UHND.com - Notre Dame Football, Basketball, & Recruiting

I really like the approach on both offense and defense that emphasizes the LOS. Looking back, I think Chip Long was just a little too precious for his own good. I like that Rees has turned what has been ND's top recruiting strength (OL) into an actual game strength. What Lea (and Elston) have done in the defensive front is pretty amazing. Unlike the OL, the DL is not fully filled out with a bunch of high-rated recruits. It's just waves of guys with varying degrees of recruiting pedigree who come in and do the job. For every Foskey, Ademilola, and Hayes (top drawer recruits) there is a Hinish, MTA. and a Ogundeji (3* recruits) just making plays and making plays. The team plays tough football on both sides of the ball, and it is fun to watch. I give Kelly some credit. Of course, as jim notes, he also is the guy who hired BVG. So maybe the credit is about learning lessons and willingness to change. Or maybe he just got lucky.