When the Notre Dame football team announced Chris Ash was replacing Al Golden, the response from the fanbase was … muted to say the least.

Being a bit underwhelmed by the hire is natural. While he has a long an impressive resume, his teams haven’t always had the most impressive seasons. He’s in fact, been an abject failure as a head coach. 

Of course, Chris Ash isn’t the head coach of the Notre Dame football team. He’s the defensive coordinator. And there are plenty of people out there that believe he can be someone who is both a great DC and tune the Irish players in a way that they’re even better. Former Ohio State defensive back Tyvis Powell is one such person who has an intimate knowledge of how Ash works and what he can do.

Notre Dame football DC isn’t cuddly, but he’s good at what he does

Powell played for Ohio State from 2013 to 2015 he worked under Ash and led the Big Ten in interceptions in 2014. The former defensive back recently talked to Irish Sports Daily about the new Notre Dame defensive coordinator and said that among all else, Ash will take some getting used to.

“We used to bump heads a lot,” Powell began. “Chris Ash was an a-hole, but the problem was I was an a-hole, so we would always clash over stuff.”

Having now gone from young brash player to older and wiser, the former defensive back understands that clashing was trivial, and that his coach had his best interests at heart.

“He was one of the best coaches I’ve ever had. Coach Ash is one of those coaches who helped me understand the game.”

Sprinkled throughout the rest of the interview is the depiction of a man who is definitely not a soft-spoken or touchy feely, kind of guy. Of course, Al Golden could also be described as “prickly” at times.

“He’s going to keep it real,” Powell added. “If someone messes up, he’s not the nicest guy, but he’s real. They’ll enjoy him. I think he’s a home run hire.”

It would appear, if you take Powell at his word that the new Notre Dame football defensive coordinator is an acquired taste. But he’s a damn good coach who will build on the success Golden had.