Notre Dame football: Will Brian Kelly turn to a true freshman at QB in 2021?

Oct 24, 2020; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Brian Kelly looks on from the sidelines against the Pittsburgh Panthers during the fourth quarter at Heinz Field. Notre Dame won 45-3. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 24, 2020; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Brian Kelly looks on from the sidelines against the Pittsburgh Panthers during the fourth quarter at Heinz Field. Notre Dame won 45-3. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /
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Notre Dame football
Replacing Ian Book is a huge hurdle for the 2021 Notre Dame football team. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

With Notre Dame football star Ian Book moving on to the NFL, the program has a hole left at quarterback, and it could be filled by a true freshman.

Over the past four seasons, the Notre Dame football program has been led by quarterback Ian Book, a player who put together a record-breaking career in South Bend. Book leaves the Irish as the school’s all-time winningest quarterback, an architect behind the program’s two College Football Playoff appearances.

As the school looks to turn the page from Book, they will be doing so in a year where they are losing a ton of talent on both sides of the ball. The defense is losing an All-American linebacker in Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, and nearly the entire offensive line is going to have to be recreated for the upcoming season.

Still, the quarterback position is the most important in football, and head coach Brian Kelly is going to have to get to work right away to figure out who is going to be the man under center this Fall. They have time to take a look and will do everything can to get this right, but this has to be the main concern going into the offseason.

Kelly has been down this road before, and he may have to turn to a true freshman next season.