When word began to leak that longtime Washington defensive line coach Randy Hart would be named to the same position at Notre Dame, former Husky iconic head coach Don James offered succinctly what the Irish linemen can expect playing for Hart.

"Come to work," James, the longtime U-W coach and Hall-of-Famer said. "Bring your lunch pail."

Hart, who was officially named to the position on Saturday, too has his work cut out for him. Notre Dame fared relatively well in the two statistics that traditionally define a line - run defense and sacks.

ND finished 45th (out of 119 schools) in run defense by allowing an average of 134 yards per game and averaged two sacks per game, good for a No. 50 ranking.

But while the line was serviceable, it also wasn't dominant. Fourth-year ND defensive line coach Jappy Oliver left in January to pursue other interests, and Irish head coach Charlie Weis' pursuit of former Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel ended earlier this month.

"I¹m thrilled to add someone with the résumé and personality of Randy Hart to our coaching staff," Weis said in a statement. "As I discussed last week, there were certain attributes and qualities I was looking for in this hire.

"First and foremost, he had to have great chemistry with Jon (Tenuta, defensive coordinator) and Corwin (Brown, associate head coach). Second, we wanted someone that was a high-energy coach that could develop our young defensive line. Lastly, I was looking for a coach that would serve as a great mentor
to (defensive graduate assistant coach) Bryant Young."

And James, who hired Hart at Washington, believes that Hart is a coach who will squeeze every drop of talent out of the linemen that he inherits.

"Whatever they have, he's going to get the best out of them. He's going to bring them along," James said. "One thing you evaluate, whether it's a basketball coach or a football coach or whatever it is: Is the team getting better throughout the season, and is the player getting better throughout his career? And I don't think there was ever any question that his players got better."

Hart, who turns 61 next month, spent the last 21 years at Washington. There he oversaw a line, one that included an eventual NFL top draft pick in Steve Emtman, that helped the Huskies to a share of the 1991 national title.

"I¹m excited to come to Notre Dame and be part of such a storied and tradition-rich university," Hart said in the statement.

Hart was a 6-foot-2, 234-pound offensive guard at Ohio State, where he played for Woody Hayes and helped the Buckeyes to the 1968 national championship. Other mentors include Earle Bruce and Jim Young, along with James. All four are members of the College Football Hall of Fame.

"He's got a lot of good ideas, he knows what he's doing," James said, "but he's not going to come in and try to change the world. He's going to fit in."

And fitting in will include mentoring Young, the former ND standout and 14-year NFL player who recently accepted a graduate assistant position with the idea that he'll be groomed as the d-line coach of the future.

"(Hart will) be good," James said. "He's going to accept him and he's going to try to bring him along and do the best he can with him."

A story James told about Hart's work ethic may have partially explained why Weis saw him as a fit. James recalled Hart continuing to work despite an injury that required surgery.

"He kept going. He said, 'I'll take care of that later,'" James said, a tale that no doubt would resonate with Weis, who coached most of last season with a severe knee injury.

And while James was offering advice to ND's linemen, he didn't stop there.

"If you ever heard him speak, you better have your pencil going," James said. "And that's the way he coaches. He's got high energy and talks fast and he coaches every minute of every play in every game. He was just a great assistant coach."