Notre Dame vs. Stanford: 5 2020 NFL Draft prospects to watch

True freshman Kyle Hamilton gets a lot of attention from the Notre Dame safety group, and for good reason, but Alohi Gilman should not be forgotten. He has the prototypical size and build of an in-the-box safety at the next level. That has translated to Gilman being the third-leading tackler on the roster with 63 total tackles while also contributing one sack, one interception, and two forced fumbles.

As stated above, Gilman has prototypical size as a physical safety who hits hard and likes to bring the wood on his tackles. Gilman transferred from Navy a few seasons ago and, as you would expect, is an excellent leader. He is also a very smart player that reads and diagnoses plays very quickly which helps make up for his lack of pure athleticism at times. Gilman’s lack of athleticism also hurts him as a coverage safety with marginal range as well as marginal ability to mirror in man coverage.

Gilman has been a huge part of the Fighting Irish’s improved play versus physical run games this season. And that describes the Stanford offense to a T. He will likely play near the line of scrimmage most of the game as extra help against that tough, physical run game of the Cardinal. However, if he is put in many situations where he is asked to cover a TE like the aforementioned Colby Parkinson, that could spell doom for the Notre Dame defense.