Newsstand: What an NFL scout said about Notre Dame OT Blake Fisher before Ohio State game
No. 6 Ohio State vs. No. 9 Notre Dame will have the college football world watching when the two Midwestern foes kick off at 7:30 p.m. EDT on Saturday. And apparently, NFL executives will be paying attention, too — specifically Fighting Irish offensive tackle Blaker Fisher.
On Thursday, On3 senior national college football reporter Matt Zenitz shared 10 names that have a chance to increase their NFL Draft stock in Week 4. Fisher, Notre Dame’s starting right tackle, was a featured player.
“He’s explosive. He’s powerful. If he can play well versus JTT (JT Tuimoloau) and Jack Sawyer this week, I think that’ll go a long way,” an NFL scouting source told Zenitz. “He was coming off an injury last year, and he’s just playing at a different speed this year, like the foot quicks, the power and then the play temperament, the motor and finishing guys.
“They only played Central Michigan (last week), but from start to finish of the game, he was trying to kill people. And I just like his foot and body quickness.”
Fisher registered a 64.7 run-blocking grade from Pro Football Focus against Central Michigan, which only trailed Joe Alt (81.7) among Notre Dame offensive starters. Fisher did allow one quarterback pressure.
PFF has Fisher’s overall grade at 70.3, which is middle of the pack among Notre Dame offensive players. A strong outing against the Buckeyes would certainly go a long way in boosting that number.
Last season against Ohio State, Fisher finished with a 61.2 grade, which was his third-lowest output of the season — only his performances against Marshall and California trailed that mark. Last year was Fisher’s first following his freshman season knee injury. The Irish played Ohio State, Marshall and California in its first three games.
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Former NFL executive Michael Lombardi said he thinks quarterback Sam Hartman will enter the Heisman Trophy conversation if Notre Dame beats Ohio State.
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“I really, really love Coach (Marcus) Freeman, man. And that’s why I feel like we have a team. It’s his second year leading the team. It’s his second year embedding his mentality, his DNA into the team. I really like what we see so far.”
— Former Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o on the Pat McAfee show.
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