Joe Alt gives first impressions of Joe Rudolph

There are high hopes up front for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish this upcoming season, as their offensive and defensive lines should both play major roles in the team’s success per usual. There were a few changes to the offensive line this offseason, the biggest being offensive line coach Harry Hiestand deciding retire after returning to Notre Dame for just one season last year following a previous six year stint with the program.

Joe Rudolph steps in for Hiestand to help lead the Fighting Irish offensive line for the 2023 season, and at fall camp, star offensive tackle Joe Alt shared his first impressions of Rudolph.

“I really enjoy coach Rudolph,” Alt said. “I think the biggest thing I take away is the ability to use your hands, I’ve always kind of been pretty similar with my hands, king of the same depth and stuff. He’s big on using your finish arm and I think that’s kind of unique and helps you finish in the run game, I’ve really enjoyed that.”

Rudolph joins Notre Dame after spending last season at Virginia Tech as their run game coordinator and offensive line coach and the previous seven seasons prior to that at Wisconsin. His Badger offensive line units were absolutely dominant, compiling 18,399 rushing yards during his tenure which ranks seventh among Power 5 teams in that given time frame.

He’s also a proven developer of offensive line talent, coaching nine All-American selections, five first-team All-America honors, and nine first-team All-Big Ten accolades. He also coached Tyler Biadasz who earned the Rimington Award in 2019, which is given annually to college football’s best center.

Rudolph inherits another first-team All-American in Alt whose coming off of a stellar season for the Irish, but is still finding ways to improve his game heading into the season and his career at the next level.

“In the pass for me it’s just continuing to slide up through my punch and I think that’s something I’ve been working on and I’ve taken away from him that I’ve really enjoyed,” Alt explained.

It’s clear that Rudolph is aiding Alt in sharpening his skills in both the pass and run-blocking game, as he was also asked what the differences are between the teachings of Rudolph and Hiestand.

“They’re very similar coaching styles, I think with Coach Rudolph it’s been a lot more use of hands in the run game and it’s something I’ve tried to take to my game and work with. And it’s been something that I’ve taken to heart and I’ve really enjoyed,” Alt said.

Alt is regarded by many as the highest rated offensive tackle prospect for next year’s NFL Draft, as all eyes will be on him this season to see if he can take yet another step of improvement under Rudolph’s coaching.