Position Breakdown: Offensive Line

The offensive line for Notre Dame will be young in 2007. The Irish lost left tackle Ryan Harris, left guard Dan Santucci, and right guard Bob Morton. Luckily, the offensive line class that was signed in 2006 was the best in the country and many of them will be getting their shot to start in their sophomore season. The two anchors on this year's line will be fifth-year senior captain John Sullivan and soph. Sam Young, who started all 13 games as a freshman.

At left tackle, Notre Dame lost four-year starter Ryan Harris. Jr. Paul Duncan from Dallas, Ga. will likely take his place. Duncan played quite often last year at right tackle when he spotted for the freshman Young to keep him fresh during games. So. Bartley Webb will be in the mix but I believe Duncan will win the job because of his experience and time in the system, Webb will be a solid backup. Also, look out for fr. Matt Romine, he will be a good one in a year or so, he will provide more depth at tackle in '07.

The left guard spot lost Santucci, a two year starter. There are several guys in the mix to take the position: Mike Turkovich, Dan Wenger, Matt Carufel. Turkovich is a jr. who probably has the edge right now. Wenger and Carufel and both sophs. who were rated very highly coming out of high school. I think Turkovich will win the job but we could have another situation like 2005 where there are there are four interior guys to play three positions. I wouldn't be surprised to see Wenger or Carufel spell Turkovich during the game, as Bob Morton did in 2005.

Right guard was filled by Morton last year, who struggled mightily at times. Wenger, Carufel, and Eric Olsen will be in the running for this position. I believe all of these guys will be in the mix at both guard spots, they may be more suited for one than the other but Charlie Weis is going to get the best players on the field, regardless of where that might be. Wenger came to Notre Dame as a true center, which is hard to find, not many lineman come out of high school as a true center. He can play guard however and I think he will play this year as the fourth lineman in the mix. I believe Carufel will take this spot, he was a huge pickup for the Irish coming out of Cretin Durham Hall in Minnesota. As I said, I believe Wenger will spell one of either Turkovich or Carufel during games to give them a breather.

I think the offensive line will be better in '07 than it was a year ago simply because these players, although young, are more talented. Sullivan is a fantastic center, with three years of starting experience already under his belt. Sam Young started every game last year and did a solid job for a true freshman being thrown in the fire. Coach Weis has looked for lineman who are "nasty" as he says and I believe all of the young guys on this line fit the mold. With Notre Dame going to more of a power running attack this year, expect the line to be much more physical. There will be growing pains early, but by the midway point of the season, I think Irish fans will be pretty happy with the o-line.