Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/705594
UNDER THE DOME and Chris Frey return to anchor a Michigan State linebacker corps that ranks No. 3 in the nation, ac- cording to Phil Steele's. Stanford isn't far behind at No. 5, and Texas (No. 14) and USC (No. 19) also rank in the top 20. • Defensive backs: Notre Dame will see plenty of talented defen- sive backs in 2016, including five position groups ranked in the top 15 by Phil Steele's. USC's group is ranked seventh in the country by Phil Steele's, 10th by Lindy's and 15th by Ath- lon. Texas' defensive backfield is tabbed 11th-best by Phil Steele's and 20th by Athlon. • Special teams: Only Stanford — led by Phil Steele's 2015 Spe- cial Teams Coach of the Year Pete Alamar — is rated ahead of Notre Dame in special teams entering the season. The Cardinal have the No. 4 unit in the country, while the Irish are ranked 14th. TOUGHEST GAMES • Texas: ESPN ranks the Long- horns (5-7 in 2015) as Notre Dame's third-toughest 2016 oppo- nent. Athlon has them on the lower end, picking them to finish seventh in the 10-team Big 12. • Stanford: Sporting News and Lindy's — which picked Stanford ninth and 10th, respectively — are the only publications to pick the Cardinal ahead of Notre Dame (10th in Sporting News, 11th in Lindy's). • Miami: Phil Steele's likes the Hurricanes to win the ACC's Coastal division, meaning an appearance in the league's title game. • USC: The toughest team on Notre Dame's 2016 schedule, ac- cording to ESPN's Football Power Index (FPI). Phil Steele's predicts that the hardest schedule in the country will have the Trojans now live up to their impressive talent level. BEST PLAYERS Notre Dame will face four players this season that were tabbed as preseason All-Americans by all five publications: Michigan State's Ma- lik McDowell, Stanford's Christian McCaffrey and USC's JuJu Smith- Schuster and Adoree' Jackson. • McDowell: A 6-6, 280-pound player with the ability to play either tackle or end. He had 41 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in 2015. • McCaffrey: A Heisman Trophy finalist, he finished with 2,019 rush- ing yards last year. He also caught 45 passes for 645 yards and five touchdowns. A dynamic returner as well, he averaged 28.9 yards on kick returns. • Smith-Schuster: Finished with 10 touchdown receptions and 1,454 receiving yards in 2015. • Jackson: Doubles as a skilled return man in addition to his cor- nerback duties, broke up eight passes and had one interception while guarding the opposition's top receiver. ✦ GEAR UP | | WITH NOTRE DAME TEES NDCATALOG.COM 574.631.6316