From the Locker Room: New and Gold Scrimmage

Several Notre Dame players spoke after the New and Gold Game on Sunday.

Equanimeous St. Brown

On game today

“It was only rehearsal for game day. I only played the first few series and then [WR] Miles [Boykin] and [WR] Chase [Claypool] got in there, let the young guys get experience.”

“The game has slowed down for me, last year a lot of stuff went pretty fast. But this year, it all comes slower. I am more crisp with my plays, and everything is slower.”

On connection with Brandon Wimbush on and off the field

“Off the field, we are great friends; we always hang out. For football, I caught some balls from him in high school and then as a freshman we both ran with the twos. And now, this year, all spring and fall camp I have been catching balls from him. That’s been helping a lot on the chemistry part of it.”

On seeing young guys on the field

“It’s fun seeing them out there, being quick about being lined up and making sure they know the plays. They’re adjusting great; I know how it is the first time out there in the big stadium, they’ll do great.”

On stadium renovations

“Oh I like it, it’s real nice. The jumbotron especially to see replays is a big help.”

On offensive readiness

“I think we are really ready; now we are just getting the finer details. We installed all the offense, but we are reiterating all the little details.”

“I think it is going to be explosive. Brandon is like a running back, he’s a big guy. He’s going to break tackles, and the defense is not going to be able to keep up with us.”

On Chase Claypool’s ceiling

“I don’t think he has a ceiling, he’s a great kid. He’s just now getting into his body and this place. This year is going to be a big year for him.”

On depth at wide receiver

“It’s important for the offense to have subs that can perform in high-pressure situations. Going as fast as we go, we are going to need some plays off.”

Josh Adams

On how close the offense is to being ready to go

“I think we are getting there, we have made strides early on, especially since day one. We have been working hard each and every day working hard and limiting mistakes. I think we are growing into the fast pace offense that we want to be. We didn’t step on the gas all the way, but it was an important practice for us. I felt like we did an amazing job today. Everybody did a great job, special teams, defense, and not just the ones and twos.”

On Brandon Wimpish not being live

“it’s difficult when they blow the whistle early, but he will let it loose when the red jersey comes off, and he will make plays.”

On what to expect as a junior

“They can expect whatever they want to expect. I am just focused on getting better each and every year and trying to help my team each and every play. I explained to the guys that everyone in this room is going to contribute to the goal of getting to the national championship. Our future is in our hands. We are going to continue to get better and continue to strive for greatness.”

On the moment of becoming a captain

“It was definitely a blessing, I had to thank God first and foremost for allowing me to be here. I explained to Coach Kelly and the team that it is an amazing honor and I am going to continue to lead how I can and continue to do the best that I can for this team.”

“I think we need to get better at a lot of things. We have definitely come close as a team. We are excited to get under the lights on September second against Temple. We are excited to run out that tunnel for real. We set the standard high for each other.”

Nyles Morgan

On defensive performance

“The scoreboard kind of tells it all (the score was 7 to 7). I think the defense played pretty well. Guys were flying around and having fun, I was pretty pleased.”

On being able to tell the difference between this year's team and last years

“It’s night and day. Our defensive line is flying off the ball, and someone is going to come free as a linebacker.”

On if the defense is cleaner this year

“It’s a lot clearer, it’s surgical clean. Guys in the backfield can’t get free because we are coming off the ball so fast. The philosophy is that we need to get into the backfield as fast as possible.”

“we are locked in and focused on the season. We have the right guys leading the team. Everyone is bought in, guys are tired from camp, but they want to continue getting better. It’s going to show up on the field.”

On Josh being a captain

“I thought Josh was a captain, I don’t know what you all are talking about. But seriously though, Josh brings a lot to the team. We can depend on him in the game and in practice. He’s not as vocal, he’s a guy that will say something when need be, and we need that.”

On the linebacker room

“Everybody is getting along and having a good time. The most important thing is though that everybody is learning and getting better. Guys are really attacking their gap and loving playing football."

Mike McGlinchey

On having a year under your belt with four starters on the offensive line returning

“I think as a unit there’s a lot more confidence in the guys next to us. I think the five of us, not just the four guys coming back, are working extremely hard to be able to see things on the field through one set of us and work together as one. And that’s all you can ask for. I think a year that we have under our belt and the struggles we’ve had at times have given us the drive to make sure we never have those problems again because a lot of them came from miscommunications or guys not being where they were supposed to be, and we can’t let that happen. We want to be the group that drives our team, not the one that lets it down. I think we’re getting there now, we’re close but individually we’re not where we want to be, and as a group either, we’ll never get there, so we have to keep grinding it out every day.”

On bringing Tommy Kraemer along on the offensive line?

“You know, it’s not about bringing him to that level, it’s about getting Tommy to be Tommy. He just has to play within himself. He has to stop worrying about things that are out of his control. And if he can do that, then he’ll be the great offensive tackle that we know he can be. Obviously, he’s going to have his struggles: it’s year one, he’s out on that island that he’s never been on before, it’s a big step to be able to move the way you need to move as an offensive tackle at our level. Tommy’s been doing a great job, he’s working his ass off, and he’s one of those kids that you love having in a room. He’s going to be fine, but like I said, the key for Tommy is to worry about being Tommy, and not to try to be a Mike McGlinchey, or Ronny Stanley, or Zack Martin. He has to play within himself.”

On the increased physical mindset of the team and offensive coordinator Chip Long?

“The biggest things that Chip has brought to us is that he’s saying that he wants to put it on the offensive line, and we believe it. There have been times in the past when we’ve said “it’s on the offensive line” and things didn’t get called the way they were supposed to, or we didn’t execute what we needed to do. It’s just about getting to where we need to be, and we have that faith in him, and he has that faith in us. We’ve already started to click, and we know that if it comes down to it, and it’s 3 rd and 1, we want to run the ball. The five guys that we have up front are going to be able to do a lot of great things for us this year, and I think Coach Long has put a lot of faith in us for that.”

Drue Tranquill

On narrowing the gap between offense and defense in such a short time and what Coach Elko has meant to the defense

“When you look at the defensive line, the first thing you look at is strength and physicality. I think when you look at the change in strength staff, that’s probably played a huge part in it. So that
would be my first thought. There’s a different, “go get it,” competitive attitude in that room that I’ve seen.”

On making progress and developing as a team?

“I mean yeah, in college football if you play great defense, you’re going to win. We saw that last year with the season we had. Obviously, we’re optimistic about moving forward this season. In our new scheme, we’re really focused on the technicalities of each position and not so much winning with the scheme but with technique. I’m really excited for where we’re at.”

On what needs to improve this year in terms of communication

“I think minimizing the communication is needed. Guys aren’t necessarily worried about what the guy on their side of the field is, the guys are just communicating what the guys on that side of the field need to hear. Guys are studying more and having more attention to detail about their position. I like that we’re doing more position meetings instead of full defensive meetings. I think that really allows guys to hone in on the technicalities of each position. I think that’s why you’re seeing a better sense of communication.”

On how he feels in relation to his own game

“The two previous years I was coming off ACLs, so I was really battling with those as well as just the mental aspect of coming back from that. Coming off a full year of being healthy and feeling great has let me be able to focus more on the mental side of things and captaincy in general. I think about “how can I bring those other guys along with me.” This will be my fourth season, so I’ve been around the block a few times, so I’m thinking about how I can bring those younger guys along. Just trying to develop that with our sports psychologist and mental performance training and learning to lead with our other captains.”

On how learning rover fits in with your goals

“I feel confident. With the position transition in the spring and getting a lot of reps there full time at that, I’m here in fall camp after being able to get a lot of reps. I feel confident in where we’re at.”