Notre Dame lost a lot of talent, but a return to the national stage is within reach
College football is right around the corner and the Star-Telegramis bringing you its Top 25 teams going into the season.
Today we look at No. 14 – Notre Dame.
Top 25 to date
LSU (25); Texas (24); Central Florida (23); Oregon (22); Florida State (21); Boise State (20); USC (19); Mississippi State (18); Michigan (17); Virginia Tech (16); TCU (15).
Nuts and bolts
Location: Notre Dame, Indiana
Coach: Brian Kelly (48-34, eight seasons at Notre Dame; 219-91-2 overall at Grand Valley State, Central Michigan, Cincinnati and Notre Dame)
2017: 10-3 (defeated LSU 21-17 in the Citrus Bowl)
Three things to know
1. ’17 revival. Kelly found himself on the hot seat going into last season. A 4-8 record in 2016 had some wondering if Notre Dame should’ve moved on without giving Kelly another season.
But Kelly worked some magic, turning a Fighting Irish squad that began unranked and finished No. 11 in the AP poll. They had signature wins, such as against Michigan State, USC and NC State.
They were in the playoff conversation, too, before Miami walloped them 41-8 in November. Still, going 10-3 restored order somewhat for Kelly and Notre Dame.
2. Big-time losses. Notre Dame is widely projected as a top-15 team, but it lost several key pieces of the 10-win team from a season ago. Two of its offensive linemen – guard Quenton Nelson and tackle Mike McGlinchey – were top-10 picks in the NFL Draft.
The Irish also lost several of their top playmakers on offense, including running backs Josh Adams and Deon McIntosh and receivers Equanimeous St. Brown and Kevin Stepherson.
Pressure will be on senior quarterback Brandon Wimbush to carry the offense.
3. Defensive matters. Kelly is on his third defensive coordinator in three years after Mike Elko bolted was one-and-done at Notre Dame to join Jimbo Fisher at Texas A&M.
But the Irish are hoping continuity holds by promoting linebackers coach Clark Lea to the coordinator position.
Lea inherits a solid unit that returns nine starters, including the leading tackler in linebacker Te’von Coney, defensive tackle Jerry Tillery and cornerbacks Julian Love and Shaun Crawford.
Three games to watch
1. Sept. 1 vs. Michigan. Two blueblood programs that are looking to make a statement in the season opener and energize fan bases for big years.
2. Oct. 27 vs. Navy (SDCCU Stadium in San Diego, California). Yes, Notre Dame has more talented schools on its schedule such as Virginia Tech and Stanford. But this rivalry dates back to 1927 and is the longest uninterrupted intersectional rivalry in college football.
3. Nov. 10 vs. Florida State. You never know. Maybe this will be like the 1993 matchup which is considered one of the greatest college football games in history. In that historic game, No. 2 Notre Dame knocked off No. 1 Florida State 31-24.