Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
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1. WILL FULLER, WR — In 2015, Fuller caught 62 passes for 1,258 yards — 20.3 yards per catch — and 14 touchdowns after he snagged 76 passes for 1,094 yards and 15 touch- downs in 2014. He was the unquestioned leader in terms of production for the receiving corps and also came up with a pair of game-winning touchdown receptions — at Virginia and at Temple. The junior was named team MVP at the awards banquet Dec. 11 and selected 21st overall in the NFL Draft by the Houston Texans in April. 2. JAYLON SMITH, LB — Smith was named the Butkus Award winner as the nation's top linebacker, joining Manti Te'o (2012) as Irish players to win the honor in the last four seasons. Smith registered 114 tackles (nine for loss), five passes defended and two fumble recoveries during the season. In the 44-28 Fiesta Bowl loss to Ohio State, Smith suffered a torn ACL and LCL that in- cluded nerve damage, leading to his dive in the NFL Draft from a surefire top-10 pick to the beginning of the second round, where he was selected by the Dallas Cowboys. With so much attention on Smith's injury since Jan. 1, it's been easy to forget just how remarkable of an athlete he is and how well he performed for Notre Dame. 3. SHELDON DAY, DT — Day passed up the NFL Draft last offseason to return for one final year at Notre Dame. He was praised by Kelly throughout the season for his leader- ship and on-field performance. Day finished with 45 tackles (15.5 for loss), four sacks, 13 quarterback hurries, four passes broken up and two forced fumbles. 4. DESHONE KIZER, QB — Twelve months ago at this time, few around Notre Dame's program expected Kizer to carry a lead role with the Irish in 2015. The Toledo, Ohio, prod- uct performed better than almost anyone could have imagined after spending the spring as the No. 3 quarterback, directing Notre Dame to a 10-3 finish, Fiesta Bowl berth and close to a College Football Playoff berth. He finished with 2,884 yards, 21 touchdowns and 10 interceptions through the air and 520 yards and 10 scores on the ground, a Notre Dame quarterback record. As a sign of Notre Dame's depth and talent at quarterback, Kizer isn't even guaranteed to be the starter when the 2016 season begins at Texas Sept. 4. 5. RONNIE STANLEY, LT — Stanley made what many viewed to be a risky decision a year ago when he passed up a likely first-round NFL Draft selection to return to Notre Dame. That call paid off when he became the No. 6 overall pick of the Baltimore Ravens in April. Stanley became a more consistent performer as a senior and held up well against Clem - son's Shaq Lawson and other formidable pass rushers in 2015. TOP FIVE PLAYERS 1. TWO-POINT CONVERSION FALLS SHORT — Clem- son went toe to toe with Alabama in the national cham- pionship game in January, but that chance nearly van- ished against Notre Dame Oct. 3. The Tigers controlled most of the game and led by as many as 18 points before allowing a late Irish rally. Ultimately, however, head coach Dabo Swinney's group made the stop when needed. After sophomore quarterback DeShone Kizer found junior receiver Torii Hunter in the end zone for six to nar- row the deficit to 24-22, Notre Dame found itself within a successful two-point conversion from tying the game in the closing seconds. Kizer's keeper, however, would fall two yards short. It also prompted many debates on why head coach Brian Kelly went for two points (which failed) after narrowing the deficit to 21-9 — thereby forcing it to go for two again in the closing seconds. 2. KIZER AND FULLER CONNECT LATE TO BEAT VIR- GINIA — With starting quarterback Malik Zaire sidelined the rest of the afternoon — and ultimately the season — Notre Dame called upon Kizer to lead a late rally and keep the Irish from suffering a blemish to their record in week two of the season. Trailing 27-26, Kizer led Notre Dame on an eight-play, 80-yard march that culminated in a 39-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Will Fuller with 12 seconds left for the win. 3. STANFORD STUNS NOTRE DAME IN A THRILLER — Notre Dame traveled to the Golden State the final weekend of the regular season with its College Football Playoff hopes still alive. In one of college football's most exciting games of 2015, the two teams went back and forth before Kizer's two-yard scoring run — and subsequent extra point — gave the Irish a late 36-35 lead. Returning the football to Stanford with 30 seconds, however, proved to be too much time for savvy senior quarterback Kevin Hogan. The Cardinal traveled 45 yards in four plays — aided by a 15-yard face mask penalty by junior defensive end Isaac Rochell — to set up the game- winning kick by Stanford's Conrad Ukropina. A 27-yard pass from Hogan to Devon Cajuste keyed the drive, leading to the 45-yard field goal. An argument could be made whether the 27-yard pass or the ensuing kick represents the most significant play from that drive. 4. KIZER TO FULLER, PART II — Seven weeks after Notre Dame needed a late rally to survive at Virginia, the Irish found themselves in a similar spot at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. For the second time in as many months, Kizer and Fuller connected for a late go-ahead score that helped Notre Dame survive. On second-and-10 from the Temple 17, Kizer connected with Fuller in a tight window to put the Irish ahead 24-20, a lead that would stick. Making the score even more impressive, Kizer had au - dibled out of a run play at the line of scrimmage. The sophomore passed for 299 yards and rushed for 143. 5. JOSH ADAMS' 98-YARD TOUCHDOWN RUN — While replacing the injured Prosise, freshman running back Josh Adams scampered 98 yards for the longest score from scrimmage in Irish history to break open a 21-0 lead over Wake Forest. Adams found the outside and ran those 98 yards to tie the Football Bowl Subdivision record for longest run by a freshman, previously done by Tulane's Jerald Sowell (1993) and Middle Tennessee State's Jordan Parker (2012). TOP FIVE INDIVIDUAL PLAYS Sophomore signal-caller DeShone Kizer accounted for 381 yards of total offense and three touchdowns against eventual national runner-up Clemson Oct. 3, but he came up short on a two-point conversion run in the final seconds of a heartbreaking 24-22 defeat. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2016 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 135