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Notre Dame Football

Mustipher Mentoring OL & Impressed With Genmark Heath

November 2, 2018
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Notre Dame captain Sam Mustipher enters the final month of his Irish career with a chance to go 4-0 and make the College Football Playoffs for the first time in school history. 

There's a lot of his plate each week as the leader of the offense, and that includes mentoring and bringing along the freshmen offensive linemen. 

“They are working hard,” stated Mustipher. “It was good for them to go home for break, but they are all doing well. It’s just a matter of getting experience, and over time, they will get better and better.” 

Being a freshman in college isn’t easy for anyone and tough on Notre Dame student-athletes, but the four offensive linemen (and others) are going through a year of not playing at the end of the week.

The transition from doing everything in high school to sitting out can be tough, and it’s something Mustipher had to battle through. 

“A lot of these guys were the man at one point in high school,” explained Mustipher. “You come to Notre Dame, and it’s back to the bottom of the totem pole in terms of playing time. You have to manage that, school and the change in weather that is about to happen.”

Yes, it’s getting cold in South Bend, but the freshmen redshirting have the benefit of leaning on great leadership and high character upperclassmen like Mustipher.

“We try to help them as much as we can,” Mustipher said. ”We are there for them and help in any shape or form.” 

Sophomore Aaron Banks was battling to be the sixth man on the offensive line coming out of fall camp, but due to the injury to left guard Alex Bars, the California native has now be inserted into the starting lineup. Classmate Josh Lugg has received praise at times from head coach Brian Kelly, but what about the third offensive lineman in the class in Dillan Gibbons?

“He’s a very physical, explosive and powerful guy,” Mustipher stated. “He’s understanding the game and gaining football acumen. Once he starts doing that combined with more playing experience, it will be the same thing for him.”

From the outside, it might seem easy to play offensive line. Play physical, stay low and block your man. 

However, it’s not as simple as that, and it’s a process to be ready to play on Saturday. 

“You just have to learn how to play football at this level,” Mustipher explained. “Some guys get it right away, and it takes more time for others.” 

“There are things in offensive line play you have to feel, and it has to be a reaction versus ‘Ok, here’s who I block because the defense can shift or bring a blitz or movement.’ It has to be quick, and it takes a lot of guys a while. It took me a little bit of time to understand it.” 

On the other side of the football, Notre Dame’s defense is dealing with an injury to captain Drue Tranquill. It’s unknown if Tranquill will be able to go on Saturday night and sophomore linebacker Jordan Genmark Heath could be called on to fill Tranquill’s role if he can’t play. 

“He’s progressing physically,” Mustipher said. “He’s down in the box now, so he’s getting his nose in there a little bit. It’s good for him. We got a chance to bang heads this week, and he’s doing better. 

“He’s a great guy off the field. He’s just a well-rounded individual.” 

It’s Genmark Heath’s first season at linebacker, so there’s definitely a learning curve, but playing physical is something Mustipher isn’t worried about with the San Diego native. 

“He’s perfectly fine banging heads,” said Mustipher. “You can tell when guys don’t want to hit. We went against each other today and yesterday. He’s a competitive guy and likes to get after it. When you have competitive energy behind you, hitting is an afterthought, and it’s more about getting after the guy in front of you, and he does that.” 

 
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