2016 Notre Dame Football Preview

2016 Notre Dame Football Preview

Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview

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130 ✦ BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2016 FOOTBALL PREVIEW BY JORDAN WELLS A fter finishing No. 11 in the final Associated Press poll following a 10-3 season, most national maga- zines are predicting a similar finish for the Irish in 2016. Preseason projections all slot Notre Dame right around the country's top 10, with the Irish expected to fall short of the playoffs but earn a bid to a second consecutive New Year's bowl. Here's what the national magazines said about the upcoming season: ATHLON SPORTS This publication calls for Notre Dame to fin- ish with the same regular-season record as last year's squad (10-2) while leaving some wiggle room for a potential playoff berth against a schedule that "isn't too daunting." In order to reach that double-digit win marker, Athlon noted, "Kelly's offense will need to keep humming to compensate for a defense with as many questions as answers. "The Fighting Irish were a couple of plays away from a College Football Playoff berth last year," the magazine continued. "Another run at the top four is within reach, but Notre Dame must replace key players on both sides of the ball. "While the quarterback battle between De- Shone Kizer and Malik Zaire is gathering the offseason attention, bigger concerns are find- ing a new go-to target with the departure of receiver Will Fuller and identifying three new starters on the line." Despite that, plenty of eyes are still follow- ing the quarterback battle. In the "Editors' Roundtable" portion of the edition — where four of the publication's editors weigh in with takes on various college football topics — two of the four named Notre Dame's quarterback battle the most interesting in the country to watch. "You've got two potential star players on a team that could be a playoff contender with a head coach who is an offensive guy who likes to make stars out of his quarterbacks," Braden Gall noted. "DeShone Kizer and Malik Zaire are both fantastic players who can be All- America-type good." One of the most interesting features is an anonymous opposing coach section, where one coach expects Kizer to win the position battle. "They're right back in the same situation at quarterback because both guys think they should play, and one is going to be unhappy," he said. "It's not the worst problem to have be- cause if you don't have two quarterbacks who can get it done, you're always one play away from your season being over. "I didn't see Zaire in person, but I'd buy stock in Kizer based on what I saw last year. He's more accurate throwing the ball down- field, and he's a mentally tough kid who doesn't seem to get rattled by anything. "… The X-factor that could swing it to Zaire is they'll take a step back on the offensive line. They don't have another Ronnie Stanley, and Nick Martin started every game for three years, so that's a lot to replace up front and they may want a guy who can make plays with his feet. "… They have talent, but I don't think they're on the same level as the Ohio States and Alabamas. With the truly marquee players, kids just aren't as fired up about Notre Dame, and he's taken guys who are just a notch below what I feel like are the truly elite kids in the country." Fittingly, the combination of Kizer, Zaire and sophomore Brandon Wimbush earns the Irish a No. 4 spot at the quarterback position in the national unit rankings, trailing only Clem- son, Oklahoma and Ohio State in that order. That was the only Irish position group to break into the top 10 nationally. Individually, Athlon projected junior offen- sive lineman Quenton Nelson as a third-team All-American. He was Notre Dame's only representative on the three preseason teams. Notre Dame checks in at No. 8 nationally in the preseason top 25, ahead of all the op- ponents on their schedule. Three foes did break into the rankings: Stanford (No. 12), Michigan State (No. 13) and USC (No. 23). Miami (No. 27) and Virginia Tech (No. 29) fall just short of the top grouping. LINDY'S SPORTS This publication is only slightly more bear- ish on the Irish compared to Athlon, tabbing Irish Player National Rankings Player (Position) Lindy's Phil Steele's DeShone Kizer (QB) T-8 19 Malik Zaire (QB) T-8 — Tarean Folston (RB) — 19 Torii Hunter Jr. (WR) 16 — Mike McGlinchey (OT) 5 5 Quenton Nelson (OG) 3 23 Isaac Rochell (DE) — 14 Jarron Jones (DT) — 11 Nyles Morgan (ILB) — 37 Cole Luke (CB) — 13 Max Redfield (FS) — 8 Justin Yoon (K) 7 — Consistency Returns Magazines predict back-to-back double-digit win seasons for first time since 1992-93 Junior left guard Quenton Nelson earned preseason third-team All-America accolades from Athlon Sports. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA

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