Eric Hansen

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - Charlie Weis smiled through the minefield of questions he’s been asked so many times the Notre Dame head football coach was probably ready to either break into clichés or a Broadway show tune.

Yes, quarterback Jimmy Clausen has a better command of the offense, the huddle, the timing of his wide receivers.

Yes, new defensive assistant Jon Tenuta – Georgia Tech’s former defensive coordinator -- and second-year defensive coordinator Corwin Brown smile, shake hands, collaborate, genuinely like each other.

Yes, offensive coordinator Michael Haywood will call the plays and hold the offensive call sheet during Saturday’s season opener against San Diego State (0-1).

Yes, hydration is important on a hot day.

But when Weis was asked about the possible pleasant surprises on this year’s Irish team, the fourth-year head coach smiled and delivered a substance-free sentence.

“There’s a few,” he said, “but I guess you’ll have to wait and see them on Saturday.”

Not if we have anything to do with it. Here are the five players most likely to take Irish fans by surprise this Saturday and beyond:

Armando Allen
Sophomore running back/kick returner

Allen wasn’t a disappointment in 2007, just eerily quiet. He did average 4.0 yards a carry for the nation’s fifth-worst rushing offense, but the threat of the big play never materialized into a reality.

Allen’s longest kickoff return was 38 yards and his average a mortal 21.3. His pass reception was 16 yards, his longest run from scrimmage 15 yards – two more than the longest produced by pedestrian backup quarter Evan Sharpley. The 5-10, 195-pounder said the confusion of trying to learn plays and blitz pickups made him tentative when he had the ball in his hands. The atrophy from missing his senior season at Hialeah (Fla.) Miami Lakes High School due to a broken leg didn’t help either.

He’ll share time in 2008 with last year’s late-season hero – classmate Robert Hughes – and junior James Aldridge, but look for Allen to show off his versatility in the passing game and his rediscovered acceleration in the run game. Oh yeah, he has added punt returns to his special teams duties.

Chris Stewart
Junior offensive guard

If Chris Stewart never played a down this season, his return to campus in early October of 2007 after contemplating a transfer re-energized a team teetering on total collapse. It’s not that the Irish ever found their rhythm late on in the lost 3-9 season, but Stewart’s return helped keep them from losing their resolve.

And now the kid who bounced between offense and defense, between guard and tackle, between confused and confident, is the starting right guard on a rebuilt Irish offensive line.

The 6-foot-5, 329-pound Texan is roughly 70 pounds lighter than he was when he showed up as an early enrollee two and a half years ago and combined with rejuvenated former prodigy Sam Young at right tackle, he helps form a formidable right side to overpower defenses in the run game.

But can he pass block? Can a line that gave up an NCAA-record 58 sacks last season even slow down blitzing and stunting fronts? If Stewart and company can, Charlie Weis Jr. could call the plays and this offense would score points.

Robert Blanton
Freshman cornerback

If wide receiver Michael Floyd is the “wow” factor in this ahead-of-its-time freshman class, Blanton is the “pow” factor. The Matthews, N.C. Butler High product combines the physicality of a safety and the coverage skills of a corner with the relentless annoyance factor of late-night infomerical.

"He is so well-spoken and polite off the field, but he's a monster on it," said Blanton's high school coach, Mike Newsome. "We had two receivers who are going on to play college football this year (Virginia Tech's Jarrett Boykin and Presbyterian's Mickey Brewer) and a quarterback who's at Illinois (Jacob Charest), and those guys hated going against him -- not just because he talked, but because he was so competitive and would never give up.

"I think it just plays into the mental game he has, and it gives him an edge. I've always said the difference between being cocky and being good is the ability to back it up. RJ can back it up."

Indeed, Blanton may be the most dynamic package of talk, talent and toughness at the cornerback position at ND since All-American Shane Walton walked away from a promising soccer career and walked on to the football team roughly a decade ago - but only after then-ND coach Bob Davie became convinced he wasn't a wannabe kicker.

"You can't ever back down," Blanton said. "No sir. Never."

Harrison Smith
Sophomore safety/outside linebacker

One of Tenuta’s first revelations after joining the Irish defensive staff was discovering how opposing offenses gouged a defense in the running game (ND ranked 96^th last season against the run) that was so stout against the pass (22^nd in pass-efficiency defense).

The answer, when teams spread the Irish out and got extra defensive backs on the field, they’d run the ball out of the supposed-pass formations, taking advantage of ND’s smaller and less-physical players.

Enter Smith, a 6-foot-2, 212-pound safety, who is fast enough to cover wide receivers, physical enough to stuff the run and versatile enough to line up and pass rush if asked to. What was supposed to be a situational gig, has turned into a full-time job.

Golden Tate
Sophomore wide receiver

Perhaps no player has come so far, so fast in one offseason under Weis. The 5-11, 195-pounder cracked the four-man wide receiver rotation, bumping former part-time starters George West and Robby Parris down to options 5 and 6 at ND’s deepest position, even with two preseason transfers (junior Steven Jackson to Central Florida, senior D.J. Hord to Northern Iowa).

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Tate is a former high school running back and the fastest offensive player on the Irish team, but he couldn’t outrun his shortcomings last season, except in small, spectacular bursts.

“The coaches saw I could run past people, and they gave me a chance,” proclaimed Hendersonville, Tenn., product “The first one I caught (a 36-yard completion against Purdue), I ran it wrong. I was supposed to run outside, but I ran it inside.

“In high school I was always faster than anyone, and I could find a way to get open, no matter what the coverage was. One time I was supposed to be blocking for a running back and I ended up catching a pass. I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t playing more (last year) and neither could anyone back home. Now I do. It’s not about being a great athlete. It’s about understanding the game also. There’s more to it than just running around catching the ball and scoring touchdowns.”

Indeed, Tate returns kicks too. And a former Irish kick returner says Tate reminds him of himself at a similar stage of development.

The player? Rocket Ismail.

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