Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/514677
BY LOU SOMOGYI T here is a reason why only one Notre Dame player, tight end Ben Koyack, was selected in the 2015 NFL Draft: Most of the mainstays for the Fighting Irish return this year. Among "Power Five" conference teams, head coach Brian Kelly's Notre Dame unit has the most starters re- turning from last year 's bowl games on offense (nine out of 11) and defense (10 out of 11, with cornerback KeiVarae Russell, a 26-game starter, expected to replace the graduated Cody Riggs). As a result, there is less urgency for the incoming 23-man freshman class to fill gaps in the lineup. The infrastruc- ture of the offense and defense is at a point where a freshman getting on the field will be more challenging than in years past, although special teams is a different animal. With spring practice concluded, one can better formulate an educated guess on where the 10 freshmen on of- fense, 12 on defense plus a kicker can best help, and the positions where the need is most acute. QUARTERBACK Freshman: Brandon Wimbush Need In 2015: Had Everett Golson stayed for his fifth season while team- ing with Music City Bowl MVP Malik Zaire, we automatically would have marked down Wimbush as the fifth straight freshman QB to redshirt under head coach Brian Kelly, joining Gol- son (2011), Gunner Kiel (2012, but now starting at Cincinnati), Zaire (2013) and DeShone Kizer (2014). With Golson opting to depart, Wim- bush is now expected to challenge Kizer for the No. 2 role. If We Had To Guess … Depending on how Wimbush competes in Au- gust for the No. 2 spot, we would say he's on the bubble right now to see ac- tion. In 2013, Notre Dame had seniors Tommy Rees and Andrew Hendrix as the top two after Golson's academic ex- ile for the fall semester, with incoming freshman Zaire redshirted. This year, there is less experience among the top two and Wimbush is more advanced as a passer coming in than Zaire was as a rookie, so the possibility of playing as a freshman is greater. Experience Counts Veteran lineup leaves less room for many freshmen to play in 2015