3. Notre Dame (OH)
Courtesy of cleveland.com
The Notre Dame offensive line is a very well rounded group, ranking in the top 20 for sacks allowed per game (1) and opponent tackles for loss (4.5). They've also helped their offense score 40 total touchdowns this season, showing that they're probably not too shabby in the red zone.
Starting center Justin Adamson knows how important his job is, as he starts each play and has to remain focused throughout it. Many people don't realize all the details a lineman must pay attention to each play, and Adamson breaks it down: "The play is signaled in from the sideline, from there we yell out the call for the rest of the line, with us being a fast tempo offense we have to make sure everyone has the play," Adamson said.
"Once we all have the play I call out the defensive front and then we make our calls for who we are blocking. This happens in the matter of seconds, once I have made my blocking calls then I get set in my stance and grab the ball. I begin to focus on who I will be blocking and the snap. The snap is the most important part of each play, to focus on this I take a deep breath and hold my breath in, once the quarterback claps his hands then I yell go and snap the ball. I then take my first step and then react to what the defense does, after we have practiced and scouted the defense it makes it almost second nature on how to react during the play."
