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Home , Dayne Crist, DeShone Kizer, Everett Golson, Jahad Thomas, Matt Rhule, Mike Courey

Temple, and his physical characteristics — arm strength, foot speed, maneuver- ability, etc. — potentially might be the best combination Kelly has had at the position in his eight seasons with the Irish.

AUG. 30, 2017 ✦ TEMPLE AT NOTRE DAME Nevertheless, it’s the intangibles about Wimbush that elicit the most enthusi- Game Info asm from Kelly. Some might reference it as “The It Factor,” but for Kelly he adds Date: Sept. 2, 2017. the “Gr” in front of “it.” Site: Notre Dame Stadium (approximately 77,000-78,000). Kickoff: 3:42 p.m. ET. “He has a passion for the game and he’s got perseverance,” Kelly said. “I Television: NBC. think Angela Duckworth called that in her book ‘grit.’ He’s got grit. He’s got Radio: This broadcast can be heard live on SIRIUS Satellite Radio (channel 129) and on Notre Dame’s IMG such a passion for what he does, and because he loves what he does, he doesn’t affiliates. get down. Series Facts: This is the third meeting between Notre Dame and Temple. The Irish lead the all-time series 2-0. “If he makes a mistake, he fights through it and he gets to the next play. That’s Head Coaches: Temple — Geoff Collins (0‑0, first season); Notre Dame — Brian Kelly (59‑31, eighth season). a great quality to have in anything that we do in life. I’d like to be better at it, Noting Temple: In the last meeting, No. 9 Notre Dame beat No. 21 Temple 24-20 on Oct. 31, 2015 … The game was played at Lincoln Financial Field, a stadium the Owls share with the … Notre too, but he does it at the position, which is a really fine trait to have Dame quarterback DeShone Kizer hit for a 17-yard pass with just 2:09 for a young player.” remaining in the game to put the Irish ahead … Temple went 9-2 in road games the last two seasons under former … Collins and Notre Dame director of football strength and conditioning Matt Redshirted last season as a sophomore while apprenticing behind DeShone Balis worked together at Mississippi State from 2011‑13. Kizer, now the projected starter for the NFL’s , and , who is currently vying for action at the University of Florida, Wimbush will be the seventh straight different starter at quarterback for an opener at No- tre Dame, all coming during Kelly’s tenure: (2011), (2012), Tom Rees (2013) — the current Irish QBs coach — Golson again (2014), Notre Dame’s Brandon Wimbush Zaire (2015) and Kizer (2016). That is a Notre Dame record since the advent of & ‘The Grit Factor’ the T-formation in 1942. Lou Somogyi | Senior Editor The previous mark was six from 1976-81 with (1976), (1977), (1978), Lisch again (1979), (1980) and Blair Don’t miss out on any of our exclusive football, basketball and recruiting Kiel (1981). coverage. Click here to get your 30-day free trial! Wimbush did take 27 snaps as a freshman in 2015, highlighted by carrying Many probably didn’t expect renowned psychologist and author Angela four times for 92 yards, including a 58-yard touchdown, in a blowout of UMass. Duckworth to receive mention at Tuesday afternoon’s Notre Dame football press However, this Saturday will be his initial exposure to a meaningful game situa- conference, but that’s who head coach Brian Kelly referenced when asked what tion, and with it will come inevitable snafus or setbacks, sooner or later. characteristic he most values in quarterback Brandon Wimbush. “There’s going to be some things in each and every game that he’s going to It also provided some insight into Kelly’s mantra since the end of last year’s have to go through and fight through, a little bit of adversity,” Kelly said. “But 4-8 meltdown about the premium he is placing on “grit” in 2017. he’s got such a great mindset. He’s going to be able to handle things quite well. He does a good job of putting something aside and moving on. He doesn’t dwell Duckworth in 2016 published the popular 333-page book Grit: The Power of on a mistake and let it affect the next play. Passion and Perseverance, and The New York Times referred to Duckworth as “the psychologist who has made ‘grit’ the reigning buzzword in education-pol- “I’d be more concerned if this was a young man that let mistakes in camp icy circles.” eat at him. He’s made some mistakes in camp, but he can put them behind him and move to the next play, because he’s going to have that in the first couple of It’s also been the buzzword at the Notre Dame football offices, weight room weeks. I’m okay with that.” and practice fields the past eight months. Kelly wouldn’t even mind if Wimbush’s resilience does get tested in some The junior Wimbush will be making his starting debut this Saturday versus fashion versus the Owls — provided the Irish still emerge victorious.

✦ BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM ✦ 800-421-7751 1 “Where it starts for most that I have coached is their ability to He wasn’t done heaping praise on Notre Dame. move through a poor play and get to the next play,” Kelly summarized. “Two tight ends that I think are on every single watch list,” the Tem- And get to the next week, and the week after, and the week after … ple head coach noted. “Then a quarterback that’s a dynamic playmaker. I think all around offensively they’ve got dynamic playmakers across the board and then they’ve got a physical offensive line.” Temple Coach Geoff Collins Notre Dame junior quarterback Brandon Wimbush will be making his first start on Saturday, and Temple’s quarterback will be doing the same. Who that Ready For Notre Dame quarterback will be remains to be seen. Bryan Driskell | Football Analyst Collins would not say what signal-callers are in the competition at this point, Temple will travel to Notre Dame this weekend to begin the Geoff Collins but it would appear that redshirt junior Frank Nutile and redshirt sophomore era. It’s the second straight Owl head coach to begin his career in Notre Dame Logan Marchi are the two battling it out for the starting spot. Stadium. “There’s two quarterbacks that are getting most of the reps, but then we are Collins spent the last two seasons as the defensive coordinator at Florida, also working specialized packages,” Collins explained. “Some pretty unique which followed a four-year stint during which he was in charge of the Missis- things with some other guys, so it’s going to be exciting.” sippi State defense. Temple had a competitive camp, and the coach believes his team is ready. Freshman quarterback Todd Centeio has been the talk of fall camp with many covering the Owls, and he seems to be the player Collins was alluding to when “It’s been a great preseason,” Collins said during a Monday teleconference. talking about a quarterback getting a special package. “We’ve got a tough group of kids; they’re physical, they love playing football, they’re disciplined. Regardless of who starts, the coach said his team is preparing to do what it takes to make whoever starts at quarterback successful. “We had a lot of bonding opportunities during preseason; the team came really, really close together.” “The team is rallying around the [quarterbacks],” Collins said. “I know our wide receiving corps, our offensive line, our running backs and tight ends want Collins said all the right things about beginning his career against the Irish. to do their part to make sure that we complement whoever’s under center throughout the game.” “It’s always exciting to start the season with such a legendary program … in an environment that is one of the most storied environments in All three quarterbacks believed to be in competition for the starting spot have history,” Collins said. different strengths. The head coach believes his offensive coordinator, Dave Pat- enaude, has the experience needed to tailor his offense to fit each of their unique The new Temple head coach heaped a great deal of praise on the Notre Dame skill sets. Collins noted that injuries forced Patenaude to use seven different offense. quarterbacks in 2016 while at Coastal Carolina.

“I think they’re a complete offense,” he stated. “They’ve got some really, really “His experience of the type of defense you’re playing, the way the team is good receivers. One of them has really good speed [Cameron Smith], the other setting up throughout the year, his experience using different guys is huge,” one has really good height and ball skills [Equanimeous St. Brown]. Collins explained. “I think the way our guys are preparing … like they’re going to play the entire game, like they’re the guy, and I think the development of a “They’ve got an experienced offensive line, do a great job with pass pro, han- player accelerates when every kid in the program thinks that way. … We want dling movement and then they’re really good run blockers.” every single one of our kids preparing and getting ready like it’s their shot.”

Collins saved his greatest praise for Notre Dame junior running back Josh Ad- ams, who went to high school less than an hour away from the Temple campus.

“The tailback [is a] really, really good player,” Collins said. “Explosive, phys- ical, he’s a big back, but he can still make home run type runs.”

✦ BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM ✦ 800-421-7751 2 FILM ROOM: Inside Look At Temple’s Offense inherit or the league they play in, and in the case of Patenaude, the upgrade in talent from FCS competitor Coastal Carolina to Football Bowl Subdivision Bryan Driskell | Football Analyst member Temple could allow him to do things he could not before.

Under former head coach Matt Rhule, the Temple Owls rose to the top of the TEMPLE RUN GAME American Athletic Conference by building a dominating defense. The Owls ranked 11th nationally in scoring defense and third in total defense last fall. Patenaude’s complexity comes in the run game. He’ll take a lot of run offense into each game in an attempt to use formations to create numbers advantages. The Owls’ offense, however, was a bit more erratic, but it did show improve- He also attempts to find multiple ways to quickly attack up the middle and on ment in 2016. Temple ranked a respectable 43rd nationally in scoring offense, but the perimeter, and he has a of schemes designed to bring about mistakes that number was bolstered by a schedule that allowed it to hang a lot of points by the defense. against bad defenses or inferior opponents like Charlotte (48 points scored), SMU (45) and Stony Brook (38). MID-ZONE

Its 46-point outburst against South Florida was impressive, and so was the The play I’ve seen Patenaude use the most the last few years is what I call, for Owls’ performance in a 34-10 win over Navy. lack of a better term, sort of a “Mid-Zone” scheme.

It took time for Temple to get to that point offensively, and now it must con- It seems to be a zone-oriented concept that isn’t a perimeter play, but also not tinue making such strides despite losing its all-time leading passer and four-year a cut-back run like the more pure inside zone looks. Here’s an example of this starter Phillip Walker, versatile running back and left tackle Dion concept, which I’ve seen Patenaude utilize heavily in each game I broke down. Dawkins, a second-round draft pick of the . The play-side tackle has an interesting responsibility, and it’s not a concept New head coach Geoff Collins hired Dave Patenaude to be the offensive co- I’ve seen much of the last couple of seasons. At the snap, he will open up and ordinator for the Owls. invite the upfield. Once the end commits upfield, the tackle will use a club to take him outside to open up the inside run lane. A LOOK AT DAVE PATENAUDE If the end slants inside, the tackle will seal and ride him inside, and the back Patenaude spent the last five seasons at Football Championship Subdivision will bounce outside, but the goal is to attack inside of the tackle block. program Coastal Carolina. The Chanticleers averaged at least 34.3 points per game in each of his five years directing the offense. The play-side guard and the center will combo block together on the to that side up to the play-side inside . If the linebacker attacks Patenaude runs a spread offense that varies its tempo. It is not a break-neck outside the guard will come off and execute the block, if the linebacker hits in- speed attack, but it can push the tempo when it wants to. His unit is built around side the center will come off. running the football. Coastal Carolina averaged at least 189.7 yards per game on the ground in each of his five seasons, and in all but one it boasted a clip of The back-side linemen will seal inside in this look to prevent a wash down at least 215.5 yards per game. from the back-side defenders, but their responsibilities varied from game to game depending on the looks they faced. The Chanticleers averaged only 133.3 passing yards per game last season, a number that is terribly misleading. Injuries forced Patenaude to play multiple What the offense is looking to accomplish with this concept is to attack off quarterbacks, with four different players throwing at least 20 passes. In the four tackle against a favorable box, which means a box with only five defenders. It previous seasons, his offense averaged between 225.3 and 265.2 passing yards wants to get a stretch by the defense with the wide footwork of the back, which per game. makes this play almost look like an outside stretch. Once the defense commits, the back will cut vertically inside of the tackle. His top back was De’Angelo Henderson, who was selected by the Denver Broncos in the sixth round of the 2017 NFL Draft after rushing for 4,036 yards If there is a sixth defender, I’ve seen Patenaude adapt and get his tight end and 52 the last three seasons. involved on the back side, which allows one of the back-side linemen to work upfield to help secure a linebacker. He’ll also go with a trips look away from Just what his offense at Temple will look like is still a bit of a guess. Good the call in hopes of getting the Mike linebacker to bump out enough to limit his coaches will adapt their philosophies and principles to fit the players they ability to crash the hole.

✦ BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM ✦ 800-421-7751 3 G WRAP There are two ways that Patenaude will design the speed option, and one appears to be a quick check by the quarterback against a blitz or against a look Another top concept for Patenaude is a quick G Wrap scheme, which is a hard where he thinks he can get numbers on the perimeter. downhill run that is meant to attack the A Gap. The blocking could result in a bounce into the B Gap or a cut back, but the primary design is to attack right up In this look, the defense is playing Cover 1, which means the is the middle towards the A Gap. locked into man coverage against the wide receiver and the defense is showing a hard rush with just one deep defender. Again, the goal is to attack a five-man box. The center will block the first interior lineman away from the call. Since this particular play is going to the The quarterback checked into the speed option and got the back in position to right, the center will block back to the left. The back-side guard (the left guard execute it with him. He sees there is an edge player walked up that he will read. in this instance) will do a quick wrap around the center and look for the inside That defender is circled in the shot above. The line will zone block to the call side linebacker. and the quarterback will make his read off that defender.

The right guard will block the man lined up over top of him and the right As soon as the end steps to the quarterback, the ball gets pitched outside and tackle will kick out the end. If the defensive tackle lined up over the right guard it’s a race to the sideline between the back and the end. Here, the back wins and (No. 70) slants inside, the guard will wash him down and the pulling guard gets upfield or a very good gain. will quickly wrap outside of him, which is evidenced by the dotted line in the diagram. That is the adjustment. Patenaude will also call a speed option play from the sideline, and there he can get more creative with how it is blocked on the perimeter. The back-side tackle will look to secure the B Gap and look to get the tackle to come upfield to his outside. I’ve also seen Patenaude call this play against some defensive looks where the end will get blocked and the quarterback will read the flat defender for the pitch. You can see the defensive end slants inside, so the tackle just washes him That play takes longer to develop and I’ve seen it used less frequently. inside and the back makes a great read and cuts it back for a big gain. If the end stays outside, the back would have followed the guard into the hole. When the play is run into the boundary (short side of the field), it is a quick hitter and is often a check by the quarterback. When the play is run to the field The back will move laterally with his initial footwork in order to let the block- (wide side of the field), it is a longer developing play that stretches the defense ing develop. If he gets downhill too quickly, the hole will be clogged up. and looks to create run lanes.

If the defense keeps a sixth defender in the box, Patenaude will look to attack READ ZONE W/TRIPLE OPTION the perimeter with the pass game — where he has numbers — or he’ll get the tight end involved to help secure the play-side edge, which allows the tackle to Temple is likely to start a veteran quarterback — either redshirt junior Frank work up for the linebacker. Nutile or redshirt sophomore Logan Marchi. Marchi is the better runner of the two, but Nutile is a quality athlete as well. Expect to see Patenaude use the read COUNTER zone concept with both quarterbacks, but when he brings in freshman Todd Centeio — who I expect to play — the read will likely become a key part of the Patenaude will mix things up a bit with a counter concept. offense.

It’s the same basic counter concept that all teams run, with a kick-out block Notre Dame fans are familiar with the read zone concept, but Patenaude runs and a pulling lineman that will wrap inside as the lead blocker. the triple option version that was common when the spread first became pop- ular. He’ll run it often out of a two-back alignment, which you can see below. What Patenaude’s counter does differently is it gets both guards involved. It’s not a new concept, but he has his own wrinkle. The quarterback will make two reads on the play. His first will be on the back- side end, which is the end to the left of the offense in the above clip. If the end SPEED OPTION doesn’t crash or works outside, the quarterback will hand the ball off to the back with the line blocking an inside zone concept. Patenaude has used the speed option play a great deal over the years. It’s a double-option concept where the quarterback will read an edge player to decide If the end comes down or towards the back, the quarterback will pull the ball to pitch the ball to the back, or to tuck it upfield and run it himself. and get outside. At that point he will read the flat defender or alley safety (de-

✦ BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM ✦ 800-421-7751 4 pending on the defensive look). If that defender comes towards the quarterback throws. He has shown a penchant for attacking the boundary (short side) with he will pitch the ball to the running back. these types of throws, but that can often be due to not having quarterbacks with the arm strength to attack the wider part of the field. If the defender goes for the back, the quarterback will pull the ball and run. Notre Dame’s boundary cornerback can expect to be put in a lot of open-field RUN-PASS OPTIONS tackle situations against the running back throws and against these types of looks. Like Notre Dame under coordinator Chip Long, expect Temple to run Run- Pass Options (RPO) against the Irish defense. Essentially a RPO is when a run Third, Patenaude will use his run game and various formations to try to get play is called, but the quarterback has the option to pull the ball and throw it the boundary cornerback isolated in situations where he can attack with the outside depending on what his read key does at the snap. deep ball. He has three long, athletic and talented wide receivers in redshirt junior , senior Adonis Jennings and fifth-year senior Keith Kirk- The read key will be a flat or alley defender to a specific side, which the quar- wood, so you can expect this to continue. terback will know based on the call and what is taught to him during the week of practice. In this look the read key is away from the play call, which is the In these instances Patenaude has no problem attacking vertically, especially mid-zone look to the right. with his play-action concepts. It’s not about out-smarting the opposition, it’s about getting a one-on-one with a player he believes can win that particular By reading this defender the offense can keep a numbers advantage, one way matchup. He throws a go route in the clip below, but he’ll also throw a post route or another. and at times I’ve seen two-man route concepts.

If the alley defender stays outside, the quarterback will simply hand the ball Temple won’t just be a perimeter-oriented offense. He frequently isolates flat off to the back. The offensive line is always blocking for a run and never knows defenders and on the outside, but he also likes to find ways to ex- if the ball is pulled and thrown outside. ploit those same players over the middle of the field with a number of high-low concepts. If the alley defender steps down inside, which he does above, the quarterback will pull the ball and throw it outside, which gives the offense numbers/lever- It’s not complicated. He’ll have receivers running patterns at different levels age on the outside. in front of and behind the linebackers. If they bail, the ball comes underneath. If they come up, the quarterback will throw behind the linebackers, or in this Here the quarterback is throwing a simple outside hitch route. It’s just one case, he can quickly get the ball out to a receiver in a catch-and-run situation. route concept Patenaude will use. He likes to have screen plays to the outside with his RPO, but also prefers to have quick hitters like the play above. TEMPLE PASS GAME Defensive End Joseph Ossai Previews Temple’s pass concepts will vary week to week under Patenaude, like they do Notre Dame Official Visit with every offense. There are, however, some philosophies that one can expect David McKinney | Staff Writer the coordinator to bring into the matchup against Notre Dame. Conroe (Texas) Oak Ridge defensive end Joseph Ossai picked up an offer from Patenaude has shown four basic philosophies with his pass game. Notre Dame Feb. 23, and the Irish are the lone threat to pull the three-star out of Texas. First, he will look to get the ball out to his backs in space. It’s not complex, but it will come in different ways. He’ll throw quick swing screens, he’ll throw quick Ossai released a top three July 2 that included Notre Dame along with Texas slide routes to the outside and he’ll dump the ball off to backs with check-down and Texas A&M. throws from the pocket or when the quarterback is on the move. The Lone Star State talent will get his first look at Notre Dame this weekend The goal is to get his playmaker — and he’ll have one at running back in junior when the Irish host Temple to open the season. — in space on the perimeter, often against smaller defenders ( and safeties). Ossai said he’s been high on the Fighting Irish for a long time and is looking Second, Patenaude will look to attack the perimeter with quick to intermediate forward to arriving in South Bend.

✦ BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM ✦ 800-421-7751 5 “Notre Dame has always intrigued me,” Ossai told Blue & Gold Illustrated. Whether or not he will end up doing so remains to be seen, but Ossai said “I remember watching their games and seeing their gold helmets. Every game heading into the visit, all three schools are tied at the top. I watched when I was little, they won. That always helped. And them being a huge Catholic school helps their case a lot.” “They’re all over the place,” Ossai explained. “Every time I take a visit, it switches up or changes. They’re all great schools and all great football pro- The Catholic school aspect piqued the interest of not only Ossai, but his par- grams.” ents as well. The Texas product said he will officially visit all three schools on his list, then “Being a huge Catholic school like that really put it there for my mom and my enter decision mode. dad,” Ossai said. “That really helped them a lot.” “I should know after the visits,” Ossai said. “After all the visits, I’m going to Both of Ossai’s parents will join him on the trip to South Bend. know and I’m going to call the coach and tell him, but I won’t let it come out until signing day.” Since being offered in February, Ossai has been in constant contact with Notre Dame, most notably defensive line coach Mike Elston and defensive coordinator Ossai has unofficially visited Texas and Texas A&M multiple times, but has Mike Elko. yet to set up official visits to either campus.

Ossai said the relationships he’s built with the coaching staff are a big part of the reason Notre Dame is one of his finalists. For updates on all Notre Dame commits “The coaches and I have built a pretty good connection,” he noted. “That’s and targets, visit BlueAndGold.com helped a bunch.”

Elko, Ossai said, has been the driving force in his recruitment, and the Texas talent has responded well to the defensive coordinator’s message and plan for his abilities.

“He’s pretty straightforward,” Ossai stated. “He tells you what he wants and what his vision is, and it sounds pretty good. I know they’re going to look at me as an edge guy who can put his hand in the dirt but can also stand up and come off the edge. That would be fun.”

This weekend, they will meet in person for the first time, and Ossai couldn’t be more excited about the visit. .

“I’ve heard the campus at Notre Dame is beautiful,” Ossai said. “I’ve heard people say it looks like a castle. I just want to take it all in.

“I’m not really expecting anything. I’m just going to go with an open mindset and realty appreciate the details.”

Should everything go well during the trip, Notre Dame could be in position to make a move for Ossai. Having two in-state schools in his top three has led most prognosticators to believe Ossai is destined to stay home, but he says that’s no certainty. Start Your FREE 60-DAY TRIAL “I’m definitely open to leaving Texas,” he said. “That’s why I put Notre Dame Today! Use Code: in there. I could have put another Texas school or a school that’s close to Texas ND60 like Oklahoma or LSU.”

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