Notre Dame Football: What are realistic expectations for Jack Coan?
By Brad Weiss
The Notre Dame Football program will likely turn to Jack Coan at quarterback, but what are the real expectations for him in 2021?
During the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft, the New Orleans Saints selected former Notre Dame football star Ian Book. The all-time winningest quarterback in program history, Book was originally slated to be a late-Day 3 pick, or even go undrafted, but he dominated the pre-draft workouts, becoming the first signal-caller selected on Day 3.
In fact, the Saints could not be a more perfect spot for Book, as Sean Payton is not afraid to play quarterbacks who do not have perfect NFL size. Book is the kind of player who has worked for everything he got in South Bend, and the good money would be on him making an impact at the next level as well.
Replacing Book for the Irish this Fall will likely be Jack Coan, a graduate transfer from Wisconsin. The last time Coan held a full-time job at the collegiate level, he was leading the Badgers to a Big Ten title game, so it is not like the Irish are turning to a green quarterback.
Heading into 2021, what can we really expect from Coan as he takes over this Irish program?
Notre Dame Football needs Coan’s leadership
Irish fans can definitely expect from Coan leadership, as he was a proven winner at Wisconsin and a leader on and off the field. Coan is the kind of player that teams can rally around, and for a program losing a leader in Book, he could not have arrived at a better time.
Also, the Irish can expect him to be very accurate with the football, as he completed over 70 percent of his passes during the Badgers’ run to the Big Ten title game a few years back. He is also not afraid to lean on his running backs, and he has a good one in South Bend, with Kyren Williams coming off a 1,000-yard rushing season.
Overall, Coan is going to do the little things to help this team win, all the while not taking too many chances downfield. Luckily, the Irish are not handing the keys to the program off to someone who has never played in big games before, and I believe fans of the team are going to like what they see in Coan before all is said and done.