After spending his freshman season at Notre Dame in such obscurity that his name wasn't even spelled right in the Notre Dame media guide, Zack Martin is ready to make a huge impact as a sophomore.

The 6-foot-4, 290-pound Martin, (BCHS Class of 2009), exited spring as Notre Dame's starting left tackle and has solidified his status as the starter a week into training camp.

"Zack has been our most consistent, so you're left side right now is [Chris] Stewart and Zack," Brian Kelly said on Saturday. "Obviously, they're doing a great job."

Martin has benefited a lot from having a fifth-year senior in Stewart right inside of him.

"It's been a big help having Chris Stewart next to me because it's like having another coach out there having a fifth-year guy next to you," said Martin. "He's helping me out a lot."

As for his true position coach, offensive line assistant Ed Warinner, Martin says he has a certain style to get what he wants.

"He's a very intense guy,. Martin says of Warinner. "He demands a lot, but at the end of the day, we know what he wants. We know he knows what he's doing."

Despite having locked down his spot, Martin still sensed competition in the first week of training camp, even if it was only internal.

"Everyone on the team has come out with a good attitude the first week, trying to get better,. he said. "I'm just trying to come out and compete every day and just bust my butt every day to try to make myself better and get used to the guys that I'm playing next to."

While Martin will be starting on Dayne Crist's blind side, seniors Taylor Dever and Andrew Nuss are still competing for the starting spot at the other tackle position. Whoever wins that job will be in the same boat as Martin, making their first career start on Sept. 4 against Purdue.

When asked about the inexperience at tackle, Kelly didn't sound overly concerned.

"Why do you guys always tell me these things?" he responded with a laugh. "I'm so scared now. This is what it is like to go to media day. You go to media day and listen to all these coaches, they've got the best team they have ever had. I have never gone to a media day and felt like I could win a game.

"Clearly the key is to play at the highest level; the defensive ends are the guys you have to find a way to block. So your tackles, even though they don't have a lot of experience, we think we've got two guys who can handle themselves out there."

The fact that the center and right tackle positions have yet to be won has not prevented the Irish line from beginning to form some cohesion.

"I think we're really close," Martin says. "We spent the whole summer together hanging out. I think the offensive line is jelling really good."

Martin feels his strength right now is as a pass protector, "I think I'm pretty athletic so I'm pretty good on the edge."

So, he has been spending extra time working on the other facets of his line duties.

"The run blocking out of a two-point stance is pretty tough, so we've been drilling that a lot," he says. "That's something I'm working every day to get better on and getting more comfortable out there. The game's fast out there, so you've got to get comfortable. I'm still working on getting comfortable."
Hopefully, Martin 19 days will be long enough for the Indianapolis native to get comfortable.