Notre Dame Football: Kicking game could be a concern in 2019

The loss of one of the greatest kickers in Notre Dame history should be taken seriously.

It would be understandable if in the past few seasons, Notre Dame fans forgot about the special teams. That being said, you shouldn’t let special teams be an afterthought heading into the 2019 season.

Justin Yoon and Tyler Newsome have been the portrait of consistency during their time at Notre Dame. That’s all you ask for out of your kicking game — to be the same thing every time. It’s like when you go to a fast food restaurant. You want their burger and fries to be the same, no matter where you are, and under all circumstances.

Yoon and Newsome are gone now.

They’ll need replacing, which isn’t as easy as it seems. Just because you signed a kicker or a punter doesn’t mean that you’ve signed a consistent one. Ask Nick Saban how hard it can be to find a kicker.

Jay Bramblett will be the new kicker, replacing Justin Yoon. He’s a three-star recruit who Notre Dame out recruited Missouri. Yoon was also a three-star kicker. Four and five star kickers don’t exist. Still, Bramblett is an 18 year old. No one knows if he can handle the pressure of Notre Dame. No one can tell if he’ll be able to take the criticism if he misses a kick that costs the Irish a game. No one knows that he won’t mentally spiral. Not just that, but Yoon was an 88.2% kicker in 2018. Even if Bramblett has a good season, he’ll probably be worse than that.

The kicking game will take a step back.

None of that is to say Bramblett won’t be good or even great during his time at Notre Dame. It’s simply to say that the kicking game won’t be as good as it was in 2018 immediately. It’s not unreasonable that a missed kick shifts momentum and costs Notre Dame a game. These are the trials of young, inexperienced kickers. This is why you can’t overlook special teams. Special teams can change the fate of teams and dictate the outcome of seasons.

Brian Polian, Notre Dame’s special teams coach, has a challenging season ahead of him. He’ll be the one tasked with making sure that the kicking game is up to par. If the talent proves to be lacking, he’ll then need to find creative ways to make special teams good enough to not cost the Irish wins. This may mean squibs and fake field goal and extra point attempts.

Poor special teams can also change how the offense calls plays. If the kicking game fails, then you would have to go for it on fourth down more often. This could include risks that aren’t reasonable to take under normal circumstances.

If Notre Dame doesn’t get the kicking game figured out over the course of the off-season, it will dictate the course of the 2019 season. A kicker’s performance over the course of a season can significantly impact how the team finishes.