Notre Dame's defense a team effort

photo Notre Dame defensive Tyler Enos (21) purses Signal Mountain's Skye Wilson (11.

When asked to name the best defensive player on their team, Notre Dame's Tyler Enos and Anthony Flemister were at a loss for words.

There is not, said the team's leading tackler and the defense's top interceptor, one individual or even one group.

"I can't really pick anybody. It's all of us collectively," said Flemister, who's returned two of his four picks for touchdowns. "We're good at different things."

One of the few non-senior starters but the team's leading tackler with 105 stops, Enos didn't stutter or stammer when asked who was the best player. He responded, "That's a hard one" and then silence.

He was contemplating how best to say there is no best, that 11 Irishmen work as one to create a near immovable object.

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"We do different things. All our DBs are solid and two of those guys have DI offers," the junior said. "I feel like everybody's good. We work off each other so well. I don't know about that best player. We make each other better."

Flemister plays alongside Louisville-bound Kareem Orr, who has basically gone unchallenged most of the season, Ricky Ballard and Jared Andrews.

"Ya know, Kareem has no interceptions this year and only seven passes broken up," coach Charles Fant said.

Orr's ability and reputation have fit glove-like into the scheme and defensive coordinator Bo Campbell's mantra: "It takes everybody."

Fant and Campbell felt last spring that Notre Dame could have a special defense yet each was wondering after the Irish gave up 35 points in their first two games. Since then, though, the first team has allowed just two touchdowns.

"It's been surprising how we've done it -- the speed of shutting down teams and not giving up many first downs," Fant said. "There have been many games where the other team doesn't get a first down till sometime in the second quarter."

Part of the trick is the Irish's ability to transition easily to multiple fronts without substitution.

"We're a basic 3-4 (alignment) but Josh Russell and Michael Flynn, our outside linebackers, are so versatile that we can drop them onto the line of scrimmage and give a 4-front look," Irish coach Charles Fant said. "Too, our defensive line guys (Joe Dossett, Chris Hornsby, and Robert Murphy) are very active and quite often are double-teamed, which frees up our linebackers."

Inside backers Enos and Kealey Green lead the team in tackles.

"They're running free sideline-to-sideline making tackles. Then we have five very athletic guys that can play in the secondary and all have incredible coverage skills," Fant said.

Campbell then offered his "it-takes-everybody" observation.

"We have some really good coaches, that's one thing. But we have some kids that are knowledgeable about the game. Kids nowadays, whether you're coaching or teaching, want to know why and when they know why they retain better what you're teaching," he said. "Beyond that, though, we have tough kids who have worked really hard to make themselves better."

Contact Ward Gossett at wgossett@timesfreepress.com or 423-886-4765. Follow him at Twitter.com/wardgossett.

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