkins Jr. filling in for Lenzy at field.
• The second-team wide receiver situation was interesting. Freshman Lorenzo Styles headlined that unit. He ran with senior Lawrence Keys III, another wideout who isn’t a stranger to getting a ton of second-string reps. Senior walk-on Matt Salerno was heavily involved with the twos, though, as was another true freshman in Jayden Thomas. Pyne threw a touchdown pass to Salerno rolling to the right to cap off the second team’s 11-on-air two-minute drill.
• Also notable about the twos — freshman Audric Estime got time with that group while fellow freshman Logan Diggs dropped back with the threes. The hierarchy of the freshman running backs has been an ongoing theme of preseason practices.
• Buchner struggled operating his 11-on-air two-minute drill. He fumbled a snap, and on three-straight plays he threw the ball to the same receiver running the same route. It was freshman wide receiver Jack Polian running an out. By this point in preseason practices, Pyne being the No. 2 quarterback is about as clear as Coan being the starter. Those are the top two quarterbacks Notre Dame has on the roster.
• Freshman wide receiver Deion Colzie capped off the third team’s 11-on-air touchdown drive with a catch in the corner of the end zone. Going back to the first team drive, Davis got the ball into the end zone on the same out route Salerno scored on.
• Offensive tackle Josh Lugg was back and participating today after straining his neck in Thursday’s practice. Safety Kyle Hamilton was back in action as well after sitting out the final portion of Thursday. Neither issue was considered serious. Wide receiver Braden Lenzy was in cleats and pants, but not pads and was not participating in drills we saw.
• After stretching, kicker Jonathan Doerer and Joshua Bryan went to practice field goals against a full kick-blocking unit. Doerer looked good overall from short range, missed from about 45 yards but hit his final attempt of the period from 51 yards out with plenty of range. Bryan’s 50-plus yard attempt hit the crossbar and tipped in. Jay Bramblett and Michael Vinson were the holder and snapper, as usual.
• The defense then went outside into position group drills. The linebackers went to work on tackling and lateral agility drills, while the defensive line practiced occupying double-teams. It’s much more technical work than it is a chance to observe and evaluate, but it was still hard not to notice defensive tackle Howard Cross’ quick first step.
•A random roster note: defensive end Jordan Botelho has changed jersey numbers from 17 to 12. The roster is updated to reflect it.
• It’s not always indicative of who is on the first team and who is on the second team, but senior cornerback TaRiq Bracy was lined up next to junior Cam Hart during individual drills. Sophomore Clarence Lewis was working alongside sophomore Ramon Henderson. Again, that does not denote a swap between Bracy and Lewis on the first team. But it is definitely of note to see Bracy getting quality reps at the position.
• Jack Coan gets better and better each time we see him. Right after the team left stretching lines, the wide receivers worked with the quarterbacks in routes on air. Coan throws a tighter spiral than sophomore Drew Pyne and freshman Tyler Buchner, and he puts it on the money. The other two miss their target from time to time, but Coan puts the football in a place receivers are able to turn and run upfield much more easily.
• No changes at the top offensively. The offensive line was the same as it’s been since freshman Blake Fisher returned from concussion protocol; Fisher at left tackle, junior Zeke Correll at left guard, senior Jarrett Patterson at center, graduate senior Cain Madden at right guard and Lugg at right tackle. The receivers who ran with the first-team offense in a two-minute drill on air were the usual suspects, too; senior Avery Davis in the slot, seniors Kevin Austin Jr. at boundary and senior Joe Wilkins Jr. filling in for Lenzy at field.
• The second-team wide receiver situation was interesting. Freshman Lorenzo Styles headlined that unit. He ran with senior Lawrence Keys III, another wideout who isn’t a stranger to getting a ton of second-string reps. Senior walk-on Matt Salerno was heavily involved with the twos, though, as was another true freshman in Jayden Thomas. Pyne threw a touchdown pass to Salerno rolling to the right to cap off the second team’s 11-on-air two-minute drill.
• Also notable about the twos — freshman Audric Estime got time with that group while fellow freshman Logan Diggs dropped back with the threes. The hierarchy of the freshman running backs has been an ongoing theme of preseason practices.
• Buchner struggled operating his 11-on-air two-minute drill. He fumbled a snap, and on three-straight plays he threw the ball to the same receiver running the same route. It was freshman wide receiver Jack Polian running an out. By this point in preseason practices, Pyne being the No. 2 quarterback is about as clear as Coan being the starter. Those are the top two quarterbacks Notre Dame has on the roster.
• Freshman wide receiver Deion Colzie capped off the third team’s 11-on-air touchdown drive with a catch in the corner of the end zone. Going back to the first team drive, Davis got the ball into the end zone on the same out route Salerno scored on.
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