Notre Dame Football: Nation should not sleep on the Irish
By Brad Weiss
The Notre Dame Football team may have lost a lot of talent, but there is plenty of talent leftover for another College Football Playoff run.
Looking at recent projections in terms of where the Notre Dame Football team could end up this upcoming season, there are basically two schools of thought. Some feel the Irish have enough talent to be a top-10 team once again, and possibly make a run at another College Football Playoff.
The other half feel the Irish will be a top-20 team, possibly inching into the top-15, this after seeing nine of their stars selected in the 2021 NFL Draft. The truth is, the Irish do have enough talent to make another run at the College Football Playoff, and nobody should be sleeping on them this season.
Notre Dame Football will make a run in 2021
It is easy to see why the media could think the Irish will take a step back in 2021, after losing all-time winningest quarterback Ian Book to the NFL. Book has been the unquestioned leader of this program for years now and won the team a bunch of big games along the way.
In addition, eighty percent of their starting offensive line is gone, including All-Americans in Liam Eichenberg and Aaron Banks, while another defensive All-American, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah is now with the Cleveland Browns.
Overall, there is a lot of elite talent gone, but a lot of elite talent remains.
Kyle Hamilton is one of the better defensive backs in the country, and new defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman is going to get a lot out of a veteran group on defense at all three levels. Offensively, Kyren Williams returns after a 1,000-yard rushing season, and Michael Mayer is one of the better tight ends in the country.
Finally, while the offensive line must be rebuilt, this is Notre Dame, where it seems first-round linemen come around every season. The big question mark is at quarterback, but if Jack Coan can get it done, much as he did at Wisconsin, they are going to be fine.
In terms of where they end up in 2021, that is anybody’s guess, but all signs point to them being at least a top-10 team this upcoming season. They have the talent, and coaching staff to continue to move in the right direction as a program, and another ten-plus win season could be in the cards.