Notre Dame Football: Cole Kmet is Mackey Award front-runner

On Friday afternoon, Notre Dame football’s Cole Kmet was named to the John Mackey Award watch list. Once a highly touted recruit out of Illinois, Kmet has made enough of a name for himself at Notre Dame to be considered for this award.

Since arriving in South Bend, Kmet has found his way on the field in auxiliary roles within Chip Long’s offense. Now that Alize Mack is gone to the NFL, Kmet will step into a starting spot in the Irish offense, which could mean a special season for the Irish tight end.

In his career, Kmet has totaled 17 receptions for 176 yards. He has yet to find the endzone.

But don’t let his stats fool you. Kmet is poised for a breakout junior season in South Bend. There is every opportunity–if he is able to stay healthy–that Kmet is poised to blow those numbers out of the water.

First off, there’s the ability to develop chemistry with Ian Book. Both Book and Kmet are preseason starters for the first time in their Notre Dame careers. Since Book is the day-one starter, one would expect his passing numbers to increase, which means more opportunities for Kmet.

Secondly, Chip Long love his tight ends and Kmet is probably the most talented tight end that he’s had in his time at Notre Dame. The Irish coaching staff has raved about his athletic ability. Kmet just needs to establish consistency. Expect the tight end position to be emphasized more in the offense this season.

While the numbers haven’t been there for Kmet just yet, there is no reason to think that Kmet can’t have the type of year that would garner him Mackey Award numbers. With the Irish likely to be around the College Football Playoff conversation again, Kmet will certainly get plenty of exposure.