Quick hitters: Al Golden on Isaiah Foskey, Gator Bowl prep, Spencer Rattler

Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden held his first media session of bowl preparation Sunday after practice, the first of two scheduled press conferences with him before the No. 21 Irish (8-4) play No. 19 South Carolina (8-4, 4-4 SEC) in the Dec. 30 Gator Bowl. Here are some of the topics he discussed.

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On defensive end Isaiah Foskey declaring for the NFL Draft

“Really excited for Isaiah, understand his choice and support him 100%. At the same time, grateful to have had the opportunity to be around him. He has left a great impact on our team. I wish him the best of luck.

“The total package really. Intelligence, the way he conducts himself every day, the work ethic, obviously capitalized on his opportunities. He exudes class on and off the field. Just a sharp kid. Unbelievable family, and a great impact he has made here. That’s what we’re looking for in Notre Dame kids.”

On replacing Foskey for the bowl

“It’s opportunity. We’ll see who wants to rise to the occasion, whether it’s Justin [Ademilola], Junior [Tuihalamaka], [Jordan] Botelho. Certainly Nana [Osafo-Mensah] has played a lot. Any of those ends can step up, even some of the young guys. We’ll see how it unfolds here.”

On Tuihalamaka’s fit at vyper

“I think it’s a great spot for him. He’s smart. He’s rugged. He’s already around 250 pounds and in the ballpark already as a freshman. He gives us versatility there too, because he still has the qualities to drop [in coverage] and do those things. We’re not locked into a specific four-man rush. We can drop him into the boundary.”

On safety Xavier Watts’ growing role in Notre Dame’s defense

“You can argue he has made the most growth, not just in playing time, but playmaking. The thing we’re challenging him to do, I just wanted to go thank him for being more vocal and for taking more control. That has been the challenge. He has reached a comfort level now where he’s doing that. You can’t be a great safety without being verbal, demonstrative and being in command.

“You don’t always make the right decision, but if you’re decisive, loud and we’re all playing the same thing, we can fix that. We can’t fix when nine guys are playing one thing and two are playing another.”

On freshman cornerback Jaden Mickey

“He has gained a lot of valuable experience. We love Mick. He’s a competitor. He’s resilient. He will find a way. The last game [at USC] was a great challenge, and they made some plays, but you have to keep maturing, competing and learning. These guys are just at the start of the journey. I’d recruit Mickey every year. I’m excited about his future here and the type of young man he is, the competitor, how he learns and his versatility.”

On the current focus in practice

“We’re not really locked in [to opponent preparation] right now. We’re just trying to get better. We’re very basic. I was pleased with our effort. When guys come over in the middle of exams and reading days and have that kind of effort, they’re competing, that was fun today. It was fun to watch them execute just a little piece of the game plan. We don’t have the whole thing in, but just a little piece, and to do it as well as they did was fun.”

On South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler

“I’m in the infant stages of game planning, but he is really good. We’ve played some really good quarterbacks this year. I’m really impressed with him and impressed with their skill, whether it’s the running backs out of the backfield – I know there are some issues at tight end in terms of who’s going to be playing – but the wide receivers just making a lot of plays. He has made all the throws. He will scramble, keep his eyes downfield and get rid of the ball.

On Ramon Henderson’s fit as a slot cornerback

“Length. He could be a hybrid guy who could play inside and outside for us. Our field safety and boundary corner are very similar. And nickel, we can go any way we want to go with it. Bracy was really good this year. We need to find guys who are ready to replace him. Ramon brings some different things. He brings a little more size. The more guys you can develop into that position, the better you are for the long run. We’re hoping he can develop there for us.”

On planning for the unknown changes to South Carolina’s offense

“First and last, right? Ohio State and bowl game, you prepare the same way. It’s more about you executing than it is about what they could do. They’ve had 12 [personnel] packages. They may not have 12 packages. They may. We’re getting ready for all of it. They may lean more on 11 or 10 personnel. Who knows what direction they’re going, but for us, we have to make sure we take care of what we can control and execute. That’s what the function of today [at practice] was.”