Notre Dame football: Kelly’s decision is more difficult than you think
By Ben Belden
With less than three weeks until the start of his team’s season, Brian Kelly still has yet to make a decision on who will start at quarterback.
Kelly and his Fighting Irish are facing a wide spectrum of expectations as the team prepares for its season opener in less than three weeks. Some have picked the Irish to play in the College Football Playoff. Others have projected the Irish to settle for a New Year’s six bowl. Others yet think the Irish will be lucky to win 9 games.
Related Story: Why Malik Zaire should start for Notre Dame
Win total aside, what the Irish need the most from this season is stability.
Last year, major question marks surrounded the quarterback position. After Everett Golson transferred to Florida State, many wondered if Malik Zaire would live up to expectations to lead the Fighting Irish to a return to glory. The Zaire era ended in the third quarter of the Irish’s second game. Deshone Kizer proved to be a more than adequate backup plan, going 8-3 as a starter.
With both quarterbacks back and healthy, the Irish arguably have more questions than before: Who will start? Can both play? Will a disgruntled backup be a distraction? Will the eventual starter be able to succeed while having to look over his shoulder? Can Brian Kelly mess this up?
The answer to the latter is yes.
While there does not appear to be a major gap in talent between the two quarterbacks, there still is major cause for concern. Not only will Kelly’s decision impact this season, but it will likely play a major factor in his team’s 2017 outcome as well.
A quick look at the most updated Irish depth chart shows that the Irish are young. On offense, the Irish may start as many as six seniors, but all six of those seniors have an opportunity to return in 2017. The defense features a good blend of veteran leadership and talented youth.
In fact, the Irish could return as many as 17 starters next season to face a tough but manageable schedule. The Georgia Bulldogs and USC Trojans come to South Bend while the Irish face road tests against the Miami Hurricanes and Stanford Cardinal.
The Irish will benefit most from establishing chemistry and building on that chemistry moving forward. That means naming (and sticking with) the quarterback who gives you the best chance to win the next two seasons.
Perhaps the safer choice is Zaire. Despite having played in fewer games, Zaire has more experience as a player under Kelly. Regardless of who starts, the obvious best-case scenario is that one quarterback plays well from start to finish and goes on to lead the Irish in 2017. Unfortunately, the best-case scenario from last season likely did not include a major injury to the team’s starting quarterback.
If Zaire starts the season, the worst-case scenario is livable. If Zaire struggles, he will be replaced by Kizer and likely transfer at season’s end. Kizer would become the starter moving forward.
On the flip side, if Kizer is named the starter and struggles, Zaire would be his replacement. However, given that he was not the day one starter, Zaire could still move on. This would leave the Irish with only Kizer and Brandon Wimbush, who likely will enter 2017 without having taken a meaningful snap in a gold helmet.
Many coaches would likely say they are envious of Kelly’s position. On the surface, Kelly’s problem looks like a good one to have. However, there may be more wrinkles than originally anticipated.
Next: Why DeShone Kizer should start for Notre Dame
If Kelly makes the right decision, the Irish could be thrust in to the championship conversation. If he does not, he could set the Irish back significantly.