Which Freshmen Make The Rotation - May Edition
Notre Dame’s freshmen class arrives in June, and there are several candidates to play early for the Irish.
It's way too early to know what Notre Dame has in the 2018 class, but I wouldn't be shocked if these five names made it on the field early in their career.
DL - Jayson Ademilola and Justin Ademilola
Notre Dame landed the Ademilola twins early and held on to them throughout the process. Jayson will arrive at Notre Dame with a ton of hype as most services had him as a high four-star prospect.
Justin was a four-star on ISD, but a three-star on most services. I believe the 6-foot-3, 235-pounder has an enormous chip on his shoulder and it has motivated him over the last year.
The path to playing time might be a little tougher for Justin has the plan is to start him off at Drop but also learn strongside end. Daelin Hayes and Julian Okwara will be the top drop ends, but the strongside end is little more friendly with Khalid Kareem, Ade Ogundeji and Jamir Jones.
It wouldn’t surprise me to see Justin get moved over to strongside end on some packages and beat out Jones and get some reps in pass rushing situations. Notre Dame needs more pass rushers, and if he can prove he can get to the quarterback in camp, then he could very well find himself getting some early snaps.
Jayson will also have some stiff competition at the 3-tech with Jerry Tillery, Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa and Micah Dew-Treadway returning. Tillery will take up the majority of the snaps, but as we saw last year, Mike Elston wants to get a solid rotation going.
Dew-Treadway got quality reps this spring as Tillery was out for a significant portion of spring ball, but Ademilola’s ability to rush the passer could be a difference to get him early reps.
Could Notre Dame move Tillery over to the 1-tech in pass rushing situations and get Ademilola on the field? We could very well see something like that this fall as Ademilola has proved time and time again he can get to the quarterback.
Jayson Ademilola Junior Highlights
Justin Ademilola Senior Highlights
S – Houston Griffith
I’m not excluding Griffith from this list as head coach Brian Kelly has stated his early enrollee will see the field in 2018. Griffith showed he was on a mission early in spring ball at cornerback before moving to free safety.
We saw the 5-foot-11, 196-pounder take reps with the starters, second-team and the third-team, but it didn’t matter what group Griffith was in, he was making plays.
The play that sticks out to me is a short pass to tight end Brock Wright and Griffith came up and leveled him to force a fumble. Griffith showed no hesitation to hit the 6-foot-4, 250-pounder and made a game-changing play.
I remember watching Devin Studstill as an early enrollee take snaps from Max Redfield and thinking that he didn’t seem overwhelmed by the game. Well, Griffith was in a different category as he looked incredibly smooth and as if he’d be in the Irish defense for two years.
Griffith will battle Alohi Gilman for playing time, and while Gilman had an equally impressive spring, Notre Dame will want to get its best two safeties on the field. Could you see Griffith take over at free safety and Gilman move to strong safety at some point? I wouldn’t be surprised.
Houston Griffith Senior Highlights
CB – Noah Boykin or DJ Brown
While it might be a cop out to list both names, I do think at least one of them will play in 2018. The loss of Nick Watkins is a significant one for the Irish, and it will likely force a freshmen cornerback to get into the rotation.
Boykin has the traits and body to be one of the nation’s best in a few years. He can play man and come up to stop the run. He’s a physical corner that can run, but he also can play the ball, which separates him from other prospects.
I like Brown more than most as I believe he’s made for Clark Lea’s defense. He’s an aggressive corner that understands the concepts of the cornerback positions, especially in zone coverage.
Brown will need to improve his man coverage, but I would give him the nod over Boykin when it comes to zone coverage. He will come up and stop the run, which is essential to both players if they want to see the field early. Two years ago we saw with Julian Love, and Troy Pride Jr. struggled at times against the run, but Brown and Boykin are both physically ready, while Love and Pride had to do some work in the weight room.
Noah Boykin Senior Highlights
DJ Brown Senior Highlights