Film review: Why Howard Cross III can be a force for Notre Dame
Graduate student Howard Cross III is a smaller defensive tackle at just under 6-foot-1, 288 pounds. Smaller defensive tackles win with quick feet and, more importantly, quick hands.
Cross has both, and he showed it during Saturday’s game against NC State. Watching Notre Dame’s 45-24 win live, I thought Cross had himself a good game. After my second watch, I came away thinking he can be a force in the middle of Notre Dame’s defense.
First, there are Cross’s hands. The most impressive rep from him was this one, in which he makes graduate right guard Derrick Eason face plant with a wicked side swipe.
Cross forced senior running back Jordan Houston right into the arms of senior defensive tackle Rylie Mills. Mills was also impressive on tape throughout the NC State game, but Cross made this play happen.
His quick hands showed up as a pass rusher, too. Graduate quarterback Brennan Armstrong got the ball out quickly, but the cross chop (not a pun, that’s a real move) from Cross beat Eason again.
Any time an undersized defensive tackle so much as breathes, the first name that pops into your head will be Aaron Donald. Obviously, Cross is not Aaron Donald or even in the same stratosphere. But if you’d like to know the No. 1 reason Donald is as good as he is, it’s his hand fighting ability. When they do it right, a defensive tackle can beat their man without the blocker laying a finger on them.
That’s what happened on those two plays.
Cross also won with quick feet, which he showed here against redshirt junior center Dylan McMahon. As soon as the ball is snapped, Cross takes one step to his left and McMahon is cooked.
This was a weird-looking play that was going nowhere anyway, but it shows how tough Cross is to block when he gets off the ball like that.
Finally, against McMahon again, Cross showed what he can do against outside zone. The keys to defending outside zone as a defensive tackle are to stay on your blocker’s outside shoulder, run with him along the line of scrimmage and get extension so that you can shed the block when the runner hits the hole.
Check, check and check. Cross makes the tackle for a gain of three and a successful run stop.
Cross has the best Pro Football Focus defense grade for Notre Dame in 2023 so far, right above graduate linebacker Marist Liufau. He earned the team’s defensive player of the week award for his performance against Tennessee State, and he had to be close this past week when the coaching staff gave it to graduate safety DJ Brown.
Through three games, Cross is tied for second on the team with 15 total tackles. None have been for a loss, but most have been within 1-4 yards of the line of scrimmage. And he was in the backfield a lot more than I thought he was when I watched the NC State game the first time.
After breaking down his performance against NC State, I could see Cross generating some NFL buzz later this season. He’s been a difference-maker for Notre Dame early.
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