NOTRE DAME, IND. – As the Fighting Irish continue to get back into the swing of practice, defensive coordinator Bob Diaco is enthusiastic but still very analytical about his players. The coach, who is entering his second year at Notre Dame, went so far as to mention Gandhi.
“What is it? ‘Satisfaction is in the effort, it’s not in the attainment,’” said the coach paraphrasing a quote from the Indian civil rights leader.
Diaco seemed to be sufficiently pleased in the effort he has seen in his players thus far. He is challenging his players to focus and take things one play, one practice, and one day at a time.
“True victory is full effort,” he explained. “We’re interested in focusing on full effort, (which) becomes tough because there’s a lot of questions. There needs to be installation. There needs to be a refocusing daily on the things that need to get done today to create winning. Tomorrow is tomorrow.”
From watching and talking with the defensive upperclassmen it is evident that a lot of the effort and energy that is being given in practice is generated from the coach himself. Diaco, even if unintentional, looks like a mad man on the practice field, running all over the place, yelling and blowing his whistle.
“I wouldn’t say that’s it’s a goal, I would just say that’s its part of who I am,” said the former Iowa linebacker. “I would like to think that’s there’s a lot of coaches like that in college football. It’s the path we’ve chosen. It’s something that’s energizing every day.”
The players on the defensive side of the field definitely appear to feed off his energy, though. They also seem to genuinely enjoy playing with each other. On the field there is a lot of encouragement and physical affirmation as the players challenge and praise one another.
“The players are energetic,” observed the coach. “They’re very happy to be back together. It’s nice because they really like each other, and in camp that’s good because they spend a lot of time together. Everybody’s having a good time.”
The camaraderie and familiarity on the team seems to be the major difference on this team from a year ago. The players know their coaches and vice versa. The players also know their roles and that allows them to focus on getting better on their specific jobs within the system.
“I am confident that they’re going to come to work every day and really, really want to get better,” offered Diaco. “They are focused on the things that we as a whole unit, both players and coaches, because we’re growing together, believe create great defense and we’re working towards those things.
“Personal confidence is just a frame of mind. We want our players to have self-belief (which) will create a real persistence to their goals. That is something that we work on as part of the day, that the players have self belief.”
The freshmen class that is getting its first taste of college football right now is considered one of the best in the country (ranked No. 10 by Rivals.com). Despite all the publicity and expectations surrounding the young players, the coach was realistic.
“The freshmen are conducting their business like freshmen,” said Diaco. “There’s some tangible skill out there that really may, or may not, lead to production within the unit. Time will tell. Like every freshman, they’re doing each day for the first time.
“Even the sophomores, the second year players, they did August 8 only for the second time. The whole team actually, for Coach Kelly, did August 8 for the second time. For the freshmen, each day beyond this will be their first day. Things start to accumulate, class, distractions, home-sickness, the roles on the team, the vision they had in their mind of what it would be and what it actually is. Most freshmen are typically that, freshmen.”
One of the biggest advantages the defensive coordinator has going into the season is that he doesn’t need for the freshmen to come in and produce right away. The Irish return eight starters on the defensive side of the football alone. One of the positions where they are the deepest and most talented is at outside linebacker.”
“I’d say there’s about five or six players that will be able to go in the game,” he observed. “It’s your standard guys. Darius Fleming, Prince Shembo, Danny Spond, Steven Filer, and that was in no particular order. Then you have developing, Ishaq (Williams), Troy Niklas, Ben Councell, those are the guys that are being looked at and evaluated.”
Looking at the young men around him, the coach seems very encouraged. As many feel he very well should be when you look at the amount of talent that Notre Dame has on his side of the ball. With the veterans of the team having a better understanding of the system, and the freshmen challenging them with their drive and enthusiasm, expectations are high for his defense.
“It is great,” said Diaco. “Every one of them down to the last guy, they’re all bringing something to the position. It’s nice to have long, deep lines. With the phase we’re in right now, which is simply developing skill, we have the opportunity to get a lot of guys in there and talk to a lot of guys. It’s very positive.”
Like the Nobel Peace Prize winning Gandhi, Diaco hopes his team can develop the discipline and focus necessary to accomplish their goals. That is what fall practice is about for the coach and his players, getting reacquainted with one another and preparing for the fight ahead.
