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Notre Dame Football

Quarterbacks, Jones Jr., Kraemer, Hayes, and Hayes Stand Out for Kelly

April 26, 2017
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Brian Kelly like conducted his last public interview of the Spring on Wednesday during the ACC Media Teleconference.

There weren’t any revelations on Wednesday morning, but Kelly spoke about quarterback DeShone Kizer one more time before Thursday’s NFL Draft.

“I thought he started to come on midway through the season when he felt more comfortable in the starting role,” stated Kelly. “You know, at the start of the season, we were playing two quarterbacks, and I think once we got to the bye week, he started to exhibit the kind of leadership skills that that quarterback position demands. So he was starting to take hold, and that's why it would have been great to have him come back for another year because we were starting to see those leadership traits really come out on him.”

Kelly continued to praise Kizer’s character and football knowledge.

“I will tell you he's going to be a great leader in the NFL,” explained Kelly. “He can make all the throws, and he's got a great mind. I mean, he understands the game. You'll never have a problem with him character-wise off the field. Those are all good qualities to have.”

With Kizer out, Brandon Wimbush is now the face of the Notre Dame program. Kelly spoke of Wimbush’s winning background and traits that will carry over to his starting role.

“Brandon Wimbush got all the first-team reps, and we think he's a highly skilled player, nationally recruited, Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of New Jersey, won the state championship, so he's got some pedigree there in terms of winning,” said Kelly. “Character, outstanding, leadership, outstanding, arm strength, skill set. Now it's just learning, learning all the little intricacies of playing the position, and he's done a nice job

“Ian Book from Northern California had a great spring for us, as well, so I think we've got a couple of quarterbacks that are young but definitely on the right track.”

It was hard-pressed to get the Notre Dame staff to talk about individual players this spring. However, Kelly did point to four names that could have a significant impact in the fall.

“Offensively, Tony Jones at running back will be a guy that plays a significant role for us,” Kelly said. “Defensively, Daelin Hayes, who played sparingly for us last year, but will play a significant role for us. I think those two guys stand out.

“If you continue to look at other guys that are going to be significant for us, right tackle, Tommy Kraemer, will go in there and play a significant role for us, and I think from a defensive standpoint, I think you're going to see a guy like Jay Hayes, who's a junior, but who's been playing sparingly, has had a great off-season for us. Those four guys stood out and had really good springs.”

Notre Dame currently has 12 commitments in the 2018 recruiting class and the Spring Evaluation Period has kicked into full gear. The Irish coaches are out on the road across the country checking on top targets for the next month, and Kelly knows it’s a numbers game when it comes to future commitments.

“How many guys have you got committed at a particular position,” Kelly of offering new prospects. “That's your first factor. So you know, we're pretty much ahead of the game when it comes to 2018. We've already got 12 committed. So that, with how many spots you had originally had available -- we had 20. So with eight spots available, that would obviously dictate how many offers that we would extend.

“To give you an exact number, it depends on how many you've got committed and how many spots you have available.”
 
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