Coach | Notre Dame QB Target Has "Every Tool You Can Imagine"

Ben Neill says Christopher Vizzina‍ has it all.

“He has literally every tool you can imagine,” Neill says of the 2023 Alabama quarterback. “He's got speed. He's got size. He's got strength. He's got the off-the-field intangibles as far as character and leadership and work ethic.”

Neill, who works with the respected developmental/training company QB Country, says he often forgets Vizzina is still just a kid.

“He's so mature and such a competitor for his age,” says Neill. “He has what we call the 'It Factor' when it comes to a QB. QB's that have the 'It Factor', they've got heart, they've got courage, they've got toughness, they've got tenacity and leadership skills.

“Then his physical skills, they speak for themselves with his game film. He's got a quick release. He's 6-4. He's fast, he's accurate. He's got a really strong arm. Honestly, you can't ask for much more in a personality type or a body style in a quarterback.”

That complete package is one reason why so many top schools have offered the 6-foot-4, 200-pounder scholarships. Notre Dame joined that list a few weeks ago.

“They're extremely fired up,” Neill says. “This is a big one. Notre Dame is just such a big historic program. Things are just done It's a big deal. He's got all the offers, but the Notre Dame one is big.”

Vizzina, who many simply call ‘CV’, worked with Neill in the past, but really hit it hard with him last offseason.

“His high school staff was really good,” Neill says. “We're all on the same page. I went and met with them in January or February of last year just to lay out the offseason plan. They were all on board. His coach did a great job of taking him to camps this summer. I really feel it's been a good team effort of support behind CV.

“He also just worked his ass off and got a lot better and cleaned a few things up this offseason. It showed at his camps this summer and it's showing on film this year. I think that's why he's raking in all the offers.”

Neill says much of what they worked on with Vizzina was with regard to weight distribution.

“He didn't grow up playing quarterback,” he says. “He grew up playing receiver. He's a heckuva an athlete, knows how to run and move. But you're a little less linear as a quarterback than you are as a receiver or really any other position. So, we focused on getting him more rotational and keeping his weight back a little bit more. He was being a bit less consistent on some of his throws. You can have some real bad misses when your weight gets out on that front foot. Sometimes you still throw it fine.

“There was a little bit of a grip, wrist issue that we adjusted just slightly. We adjusted that real early in the offseason and he moved on ever since.”

At this point, according to Neill, it’s about consistency.

“I think he's got everything down,” the coach says. “His mechanics are really sound 80 percent of the time. I want to get that number to about 88, 90 percent of the time next year. Maybe even 95 or higher. It's just a matter of consistency.

“Most quarterbacks at a high level can throw a sound throw with good accuracy, good velocity and good control with a clean pocket. If something is going to happen that causes their mechanics to break down, whether it's a contested rep, whether they get pressure, whether they just feel like the windows closing and they've got to speed their selves up a little bit, something's going to cause them to be a little off.

“What I want to do is just expose him to more different scenarios where he knows how to make adjustments that don't throw off his mechanics.”

Neill believes Vizzina would be a great fit for how the Irish like to use their signal-callers.

“He's a big, tough, strong kid with a big arm. He can play-action, he can stay in the pocket, but he's also really athletic. He can extend plays, he can tuck it and run, he can do the zone read or the RPO. He's pretty versatile when it comes to the style of quarterback you want to be. But in my opinion, I'm no Notre Dame expert, but it seems like they want a really big, strong, tough, not necessarily pro-style, but a quarterback who can hang in there and throw it with a bunch of guys breathing down his throat. CV is kind of built for that.”