Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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IN THE TRENCHES ANDREW OWENS Now in 2015, the players know they're talented. Kelly knows they're talented. The outside world knows they're talented. Sports Illustrated even put the Irish on a regional cover and projected them to reach this year 's College Football Playoff. With few doubting this team's abili‑ ties — Kelly claims the 2015 Irish are deeper, more athletic and better lead‑ ers than the 2012 version — he's let‑ ting them know that talent alone won't be enough. It's about a culture that rises above everything else to win ev‑ ery Saturday. "It's a standard that is set and needs to be held by the players," fifth‑year senior center Nick Martin said. "It goes beyond the coaches. It's about accountability, it's calling people out, and when it comes down to it, that's what you can fall back on when you hit adversity. "It's how you respond when good things happen as well as when bad things happen. That's when you be‑ come great." The culture failed Notre Dame last November when the Irish lost four consecutive games to end the regular season. Sure, the injuries piled up, but that does not completely explain the disappointing fashion in which Kelly's fifth season ended. Notre Dame can't afford to fail in 2015. This is possibly the most talented team since 1993, and that must trans‑ late to wins. Anything short of a 10‑2 campaign would be a failure. The task is to win a national cham‑ pionship. "They know what the mission is," Kelly said. "Everybody knows the mis‑ sion, and that is we don't play for a conference championship. So they're smart kids. They know what the mis‑ sion is. They know how difficult it is to complete the mission. And the only way to complete that mission is to stay focused, stay on task and stay incredi‑ bly disciplined day to day or they can't accomplish that. "They know what they want to ac‑ complish, but they also know, because it is driven home every single day, there is no way they get there if they're thinking in those global terms." There's a lot of truth if you cut through that coachspeak. Everyone telling the Irish how good they are won't result in any wins. Also, reach‑ ing the playoff is a daunting task, but rather than feeling the pressure of needing to go 12‑0 Notre Dame should focus on its daily to‑do list. Notre Dame will face adversity this season. It has already lost two top players (Jarron Jones and Shaun Craw‑ ford) to significant injuries, and it's likely there will be more at some point. The Irish will find themselves trailing in the second half eventually, whether it be in the opener against Texas or a hostile environment at Clemson, or somewhere in between. That's when the culture and mental toughness must rise up to ensure that all of the preseason noise is more than just that. ✦ Andrew Owens has been a writer for Blue & Gold Illustrated since August 2013. He can be reached at aowens@blueandgold.com