Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/109499
Grade-A Haul Notre Dame filled virtually every need in 2012 T By Lou Somogyi he sliding scale has been elevated at Notre Dame. From 1997-2011, just getting to a BCS bowl game was the bar. But with a 12-0 regularseason finish, No. 1 ranking and a berth to the BCS National Championship Game in 2012, Notre Dame has seen the stakes go up. Thus, here is our recruiting class grading system under head coach Brian Kelly, who will enter his fourth season in 2013. A — BCS Championship Caliber B — BCS/Top 10 Contender C — Top 25 Potential D — Trying To Be Bowl Eligible Quarterback Signed: Malik Zaire Meeting Needs: One quarterback per year is standard. It becomes a little more difficult when the previous year you signed a five-star prospect (Gunner Kiel) and a year earlier you inked a potential four-year starter from 201215 in Everett Golson. Summary: The two quarterbacks Notre Dame seemed most interested in were dual threats, Illinois' Matt Alviti and Ohio's Zaire. Alviti committed to Northwestern April 14 — but Zaire had cast his lot with Notre Dame at its March 25 junior day. One issue was whether Zaire was a polished passer after completing only 36 of 82 attempts during a 10-1 junior year at Archbishop Alter. On Paper Grade: B Zaire doesn't arrive with the fanfare of five-star QBs Kiel, Dayne Crist (2008) or Jimmy Clausen (2007), but he was one of the nation's premier dual threats — 1,990 passing yards and 1,120 rushing yards as a senior — who acquitted himself well at the Elite 11 quarterback competition in California last summer. Running Back Signed: Greg Bryant and Tarean Folston meeting Needs: Two was the goal, with one having the power and durability to go between the tackles (Bryant) and the other (Folston) a versatile threat