Notre Dame Football: The Top Five Quarterbacks the Irish will face in 2019

Quarterback is the most important position in football. Naturally, when assessing the Notre Dame football team’s 2019 opponents, that position is a great starting point.

Last season, the Notre Dame football’s pass defense was stellar. They ranked third in yards per pass attempt allowed and second in passing touchdowns allowed.

There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the Irish defense heading into the 2019 season. However, like most teams, the Irish experienced some attrition since the end of last season.

Notre Dame had three defensive players selected in the 2019 NFL Draft this past April. Two others signed deals as undrafted free agents shortly after the draft concluded.

Three of their four starters in the Irish secondary will return this season. The one starter they have to replace, Julian Love, is arguably one of the best cornerbacks to ever play at Notre Dame. As a whole, though, the secondary should be a strength of the team in 2019.

Notre Dame’s defensive line should be another strength. They have four defensive ends that could start or play significant snaps at almost any school in the country. The Irish will need to replace the production of interior defensive lineman Jerry Tillery and Jonathan Bonner, but the juniors that will be starting at those positions are certainly capable of doing so.

The linebacker corps experienced the most shuffling this offseason. The Irish need to fill the void left by the departure of two multi-year starters, Drue Tranquill and Te’von Coney.

Notre Dame will have plenty of talent in their secondary and at the defensive end position. They may not limit their opponents’ passing attacks as well as they did last season, but they will be formidable.

Here are the top five quarterbacks that the Notre Dame defense will face in 2019.