Nevada Wolf Pack

Three players who stood out against Nevada

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Notre Dame overcame a slow start to beat the Nevada Wolf Pack on Saturday. In the 39-10 victory, the Irish saw three players emerge as key players for Brian Kelly’s team.

These three players will likely continue to see their roles increase as the season progresses.

Nick Coleman

Due to an injury to Shaun Crawford, Nick Coleman will get plenty of opportunities at the cornerback position going forward. Coleman, who is still developing as a true cornerback, looked good in coverage most of the time. There were multiple plays when the Wolf Pack attempted to pick on Coleman with short passes against loose coverage, but Coleman made multiple plays breaking on the receiver and making a sure tackle to prevent any run after the catch.

Coleman’s one mistake came on a play late in the third quarter when a Nevada receiver elevated over him to reel in a pass for a big gain that eventually set up Nevada’s first touchdown of the game. On the play, it looked as if Coleman had good positioning in coverage but failed to make a play on the ball. Had Coleman timed his jump better, there would have been a different result. His performance is something he can build on moving forward. The Irish will need him to continue developing quickly.

Te’von Coney

Sep 12, 2015; Charlottesville, VA, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish linebacker Te

After being one of five Notre Dame players arrested before the season, Te’von Coney has bounced back. Following his arrest, Coney, a linebacker, did not see much time in the season opener againstTexas. That changed against Nevada on Saturday.

Coney started Saturday’s game over Greer Martini and performed admirably. Beside Nyles Morgan, Coney made plays in the run game, totaling five unassisted tackles and one tackle for loss. Perhaps more impressive was how he played in the passing game.

Nevada was unable to get much of a passing game going against the Irish, due in large part to Coney’s ability to stay with receivers on crossing routes and routes to the flat. Coney did his part to take away underneath routes while the defensive secondary did a solid job in the back end.

With his play on Saturday, Coney may have distinguished himself as a full-time starter moving forward.

Equanimeous St. Brown

At the wide receiver position, Equanimeous St. Brown started the season hot for the Irish. Against Texas, St. Brown reeled in five catches for 75 total yards and two scores. Against Nevada, he picked up right where he left off. The lanky receiver caught six passes for 85 yards. At 6-foot-5, St. Brown is both literally and figuratively head and shoulders above the rest of the pack of Irish receivers and has clearly distinguished himself as DeShone Kizer’s number one option.

Known to his teammates as EQ, St. Brown has clearly earned the respect and trust of Kizer and Kelly alike. That trust became even more evident in the third quarter, when the Irish elected to run a screen play for St. Brown as they drove toward the end zone. Clearly, Kelly wants to get St. Brown the ball, and Kizer will surely continue to look in his direction.

Last week, I raved about Kizer and his ability to fit the ball into small windows between defenders, specifically in reference to a throw he made to Torii Hunter Jr. against Texas. Paired with Kizer’s ability to fit the ball through small windows, St. Brown’s stature and catch radius will make him a threat on every down, regardless of coverage.

As the two develop chemistry, it is likely their connection will only become more lethal.