K'Vaughan Pope

Smart? Luck? A little of both? Whatever it was, throwing a zone at Princeton during yesterday's NCAA Tournament matchup was a key part of the Irish's 60-58 win over the 12th-seeded Tigers. "I thought that got Princeton a little bit out of their rhythm and they missed a lot of shots, even if they were decent shots," one Division-I head basketball coach told Irish Sports Daily following the game. "I just think when Princeton gets in a groove and you keep giving them the same look, they're pretty good. They switched up and went to a little zone. Princeton got decent looks, but they kind of took them out of their rhythm a little bit in the first half, when they extended their lead. Now, Princeton came back and obviously still had a chance, but I thought that was a key. Princeton went up 17-15 and then Notre Dame went on a 10-0 run." The Irish face fourth-seeded West Virginia tomorrow for the right to go to the Sweet 16. The Mountaineers hung on to beat 13th-seeded Bucknell 86-80 in their first-round game yesterday. How Notre Dame handles West Virginia's fullcourt press will be a critical factor in who advances and who goes home for good. "You've got to have good decision-makers and good playmakers," the coach said of the key to succeeding against the Mountaineers. "They take you out of your offense and don't allow you to run your offense or plays. They want you to make plays and I think Notre Dame is really suited to attack that because they have a bunch of guys who can handle it and pass it and are good decision-makers." West Virginia forces more turnovers per game than any team in the country while the Irish turn it over less than all but one team. "That's obviously a huge stat," the coach said. "I think if Notre Dame takes decent care of the ball, I think they have a good chance. "They're ideally suited to attack them because they have so many guys who can handle, pass and make open shots. All of Notre Dame's guys who they play are good decision-makers, that's why they don't turn it over."A second Division-I head coach also expressed optimism in the Irish's chances of marching on because of the matchup. FROM THE BUSHES: Obviously, there's a great deal of excitement surrounding Notre Dame Football right now, certainly more than anyone would have guessed following last season's disaster. While there are several people responsible for the momentum, it starts at the top. Just as head coach Brian Kelly shouldered much of the responsibility for what went wrong last fall, he deserves much of the credit for doing what he what he saw as necessary to start turning things around. Not only have his personnel decisions helped, but so has his personality. We continue to hear how different he seems right now. Everyone seems to have noticed. Kelly has been much more engaged and has provided a very positive presence by always being around and being involved. The head coach is taking a much more active role in recruiting as well. We continue to say it because we continue to hear it, but we're told the difference in the strength and conditioning program is "VAST." One source described the comparison between the old and new as "night and day." It sounds like quarterback Brandon Wimbush is handling being thrust into the number one quarterback role about as well as anybody could have hoped. He's a great kid with great character who is really stepping up to be the guy and become a leader. His work ethic in the weight room is obvious and has been noticed. Backup quarterback Ian Book has pleased as well. We're told he looked really solid the first couple days. Everybody knows Book is a smart kid and that the game is important to him, but can he do it? So far, he's looked good. He's not a blazer, but he's all of six feet and very smart. The hope is he'll continue to develop at a good pace so the Irish can have true confidence in him if something happens to Wimbush. At receiver, we've heard to look for Chase Claypool to emerge. CJ Sanders has also made a jump while Chris Finke provides a steady presence at the position. Alize' Jones has displayed the kind of attitude many hoped to see from the tight end after sitting out last season. No surprise, but Brock Wright has been very impressive as a true freshman. Look for him to play this year. His upside is obvious. The defensive line is going to be interesting. As we've reported earlier, Elijah Taylor is hurt and could be out a considerable amount of time. Right now, it's Daniel Cage and Jerry Tillery. There's some hope that Tillery is ready to become more consistent. He still needs to prove it, but his attitude has been good. Micah Dew-Treadway has shown some fire with both he and Jonathan Bonner looking more like three-techniques than anything else. There's hope that Dew-Treadway becomes a guy as he works hard and wants to be a good player. At this point, we see Andrew Trumbetti as the most likely starter at strongside defensive end with Jay Hayes being heavily in the mix. Khalid Kareem could factor in here as well. At drop, Daelin Hayes is the likely starter, but Ade Ogundeji is also one to watch. His body is starting to develop and he's working hard. Jamir Jones will likely play Buck and potentially some Drop at times as he continues to be impressive. Asmar Bilal and Drue Tranquill will both play some Rover. Early enrollee Isaiah Robertson is getting work at safety, but his best position could be Rover in the end. Notre Dame's most challenging issue could be finding depth behind Devin Studstill and Jalen Elliott at safety. As with the interior of the defensive line, it isn't really clear what they'll be able to do there. Clemson transfer Scott Pagano would be a huge, huge addition. Perhaps the most encouraging thing to come out of Pagano's recent trip to Notre Dame was the fact that he really felt comfortable around the Irish players, which is likely to be a big factor in his decision. But at this point, it's hard to say if he's leaning toward Notre Dame or elsewhere and that may not clear until the very end. FURTHER CONFIRMATION ON BALIS: We're still in the very early stages of Matt Balis' tenure as strength and conditioning coach at Notre Dame, but the current players have already seen the results. A quick glance at the social media feed of most on the Irish roster and it's clear they've bought in to his system. Still, it had to be even more reassuring for those players to see the performance Balis' former pupil defensive back Obi Melifonu during the NFL Draft Combine. And the Notre Dame players and those around them definitely noticed. "The workout program is really the difference," one source told us recently. "The people who were in the highest rank of the Draft Combine were from Connecticut." In recent months, we've heard from sources about how the previous strength and conditioning regime may not have pushed the players hard enough and this source, close to one of the younger members of the team, agreed. "We worked hard in high school," the source said. (The player) was like, 'We worked harder in high school than we did last year.' "Now, I hear it in his voice and I feel it in the way he talks, how jacked they are about the workout program and about the season." There have been no complaints regarding Balis' program, which is surely due to change itself, but also a sign that this group was starving to be pushed closer to the edge. "He's been really impressed with how intense their workout is now," the source said. "That'll carry over. That's the main thing, how hard you work in the offseason to get yourself ready. They're working and training like a big-time program now." SANDERS READY TO STEP FORWARD ON FIELD: A couple weeks ago in this space, we talked about how wide receiver C.J. Sanders is ready to be more of a leader in the locker room now that he's a junior, but he's also excited about the chance to have a larger impact for the Irish on the field. Sanders seems energized by the arrival of new receivers coach Del Alexander. He's told people he believes in Alexander and appreciates the inspirational messages from his new position coach. "It seems like they're really building something special," one source said. "I think that trust, bond and being hungry together is almost like a fresh start. 'Let's build and create something different starting right here.'" Sanders provided a special-teams spurt right out of the gate, returning a kickoff and a punt for touchdowns as a true freshman in 2015. He returned two kickoffs for touchdowns this past year and also hauled in 24 passes for almost 300 yards and two more touchdowns as a slot receiver in 2016. His current focus is on getting stronger and faster and now that spring practice has rolled around, he's concentrating on fine-tuning his skills and correcting any mistakes in order to continuing growing within the offense. "It's like one of those things with a kid outside the candy store, waiting for the doors to open so he can take over," we were told. "He's excited and he's excited to have a new coach, being able to be used. That's his main thing. He knows he has the talent. He just wants to be used as part of the team however he can help. He plays three different positions and his goal is to be the best and be put in the best situation so he can help the team." McINTOSH READY TO SHOW WHAT HE CAN DO: Unlike Sanders, Deon McIntosh didn't get a chance to make an impact on Saturdays during his freshman season, but entering his sophomore season, the Florida native is ready to do just that. "He's excited," a source close to the running back/receiver told ISD. "He's just trying to show what he can do. He wants to fight for playing time this year, so he's really excited about it. He said he can't wait. He's been anxious." McIntosh was recruited as a running back, but the Irish decided to cross-train him at wide receiver as well. That decision was made to take advantage of all of his talents, but also doubled his learning load as a freshman. "Things are getting easier for him," one source said. "I think this is going to be a little bit more of an adjustment with a new offense and new coordinator. But it's not too bad. Learning another position that he wasn't used to playing took a lot of his effort and a lot of focus." Despite the extra workload and the belief that it could have had something to do with him not seeing the field last fall, McIntosh is convinced he'll be better for it in the long run. "I think he's an athlete," we were told. "It's something he wanted to do anyway, convert over to receiver. It's a challenge and he's looking forward to it." We were told splitting time at the two positions remains the plan moving forward, but there did seem to be some wiggle room of him potentially focusing on one spot more than the other. Either way, the 5-foot-11, 190-pounder believes he's ready to show why he was such an important recruit coming out of Cardinal Gibbons High School in Fort Lauderdale a year ago. "He's a player," we heard. "Deon is a baller. One thing for sure, once the lights come on, he's always been a player when the lights come on. "Once he knows what to do, he will be able to show that he's a baller. He will make plays. There's no doubt in my mind about that." RECRUITING BUSHES: Notre Dame has a trio of critical visits coming up on the offensive line. The expectation is that Ohio's John Dirksen will love Notre Dame when he visits soon and he'd probably be on Commit Watch when he arrives. Much the same for Michigan's Ryan Hayes, who comes next week and could be even more likely to pull the trigger. Both are very important targets for the Irish right now. The Irish would love to bring in three more offensive linemen to go with current pledge Cole Mabry and Florida's Nicholas Petit-Frere could end up being the final piece to the puzzle. He also visits next week. Georgia's Warren Ericson is probably an inside guy, but is another who is high on the board for Notre Dame. Defensively, we've removed a few prospects from our Target List. At this point, we'd be surprised if Notre Dame was a serious option for Ohio defensive linemen Aeneas Hawkins or Leonard Taylor North Carolina's Alan Tisdale also falls into that category. However, the Irish should be able to open the eyes of New Jersey defensive back Shayne Simon if they are able to get him on campus next month as expected. It will be important for Notre Dame to do so too because at this point, Michigan could have the edge. Simon is teammates at St. Peter's Prep with Irish commits Jayson and Justin Ademilola, which will help, and he seems like the kind of kid who would certainly fit at Notre Dame. Atlanta defensive back Myles Sims is a top target who has maintained solid contact with Notre Dame. He's another guy with a tie that could help the Irish as he's good friends with current defensive back commit Derrik Allen. California safety Julius Irvin is another name to keep an eye on. The Anaheim native plays for the same Servite program where the St. Browns used to play and is still extremely tight with top 2018 wide receiver target Amon-ra St. Brown. There may be no safety higher on Notre Dame's board than Oregon's Talanoa Hufanga. He has offers from schools like Oregon, Oregon State, UCLA, Cal, BYU, Arfizona State, Nebraska, Michigan and Tennessee among others, but has shown a legitimate interest in Notre Dame. He would represent a major, major get for the Irish. It's clear IMG defensive back Houston Griffith likes Notre Dame and the school has just about everything he's looking for, but he plays things pretty close to the vest and has plenty of options, so it's impossible to be extremely confident about Notre Dame's chances just yet. IMG cornerback Brendan Radley-Hiles has been a top target for Notre Dame for a while now, but we're not overly optimistic about the Irish's chances just yet. Houston cornerback D'Shawn Jamison is a flat stud, but probably a long shot. Washington defensive back Tre'Shaun Harrison may have some other schools possibly Washington and Michigan higher than Notre Dame right now, but we're guessing he visits at some point, so the Irish should get a chance to show him what they can offer. We're not so high on Notre Dame's chances at Virginia athlete K'Vaughan Pope, but we do believe the Irish will have a shot at Texas wide receiver/cornerback Jaquayln Crawford, who has talked about possibly visiting this summer. MORE RUCKERT REACTION: As we've said in the past, despite landing two of the top tight ends in the country in America last cycle, Notre Dame isn't about to ease up recruiting the position. Instead, the Irish are looking to capitalize and continue their claim as Tight End U. Last week in this space, we talked about 2018 Florida tight end George Takacs, who has strong ties to Notre Dame and will take his recent offer from the Irish seriously, a process that is sure to include an upcoming visit to South Bend. Notre Dame hosted another top 2018 tight end target last week in New York's Jeremy Ruckert.https://twitter.com/Jeremy_Ruckert1/status/839953737376485376We were able to dig a little deeper into what Ruckert's visit to South Bend could mean for his recruitment down the stretch. One thing is clear, the Irish have cemented themselves as players in the process. Exactly how strong of players isn't clear and may not even be clear to Ruckert himself just yet. At the end of December, Ruckert released a top five that included Alabama, Florida State, Michigan, Ohio State and Wisconsin. For the most part, those schools remain, with the exception of the Seminoles, who we hear have faded significantly. At one point, a couple West Coast schools Stanford and Oregon seemed to be working their way in, but that's far from a certainty now. When he announced his favorites, he added that Notre Dame could work its way in based on his visit and it sounds like that's exactly what happened. From all accounts, Ruckert was impressed with just about everything he saw during his trip to South Bend and, perhaps most importantly, he felt he could fit at Notre Dame. Comfort could be the deciding factor, which is something one recruiter mentioned to Ruckert and his camp months ago. "At the very beginning stages, one of these coaches said, 'You know what's going to have to happen with a kid like Jeremy? He's going to have to figure out what school by visiting and seeing how he fits in,'" a source said of the conversation. "This guy was honest. 'Everybody has a story to convince a kid to come to their school. They're going to tell him they're going to throw it, we need you, we want you.' The only way to decide is to go visit the coaches and visit the players. This guy was 100 percent right." Ruckert's comfort level with each coaching staff will be important, but the New Yorker is mature enough to realize that many if not all of the coaches at the school he chooses could be gone by the time he graduates college. "The guy gave such sound advice," the source continued. "These coaches are all great and you have to try to fit in with a guy who can coach you for sure, but what school will you fit at if those coaches aren't there? If you want to stay somewhere for four years, four and a half years, what school fits into Jeremy Ruckert and what type of players?" BETWEEN THE HASHES: Shammond Cooper and Isaiah Williams are eyeing a stop in South Bend for the Irish's Sophomore Day next month, but the 2019 Trinity Catholic High School teammates could end up moving that trip up a week. On the other hand, 2018 Missouri defensive end Daniel Carson was looking at trying to get to South Bend during his spring break, but it sounds like that visit may have to wait until summer.