If you’re interested in getting caught up, here are the lists for 25-21 and 20-16.
Day three of our countdown gets us into the top-flight of Irish players. While we’re only talking about Notre Dame, it’ll be interesting to see how the recruiting rankings of the best players on the Irish roster turn out as compared to some other major programs that have done well recently in national recruiting rankings.
A few observations from yesterday’s list:
* I’m high on Robert Hughes, but in retrospect, maybe I’ve got him ranked a bit too high. As TLNDMA mentioned yesterday in the comments, if Hughes makes judges’ Top 25, there will likely be four backs in the top 25 on the roster, showing the depth that the Irish have in the backfield. For the record, I had Jonas Gray at 26, just outside my list, and the thinking was that he’d have a smaller impact on the Irish offense than the others listed, as he’s a different mold of back than Hughes, and he’ll probably slide behind Cierre Wood and Armando Allen in primary back duties.
* The boys at Rakes and Pat both had Brian Smith in the 16-20 range, a spot I think is a little low for him. Smith has had an up-and-down career, and he had quite a few plays last year where he looked like he was on roller-skates at middle linebacker while he was trying to shed blocks. That said, not every linebacker can play inside and outside (especially with an undersized defensive line in front of him), and some Mel Kiper types (even Mel himself) had a high draft grade on Smith the past few years. I expect a big year out of B. Smith at a position tailor-made for him, as it’s his last chance to fulfill the promise he showed as a freshman.
* Resident wiseguy “Art Vandelay” had some kind words for Matt and Pat and their flashy prose. In the defense of the other guys, I told them to keep it to one-line, limiting the flair they could bring out in their writing. I’m still formulating my defense, but I’ll try to add a little flavor today for Art’s sake.
On to the lists...
Frank of UHND:
15. Steve Filer, OLB: The Irish coaches are going to have to find a way to get Filer on the field more this fall.
14. Jonas Gray, RB: Has the talent to be ranked much higher. Needs to hold on to the football consistently to move up.
13. Cierre Wood, RB: Like Theo Riddick, he’s a playmaker and needs to have the ball in his hands more.
12. Brian Smith, OLB: He looked his best as a freshman in the 3-4 defense. A move back to OLB should improve his stock in 2010.
11. Theo Riddick, WR: Riddick’s a difference maker. Notre Dame needs more players like him. His position switch knocks him down a few spots.
Anthony of Clashmore Mike:
15. Kapron Lewis-Moore, DE: Raw athlete improved as 2009 progressed, but needs to continue to be active.
14. Dayne Crist, QB: Has the physical tools to be great, will experience hold him back?
13. Duval Kamara, WR: Rising senior should return to freshman form with Golden Tate’s departure.
12. Darrin Walls, CB: Physical ability to be a lock-down corner, needs to improve against the run.
11. T.J. Jones, WR: Route-running skills make him very difficult to cover.
Matt of Her Loyal Sons:
15. Shaquelle Evans, WR: All that speed -- time to stop spending it on curl routes.
14. Theo Riddick, WR: Averaged 5.5 yards-per-carry in an inept running game and now moves to wide receiver...
13. Gary Gray, CB: One of the few facets on ND that seemed to gain momentum as 2009 progressed.
12. Zeke Motta, DB: His position on this list = my one entirely hunch based selection.
11. Robert Blanton, CB: Best solo tackle stats out of the backfield once you remove other guys who got a lot of solo tackles because they were 40 yards down field chasing the guy who caught the ball. On 3rd and 8.
Chris and Matt of Rakes of Mallow:
15. Braxston Cave, C: Cave likely beat out fifth-year senior Dan Wenger for the starting center spot and is reported to be putting up ridiculous numbers in the weight room.
14. T.J. Jones, WR: He has yet to play a down for the Irish, but the early-enrollee had a fantastic spring and looks to have earned a starting spot already.
13. Shaq Evans, WR: Showed flashes early as a frosh last year, but some iffy coaching decisions had him riding the pine for the second half of ’09. Look for him to flourish a la Mardy Gilyard in Kelly’s offense.
12. Steve Filer, OLB: Google “Steve Filer jumps out of a pool.”
11. Armando Allen, RB: Even though fans are higher on Cierre Wood and Jonas Gray right now, Allen will find enough seams in the spread to keep the Irish faithful cheering.
Pat, man of the people:
15. Braxston Cave, C: Braxston really came on strong in spring practice and looked good in the spring game. The fact that he beat out Wenger is a sign of his desire to get on to the field.
14. Ian Williams, NT: Ian’s six TFLs last season show that he at least has the ability to get into the backfield. He may not rack up sacks, but he can be disruptive to blockers.
13. Gary Gray, CB: The fact that Gray is now starting over Robert Blanton is a testament to his athletic ability and he looked very good last season and in the Blue-Gold game.
12. Theo Riddick, WR: Riddick has the potential to bloom in Kelly’s offense. Averaging over five yards a carry and seven yards per catch, he’s a dynamic player with excellent speed.
11. Dayne Crist, QB: Mostly a potential pick, but QBs in Kelly’s offense seem to perform well. Last season, Cincinnati used four QBs. The lowest of them had a passer efficiency of 129 and they combined for 39 TDs and just 8 INTs.
Keith:
15. Harrison Smith, DB: While he certainly looked lost last year, I put that more on the coaching staff yo-yo-ing Smith back and forth between linebacker and safety than on Harrison, who was playing with zero confidence last year and thinking too much, a terrible combination for the last line of defense.
14. Cierre Wood, RB: While I’m certainly high on Wood, I’d probably rank him a little higher if I went with my gut, but I’m not going to let his Blue-Gold game turn me completely delusional.
13. Darrin Walls, CB: I see Darrin’s season going two ways: The first would make Irish fans very happy. The second would bring back memories of Jonathan Baldwin at Pitt. I’ve got him ranked this high because I think it’s more likely the former.
12. Ethan Johnson, DE: Gone is the flashy single-digit number that came with far than flashy results. With a year in Paul Longo’s strength program, and a move back to his more natural position, maybe this is the season Johnson delivers on his prodigious potential.
11. Kapron Lewis-Moore, DE: I’m a big fan of KLM’s physical gifts, and after a year of learning on the fly and moving to the 3-4, I could see a Victor Abiamiri-type junior season, where Vic was named lineman of the year with 8 sacks and 15 TFLs.