Aug. 28, 2005
Notre Dame head football coach Charlie Weis met with the media on Sunday, Aug. 28, at the Guglielmino Athletics Complex. The first of several Sunday gatherings (which during the season will focus on the previous day’s game), Weis used the opportunity to announce the depth chart for the Pittsburgh game and answer a few questions about the 2005 edition of the Fighting Irish.
Starting next week, each of these press conferences can be heard live on www.und.com for Fighting Irish All-Access subscribers. Tuesday’s press conference (Aug. 30) also will be available to Fighting Irish All-Access members.
Notre Dame Head Coach Charlie Weis –
On the depth chart overall…
“There are a couple highlights I would like to point out. David Wolke is the number two quarterback. We had a really tough competition at the back up quarterback slot and I think we decided that David’s experience really won out over everything else. We felt that if Brady went down and we had to play someone, the guy that would give us the best chance to win is David.
“I want to point out in the offensive depth chart that Sully (John Sullivan) is listed second at center. We look at that, as an offensive staff, that we have four players that are starters. I could not list it that way. Between (Dan) Santucci, (Bob) Morton, (John) Sullivan and (Dan) Stevenson, we have four guys to man those three spots inside. You will see in the game against Pittsburgh all four of those guys playing in those three spots.
“We think we have four guys that can start on the interior on the offensive line. If you didn’t have confidence that you have four guys that you could play – you would only play three. The benefit of that, you end up keeping them fresh. We are going into the game with that being the plan.
“We will see the same rotation on the defensive side of the ball with Trevor Laws, Derek Landri and Brian Beidatsch. For experience, we look at a three-for-two rotation in an effort to keep those guys fresh.
“There are a couple either/ors. Both at the apache linebacker and right cornerback positions. There is still some discussion over who is going to do what. As far as the specialists down below, you can add D.J. Hord as a kickoff returner. I had a sixth name on the list and only gave five. You can include him in the mix at that spot.”
On what David Grimes did to establish himself as the number one punt returner on the depth chart..
“I think that David Grimes has had a very excellent camp. From day one he has been one of the most pleasant surprises we have had. He has shown exceptional ball skills and quickness.”
On what the team will focus on in practice this week…
“There are two things you have to do in a game week. One, you have to prepare to play your opponent and the schemes they use. If you do just that in practice, you cannot simulate the speed of the game. If you put show teams out there, it is always at a much slower pace than if you are going first against first. We will have periods in practice when we go ones against ones. We will not hit each other in terms of tackling, but to simulate the speed of the game – I don’t think you can count on show teams to simulate a game full speed. When we break, we will then go against show teams to get a look at Pittsburgh’s fronts, Pittsburgh’s protections and Pittsburgh’s blitzes.”
On Asaph Schwapp..
“Asaph has been a very physical and imposing force. I would not call him a pleasant surprise because that is what we thought we were getting when he got here. It is just a question of how quick these guys can get ready to go. I would not be surprised to see Asaph on the field Saturday night.”
On the freshmen offensive linemen…
“One thing you have to remember with freshman offensive linemen – and I don’t care how highly touted you are – the toughest position to get ready to play against the difference of speed between high school and college is the offensive line. The speed of the player you are going against and the size, a lot of times in high school you can just muscle the other guy because you are bigger than him. Now you have big fast guys you are going against. The biggest transition you have to be concerned with an offensive lineman is throwing them to the wolves too fast.”
On Ambrose Wooden…
“We didn’t have him much in the spring because he was coming off an injury. He was an unknown to me. I knew he had a lot of athletic ability. I knew he was very intelligent. He is another one that falls into that pleasant surprise category. There was a lot of competition and a lot of inexperienced players vying for spots. Ambrose has certainly risen to the spot that warrants him running with the first team.”
On who might play the nickel and dime defensive back positions…
“We have both nickel and dime. But I am not telling you. I can’t tell (Pittsburgh head coach) Dave (Wannstedt) everything. Let him try to figure things out on his own.”
On Maurice Crum, Jr. …
“Maurice is both very athletic and he is a football player. That is a significant comment from me to make. When I say he is a football player – there are some guys who are out there but they don’t have great football instincts. There is a difference between intelligence and football intelligence. Maurice is a football player. I feel good when he is out on the field. I feel confident when he is out on the field. That trio of linebackers, with (Brandon) Hoyte, (Corey) Mays and Crum – that is a pretty good three to start out with.”
On how he instills confidence in a defensive backfield that gave up five touchdown receptions to Pittsburgh last season…
“Not to be short, but Bill Lewis is the answer to the question. When you have one of the best defensive back coaches that there is at any level, that knows how to teach the game and knows how to install confidence – I trust Bill Lewis and his teaching, his leadership and the way he handles the players. Bill has been working hand in hand with Rick (Minter) to go over coverage schemes and what they are going to do. The players have a lot of trust in Bill Lewis.”
On the wide receiver depth with Jeff Samardzija and Matt Shelton…
“Matt is coming off that injury from last year. He is easing his way back into the mix. As you saw, for most of the time, a majority of the reps are with those front four guys and we will see how it goes. They are two totally different players (Samardzija and Shelton). You have a short fast guy and a big tall guy. You don’t try to do the same thing with different people. That is what dumb coaches do. You take a position and say `I am going to do the same thing with Shelton that I do with Samardzija.’ Well, you just don’t do that. They are not the same player. Try to find what they do and put them in a position to do it.”
On the effect of the freshmen coming to school early this summer…
“It was smart for everybody. It was a smart thing for the NCAA to do. For Notre Dame football, especially with me coming in new and the numbers being down, freshman being able to come in here on June 21, get two classes under their belt and be involved in Ruben’s off season program – they have a much greater competitive advantage than any freshman group at Notre Dame.”
On his contact with former coaches and players from Notre Dame…
“I had dinner with Ara (Parseghian) last night. I had breakfast with Lou (Holtz) two weeks ago in New York. I can sit there and pound on them for advice. These are not guys that are figureheads and you are using them just to make yourself look good. These are people who understand Notre Dame as much, or even more, than I do. I use these resources to guide me in the right direction.”
On if he will pick up the intensity during the week in practice…
“That will be tomorrow. I won’t be building it up. The intensity will start tomorrow. It gets cranked up another gear tomorrow. The players know that.”