Marcus Freeman, Jerome Bettis and more: Sights, sounds from Notre Dame football pro day
Kyren Williams made it to the end zone seemingly just as quickly as Kevin Austin Jr. — and Williams wasn’t even running a route. Williams celebrated like he had just caught a touchdown pass from Jack Coan. It was really Austin Jr. That trio embraced after a long pitch and catch routine with hundreds of sets of eyes glued solely to them.
The Coan-Austin Jr. connection signaled the end of throwing drills at Notre Dame’s pro day inside the Irish Athletic Center, Friday morning turning to early afternoon. Coan threw passes to Williams and Austin Jr. for 30 minutes. Short, intermediate and long routes. He hardly ever misfired. Williams and Austin Jr. hardly ever dropped the ball.
It was a clinic, as it should have been.
Former teammates and family watching on the elevated catwalk above the field erupted when either would make an impressive snag. Both players gave them plenty to cheer about. In on instance, Williams, a running back, made an over-the-grab Austin Jr., a wide receiver, was surely proud of. Again — as a pro day should go.
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The half hour was the highlight of the day, unless off-field happenings are more up your alley. Of course, top-five talent Kyle Hamilton ran the 40-yard dash. That was an attraction, too — twice. Notre Dame royalty, past and present, was on hand to watch it unfold. Hamilton improved upon his NFL Combine time of 4.59 with a time of 4.56. Marginal improvement, but a move in the right direction nonetheless.
Hamilton didn’t stay long after running the dash twice. He spoke to former NFL wide receiver Steve Smith for a TV hit with NFL Network, spent at least 10 minutes speaking one-on-one with Irish legend and Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerome Bettis and had a brief exchange with current Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman. After a three and a half minute session with local reporters, Hamilton was out the door.
Most everybody else stayed and lingered a while.
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Freeman did the same TV hit with Smith. Then he went to the other end of the IAC for another lights, camera action session with an undisclosed station. Notre Dame running backs coach Deland McCullough chatted with Williams for a bit. Offensive coordinator Tommy Rees, who has been a major proponent of Coan making it to the next level, was the one snapping him the ball during the throwing drills. Defensive coordinator Al Golden made his rounds. So did wide receivers coach Chansi Stuckey.
With Notre Dame in the thick of spring practices, Friday was a reminder of what so many current Irish football players are working toward. Former Notre Dame players Kurt Hinish, Drew White and Isaiah Pryor also went through various drills. Hinish put on an absolute clinic in the bench press, putting up 31 reps. Those players don’t have the acclaim of a Kyle Hamilton or Kyren Williams, but their dreams are the same.
The same can be said of many more.
Kicker Jonathan Doerer did his thing. Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa mingled about. Was business of the utmost importance? Absolutely. Draft day approaches. But was it also a day for Irish icons to connect on a day that only comes around once a year. Even Cleveland Browns first-year standout Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah made the trip to South Bend.
Plenty of practices take place in a calendar year. There’s only one pro day. Notre Dame made the most of it.
