Paul Hornung, ND’ original “golden boy”, is the namesake for college football’s newest honor: “most versatile player”. What does than mean? Well, to give you a proper picture, the Paul Hornung Award would have gone to either C.J. Spiller, or ND’s own Golden Tate if it were awarded this year (a player that can help their team the most in a large variety of ways).

Hornung is one of college football’s all-time greats (think the original Rocket Ismail, plus he could throw, and play defense), the only player special enough to win the Heisman on a losing team, so his name belongs right up there with the Biletnikoffs and Nagurskis.

However, he might have even more fame for the statement “ND must lower admissions to get the black athlete and win”. Technically, he may be right on lowering admissions, he just made the mistake of using the qualifying term “black”. (That’s what we call racial profiling.)

So, occasionally in his honor, the Blarney will bring you Hornung’s Words Of Wisdom, or technically true statements that are worded wrong, and perhaps show some prejudice or some kind of political incorrectness.

Paul Hornung’s Words of Wisdom For 4-30-10:

“The fat man is losing his place in society. He doesn’t even belong on the offensive line anymore-he can’t handle speed rushers that come off the edge with 4.6 speed. That’s why you see Brian Kelly recruiting lineman that go about 260lb or 270lb (with some room to bulk up, but still be lean). In fact, about the only two places left for him are: 1.) being a comedian, or 2.) being a pitchman for Subway.”

On Thurs, April 2nd, the NFL Draft begins in prime time. Mel Kiper’s (Rogaine, why have you not signed this guy up as your pitchman yet? You two fit together like Jimmy Buffet and Margaritas.) big day just keeps getting bigger every year, due to the ever-increasing NFL popularity, and now year-round interest in every aspect of the league. Every fan is excited for the future of their team, and every fan has an opinion on which college stud(s) should be wearing their team’s colors.

Perhaps no player causes more opinions to be formed than Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen. Many are of the negative (as in “Jimmy Clausen will be an NFL failure”) variety. Maybe it’s because some people just like to hate on those who are the big names in a given industry. Maybe it’s because Jimmy was the face of college football’s most visible program, and people were just over-saturated with Clausen. Maybe it’s because people feel Clausen was born with a silver spoon in hand, given opportunities most would kill for from the time he was fourteen years old. Maybe it’s because people didn’t like his coach, or that his coach’s other prized-pupil hasn’t cut it in the NFL. Underlying thoughts and resentments like those mentioned, are the ammo that people are using to claim Clausen will bust, even when that opinion has to be contrary to the information (film, and validations from teammates) we have been given to see.

Face it, Clausen is a guy that people love to hate, and they are taking shots at any given opportunity.

From reputable college football writer Stewart Mandel:

“I can understand why scouts prefer the taller, more prototypically-sized Sam Bradford and Jimmy Clausen (cough, bust, cough), but there’s very little discrepancy in terms of McCoy’s actual passing ability.”

From an NFL executive type (who was actually backing Clausen’s playing ability):

“He can throw the ball downfield. He’s the perfect Raiders quarterback, what Al [Davis] has been dreaming about for years. I don’t want to like him, but I do. I mean, just look at him – when you see that guy, you just want to punch him.” Keep in mind this is a comment from a mature, successful business man. This is the type of ire that Clausen draws.

From scout Todd McShay (in general):

“Not a leader. not a good teammate.”

There are countless others that will bust on Jimmy Clausen, given the chance. (The aforementioned Kiper won’t, he actually likes Clausen.) The next few years will tell if they are doing it because they actually see a questionable skill set, or if they just wanted to bring down a “golden boy” from Notre Dame.

The Brian Kelly era is underway this Spring at Notre Dame, and he is working on re-making the team into his image- forming the traits he believes a football team should have (He does this mostly by running the guys- a lot. Forrest Gump’s running expeditions have nothing on Brian Kelly’s teams.). With his first 15 practices winding down, here are a look at 5 things going on for the Irish so far…

1.) When you make an assumption, you make an ASS out of U and me. Kelly is gaining all the knowledge he needs about this team by experimenting, and watching what unfolds with his own eyes. So what if Trevor Robinson has been a career-long Guard? Maybe he can play Tackle better. Just because Dan Wenger has started at Center before doesn’t mean he will beat out Braxston Cave.

2.) Quarterbacks, be ready. Much like Weis, Kelly pays more attention to Quarterbacks than anywhere else (he should, it is the most important position). Dayne Crist is learning the offense, his reads, and his footwork out of the Spread, which is different than Weis’s Pro scheme footwork. Crist is going to pass, run, and be hit this season, that’s is the way Kelly’s offense works. Since that is true, BK also give his backups more snaps than a Weis backup would get. Tommy Rees, and the other new bloods this fall will get an opportunity to work up the depth chart.

3.) If you can play, you can play. If you can’t, you can’t. The way to win in college football is to let your best players play, no matter the age. Freshman Tailer Jones has been running with the first team, while former big names like Deion Walker, and Shaq Evans are falling behind on the receiver depth chart. Former All-American Matt Romine is being jumped by underclassman Zack Martin. This is the way it needs to be, and also why a coach must recruit the best every single year, even if he signs a bunch of 5-stars the year before (always look for a better guy, some might bust).

4.) Brian Kelly is not easy to please. As in, “Mike (Floyd) is a pretty good receiver for us, but he can get a lot better.” Or, “We stink right now.” This is a good thing, Irish fans.

5.) Time for the big names to produce. Notre Dame is a mature team, and BK must bring out the best in guys like Dayne Crist, Armando Allen, Mike Floyd, Kyle Rudolph, Trevor Robinson, Ethan Johnson, Darius Fleming, Steve Filer, Brian Smith, Harrison Smith, and Darrin Walls.