Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/998819
134 ✦ BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2018 FOOTBALL PREVIEW BY BRYAN DRISKELL N otre Dame bounced back from a miserable 2016 season, putting together a 10‑3 campaign that has once again raised expectations in South Bend. The national football preview magazines are anticipating another good season for the Fighting Irish, but not one that ends with a College Football Playoff berth. Here is what those publications had to say about the upcoming season: ATHLON SPORTS Consistency has been an issue for Notre Dame in the Brian Kelly era, but Athlon Sports is expecting the Fighting Irish to re‑ peat its 2017 success. The publication is predicting that Notre Dame will finish the regular season with a 9‑3 record and slot‑ ted Kelly's squad at No. 15 in its preseason rankings. To be expected, Athlon believes senior quarterback Brandon Wimbush is pivotal to Notre Dame's success on offense. "The pressure is on quarterback Brandon Wimbush, who helped lead the Irish to spec‑ tacular results in the red zone [76 percent touchdown rate] but struggled mightily with his accuracy [49.5 percent]," the publication noted. Athlon seems confident that Notre Dame will continue playing well up front despite the loss of All‑Americans Quenton Nelson and Mike McGlinchey. "The offensive line, sans Nelson and Mc‑ Glinchey, remains solid with veteran center Sam Mustipher and right guard Alex Bars. The Irish will benefit from Tommy Kraemer and Robert Hainsey splitting time at right tackle in 2017, essentially bringing back four starters." Returning experience has Athlon bullish on the Irish defense. "Linebackers coach Clark Lea was tabbed [to be defensive coordinator] to maintain continuity," Athlon wrote. "Lea is the beneficiary of nine return‑ ing starters, led by cornerbacks Julian Love and Shaun Crawford, linebackers Te'von Coney and Drue Tranquill, and a deep and experienced defensive line led by tackle Jerry Tillery." The publication quoted an unnamed opposing coach about the quarterback situation. "I still think Brandon Wimbush is the an‑ swer at QB," the anonymous coach said. "I know [Ian] Book won that bowl game, but Wimbush does more things that stress a defense." Athlon ranked the top 25 units at each position, and all but Notre Dame's receiv‑ ers/tight ends cracked the list. The Irish quarterback group (No. 21), running backs (No. 21), offensive line (No. 14), defensive line (No. 20), secondary (No. 16) and coach‑ ing staff (No. 20) were all ranked, with the linebacker unit (No. 8) receiving the highest listing. Love was Notre Dame's lone preseason All‑American, getting named to the maga‑ zine's third team. Eleven players the Fight‑ ing Irish will face during their 2018 sched‑ ule earned All‑America honors from Athlon. Five Notre Dame opponents cracked the top 25, with No. 5 Michi‑ gan leading the pack. Florida State checked in at No. 13, Virginia Tech at No. 16, Stanford at No. 18 and USC at No. 21. Five opponents were predicted by Athlon to win at least nine games, and seven are expected to finish with winning records. Only Vanderbilt and Ball State are projected to have losing records. Irish Player National Rankings Player (Position) Lindy's Phil Steele's Alex Bars (G) 7 9 Te'von Coney (ILB) 4 11 Julian Love (CB) 2 3 Alizé Mack (TE) — 7 Sam Mustipher (C) 1 10 Tyler Newsome (P) 5 18 John Shannon (LS) — 3 Jerry Tillery (DT) 6 6 Drue Tranquill (OLB) 8 13 Justin Yoon (PK) 8 21 ON THE RISE The national publications are predicting another strong season from Notre Dame Fifth-year senior Sam Mustipher is considered one of the nation's best centers in 2018. PHOTO BY ANGELA DRISKELL