Notre Dame football: Which seniors will stick around for 2017?
By Greg Hadley
Mike McGlinchey announced this past week his intention to return for a fifth year with Notre Dame football. Which of his fellow seniors will join him?
This past Wednesday, Mike McGlinchey, Notre Dame’s most experienced offensive lineman and a trendy preseason pick to go in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft, announced his intent to bypass the pros for another year and stay in South Bend through next season.
It was a surprise move, given how other top Notre Dame players with a year of eligibility left the school last year, such as Will Fuller and Jaylon Smith. Besides, McGlinchey is already widely viewed as a physical freak, a specimen any NFL team would want to beef up their O-Line. It’s hard to say how staying another year in the NCAA will improve upon his already sterling draft stock.
But that got me thinking: Who else might stay for a fifth year, and who might call it quits after 2016, either for the pros or simply to move on with their lives? There are 11 Irish seniors, including McGlinchey, who could theoretically come back next year. Here they are ranked, in order of most likely to leave to certain to stay.
But before we do that, it’s worthwhile to note that regardless of who ends up staying, ND will still be losing some extremely talented players, such as Cole Luke, Isaac Rochell and James Onwualu.
Alright, here we go.