While most of us mere mortals still have almost a month of summer left, Notre Dame's honored descendants of Joe Montana and Rudy Ruettiger are preparing to begin the season in earnest. Next Friday, fall practices start for BK and company, and we will begin to see the 2015 team take shape. Here are some reasons why this year's team could be the one to bring home a ring.
Malik Zaire: Now that Benedict Arnold - sorry, I meant Everett Golson, slip of the tongue there - is off to the Home of Ridiculous Blown Calls (Tallahassee), the redshirt sophomore from Ohio is ready to step into the spotlight. Based on what we saw in his limited time last season, Malik is a big, athletic lefty who is a huge threat to run, but his passing ability is slightly in doubt. All reports from camp have been positive, including those from former big man on campus Brady Quinn, who recently worked out with Zaire, but it remains to be seen how he handles being THE go-to guy for the first time.
The Supporting Cast: One thing Zaire shouldn't have to worry about is whether or not he's going to get sacked. More often than not, he won't be, and he'll have plenty of room to scramble, as well. The offensive line is extremely solid, bordered on the ends by 6'6" draft prospect LT Ronnie Stanley and 6'8" athletic RT Mike McGlinchey, and 6'5" leader Nick Martin will be back under center, where he played with his brother as part of the best O-Line in the nation in 2013. Most of the stars of last year's productive offense return, as well, including junior RB Tarean Folston (1,080 total yds in 2014), junior WR Will Fuller (1,094 receiving yds, 15 TDs), senior RB C.J. Prosise, senior WR Chris Brown, junior WR Corey Robinson, and junior RB Greg Bryant (under suspension for the first four games). It's a highly experienced and talented core, who will hopefully be able to make things easy on Zaire, as well as act as a calming presence in the huddle during big games. Keys will include limiting dropped passes, which directly caused a few of Golson's 14 picks last year, as well as staying healthy, which was a big theme on the defensive side. The tight end position, vacated by Stanford game hero Ben Koyack, is an unusual question mark. The leading candidate is junior Durham Smythe, who has exactly one catch for seven yards in his career.
New faces that could be seen this season include redshirt frosh WR Corey Holmes and true freshman RB Dexter Williams.
The Defense: Riddled by injuries last year, this unit gradually fell from decent to awful. In the first five games of 2014, opponents scored an average of 12 points on the Irish (thanks, Michigan), and we went 5-0. In the last eight games, opponents averaged 40 points (40!) and, unsurprisingly, we went 3-5. Granted turnovers contributed somewhat to that statistic, but still.
The good news is, all of those injured starters (minus Cody Riggs) will be back this year, and they will be hungry. The D-Line is talented and has much more depth than it has had in the past. Three seniors - Romeo Okwara, Sheldon Day, and Jarron Jones - line up alongside junior Isaac Rochell up front. A whole host of characters will either rotate in or vie for playing time - those are led by sophomores Andrew Trumbetti and Jay Hayes, as well as highly touted freshmen Jerry Tillery and Micah Dew-Treadway. Leadership will be prevalent among the linebacking corps, as Joe Schmidt and Jarrett Grace return from injury for their final year of eligibility. They will rotate with true sophomore Nyles Morgan, who was impressive in the role last year. Of course, on the weak side, Jaylon Smith looms large and terrifying as always. Finally, the secondary could be really fun to watch, as long as they have the chemistry. Suspended star CB KeiVarae Russell looks to make a triumphant return opposite junior Cole Luke, who could be the top corner on many teams. Expect Max Redfield, Elijah Shumate, and fifth-year ballhawk Matthias Farley to step up and become a truly intimidating safety unit.
As a Notre Dame student who applied shortly after an undefeated season, it's easy to expect a lot from Fighting Irish football. This year's team truly has the experience and the drive to fulfill those expectations. You'll probably find me at the grotto this coming September 4th, praying for health, academic honesty, and team chemistry, as well as a dose of good old fashioned luck. That may be all we need to complete another magical run.
Ladies and gentlemen, here come the Irish.
