Notre Dame Football: Irish should be a preseason top-10 team
By Brad Weiss
The Notre Dame Football program is losing a ton of talent this season, but they still deserve to be a top-10 team heading into the 2021 season.
The 2021 NFL Draft has come and gone, and we saw nine members of the Notre Dame Football program come off the board. From second-round picks to Day 3 selections, the Irish littered the entire 2021 NFL Draft after the first round, a place they were shut out of for the second straight year.
The fact that the Irish did not have a first-round pick in 2021 is a bit alarming, as two players were supposed to go in Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and Liam Eichenberg. While Eichenberg was a fringe first-round guy, JOK was a possible top-10 pick, but a heart issue came up and forced him to drop.
Of course, his heart is fine, and at pick No. 52, the Cleveland Browns may have gotten the steal of the draft.
Notre Dame Football still has elite talent
The Irish still have elite talent despite losing so much via the 2021 NFL Draft, including Kyle Hamilton, who is one of the best players in the country. Looking at some recent rankings, many have them as a top-15 team, but not so much a top-10 team heading into the 2021 college football season.
Personally, I feel that the Irish’s schedule, and what they have coming back are going to make them a top-10 team before all is said and done. They lost a ton of talent along the offensive line, but the cupboard is not barren, and there are enough playmakers on that side of the ball for this offense to still be explosive this season.
The defense has veterans on all three levels, and with Marcus Freeman coming in as the defensive coordinator, they could be even better this season. The defensive line should be strong, and Freeman works wonders with the linebackers, a group that has solid vets as well.
For all the talk of the Irish possibly taking a step back in 2021, I believe it will be the opposite, and they will surprise some people. If they can stack some wins early on, and Jack Coan can be the game-manager he was at Wisconsin, the Irish could be a possible CFP team once again this upcoming season.