Notre Dame football has a lot to prove after finishing last season with a disappointing 4-8 record. We give game-by-game predictions for the Irish in 2017.
More: 2017 Notre Dame season preview
With only six of Notre Dame’s season-long starters departing next season, there is plenty of room for improvement. That goes for the entire team, especially the defense. With the most notable departing defenders being cornerback Cole Luke and linebacker Isaac Rochell, this young defense will have the chance to prove if it has overcome the many struggles of last year.
Despite the excitement over new defensive coordinator Mike Elko and what he brings to the table, it will instead be offensive coordinator Chip Long who will draw the most attention. What will he be able to get out of quarterback Brandon Wimbush?
Notre Dame played very mediocre on both sides of the ball in 2016, finishing 53rd in points scored and 62nd in points allowed. In comparison, Chip Long’s Memphis Tigers finished 15th in points scored while the recently added Elko’s Wake Forest defense recorded a top 25 finish in points allowed. While different players will surely produce a significant variation in results, the Notre Dame coaching staff is sure to supply a change from last season, whether for better or worse.
Notre Dame will open up their 2017 campaign at home against the Temple Owls. There is not much history between the two. Their lone meeting two years ago resulted in a 24-20 Irish win. This will be another case of two teams with little knowledge of each other facing off in a season opener.
This kind of situation may serve as the perfect storm for a strong Temple defense that finished last season in the top 15 for points allowed. With the inexperienced Wimbush still ironing out the kinks that come along with a first start, the Temple defense will be ready to pounce at any provided opportunity.
On the same token, the Owls will also be without their record-setting quarterback in P.J. Walker, thus leaving last year’s backup Logan Marchi to man the helm. A revamped Irish defense will be anxious to get last year’s putrid taste out of their mouths, effectively putting both teams in the same boat.
Expect this to be a low-scoring affair with Notre Dame’s offense making just enough plays, most by way of star running back Josh Adams, to get them the win. With such similar scenarios in both corners, Notre Dame gets the nod on pedigree alone.
Final: Temple 13, Notre Dame 17 (1-0)
Notre Dame continues their home-stand flying high after their Week 1 victory with their new quarterback. While most of the credit deserves to go to Adams, a little confidence can go a long way for a young quarterback.
Another case of bad offense/good defense is in line for the Irish this week, but pedigree won’t cut it against an SEC powerhouse like the Georgia Bulldogs. Look for Wimbush to play well with most of the attention on Adams, going for 200 yards in the air along with 20 or so on the ground. Adams will continue to chug along with a 100 yard performance but it will be a ‘rookie mistake’ or two from Wimbush that will give Georgia a fairly comfortable win on the road.
Look for Notre Dame’s defense to force a turnover of their own in the affair, one that will leave the Irish with just enough hope to keep their heads up on the trip to Boston College for Week 3.
Final: Georgia 27, Notre Dame 17 (1-1)
Notre Dame has enjoyed recent success over the Eagles, winning five straight over the last eight seasons. Head coach Brian Kelly seems to have Boston College’s number as he has defeated both Frank Spaziani and Steve Addazio during their respective times as head coaches of the program.
Once heralded as one of the top defenses in the nation, the Eagles dropped to 45th in the nation last season, a drop that their fragile offense could not survive. Their 7-6 overall record proved deceiving as they were an underwhelming 2-6 in competitive ACC play.
More: Will uncertainty at quarterback affect St. Brown’s production at wide receiver?
Wimbush takes advantage of the two games now under his belt as he throws for 250 yards and two scores with at least one going to his new favorite target in Equanimeous St. Brown. Adams continues to do his thing with a bit of a drop in production due to Wimbush’s surge, adding 80 yards on the ground with one score for himself. Notre Dame makes easy work of the Eagles, stretching their streak against BC to six in a row.
Final: Boston College 10, Notre Dame 27 (2-1, 1-0 ACC)
Notre Dame comes into this game expecting it to be one of their more difficult tests of the season. Despite Michigan’s struggles of last year, Notre Dame knows it will not be an easy contest. The Irish were one of the Spartan’s three victories in 2016. So far, Notre Dame is content with their 2-1 record and is itching to add another tally to the W column.
Both teams acknowledge that they are in similar positions regardless of current standings and will engage in one of college football’s top games of the early season. Quarterbacks Brian Lewerke and Wimbush will embrace the spotlight and both throw around 300 yards. Not to be outdone by their respective signal-callers, backs LJ Scott and Josh Adams will pound the opposing fronts in a game which holds defense as a complete afterthought.
The Irish get the job done in East Lansing with a Justin Yoon field goal that seals the victory while leaving fans craving their next matchup. These are two big name programs in college football both looking to return to prominence once more. This game could be a pivotal moment in the winners’ season.
Final: Notre Dame 34, Michigan State 31 (3-1)
The Irish return home to the Miami Redhawks after their most exciting victory of the season. Much like Temple, the history between the two teams is virtually nonexistent with their last matchup coming in 1909. Notre Dame has hit their groove and look forward to a more relaxing game against a historically weak program.
Notre Dame jumps out to an early lead but begins to ease up on the gas when the game appears in hand. Miami takes advantage of this as they drive for a quick touchdown before capitalizing on the Irish’s lone turnover. Wimbush and Adams are doing just enough to get by as the game heads to the 4th gridlocked.
Tight end Alize Mack forms a solid rapport with Wimbush as he explodes for 90 yards and a late touchdown. The defense holds strong for the remainder of the game as Notre Dame avoids a primetime hangover.
Final: Miami 14, Notre Dame 24 (4-1)
North Carolina plans to defend their home turf against the Irish despite the numerous losses on offense. The offense has had time to gel together after the departure of sensation Mitch Trubisky and seems to be all systems go when the Irish take the field in Chapel Hill. The Irish find themselves as immediate victims in a game that gets out of hand early.
With the game slipping further out of hand in Notre Dame’s biggest flop of the season, backup QB Ian Book gets his first good look at the playing field. The run game is quickly ditched as Notre Dame’s second team gets most of the further action. Adams leaves the game with less than 70 yards as Dexter Williams receives his largest workload of the season. Quarterback Brandon Harris has a field day against the struggling Irish defense in a game that Kelly and Co. are in a hurry to put behind them.
The final score makes the game appear closer than it really was in part to Notre Dame scoring some garbage time points as UNC worked to run down the clock. This game serves as a big wake up call for the Irish as Kelly denies a quarterback controversy before the first reporter can get the words out of his mouth.
Final: Notre Dame 17, North Carolina 30 (4-2, 1-1 ACC)
Notre Dame prepares for their toughest challenge yet as they ready themselves to play against one of the school’s biggest rivals. After being routed by the Trojans in their last meeting, Notre Dame will be hungry to make this game a close contest. With the chances of the young Irish team having already been blown out pretty high, coach Kelly will be sure to have his team game ready for their matchup at home.
The Irish will certainly need to play their best game of the season against USC, as their Heisman favorite quarterback Sam Darnold will be ready to carve up a recovering Irish defense at the blow of the first whistle.
Darnold will continue rolling against the Irish and post over 300 yards along with a few touchdowns. It will be up to Wimbush and Adams to keep up with the high-powered Trojan offense, a task that will likely prove too demanding for the duo as Notre Dame drops their second straight in a closer than expected affair.
Final: USC 38, Notre Dame 33 (4-3)
Given this game isn’t played in a monsoon for the second time in a row, Notre Dame should have an easier time in this matchup than in their battle against the Wolfpack last season. In the midst of pouring rain and howling winds, both teams combined for ten fumbles in a game that was fittingly won on a blocked punt return for a touchdown. Fans and players alike deserve a sunnier contest when the Wolfpack roll into town this October.
Expect this to be Notre Dame’s revenge game for all that had gone wrong over the course of the season. The team felt they were robbed by having to play in such horrible conditions, and likely would have put up a greater fight against league officials had this game held more significant ramifications.
Wimbush should settle in over the course of this game, making few mistakes and functioning as more of a game manager as Chip Long sends more plays Adams’ way. Quarterback Ryan Finley will perform fairly well, but it will be Notre Dame’s defense that turns up the heat on Finley with the departure of their former star back Matt Dayes.
The ability of Notre Dame to focus on NC State’s aerial attack in the absence of a standout ground game should give them numerous chances to pull this one out.
Final: NC State 17, Notre Dame 28 (5-3, 2-1 ACC)
Notre Dame will match up with a Wake Forest team that has yet to beat them in their previous three meetings. On the surface it may seem that the Fighting Irish have had a good amount of history with the Demon Deacons, but their last three matchups over the last six years have been the only games ever recorded between the two schools.
While it is yet to be seen whether the Irish will see Kendall Hinton or John Wolford as Wake Forest’s quarterback come the November 4th matchup, the defense will likely be confident and ready to go regardless of who is taking snaps across the line.
The Irish figure to roll by the Demon Deacons as they have the last few times in the team’s most efficient offensive outing of the season. Depending on how well the defense has played up to this point, this game may prove to be their biggest blowout of the season.
Look for Wimbush, Adams, St. Brown, and Mack to have some of their best games of the season along with many other Irish players in a big win at home.
Final: Wake Forest 10, Notre Dame 34 (6-3, 3-1 ACC)
Miami comes into the 2017 season 12th overall in points allowed as well as 12th in overall SRS (Simple Rating System) according to sports-reference.com, a statistic that combines factors such as point differential and strength of schedule. This will be another difficult task for the young Irish squad to overcome, and may prove to be too overwhelming for the fairly inexperienced core.
Despite the 30-27 thriller pulled off by the Irish last Fall, Notre Dame might have a more difficult time pulling this one out of the hat on the road despite facing an immature passing attack. By no means is Notre Dame a sure bet to fall in this game, but it is nonetheless hard to envision the Irish coming out of such a hostile environment with a win.
Wimbush will likely outperform the Hurricane junior Malik Rosier, but it will be the Miami defense credited with the win at the end of the day.
Final: Notre Dame 14, Miami 20 (6-4, 3-2 ACC)
The Irish played a closely contested game against the Midshipmen last season, falling 28-27 in what was a very rare occurrence for the team. Navy has played very poorly against Notre Dame since the conception of the rivalry in 1927, winning only 13 of 90 contests over the many years. While last year’s game was very exciting to watch from both sides, don’t expect that contest to blossom into a common occurrence.
The most significant factor behind Navy’s late win over the Irish last season will no longer be a part of the team when they take the field this upcoming November. Will Worth, the king of the college football triple-option last season, is not eligible to compete this year meaning junior Zach Abey will take over under center against the Irish. The Irish have always been able to easily combat Navy’s triple-option attack and should have no problem doing so again if they opt to maintain a similar scheme.
Wimbush likely takes a backseat to the workhorse Adams as Notre Dame collects yet another solid victory. While Notre Dame should take this game fairly easily, don’t count the Midshipmen out of making this game as close as possible.
Final: Navy 20, Notre Dame 28 (7-4)
If there is any game I see Notre Dame having very little chance to win, it’s this one. Plausible reasoning can be offered in defense of the Irish winning any of the previously mentioned games, but this one just seems too far out of reach. Despite the merry-go-round of potential Cardinal starters, Notre Dame has struggled greatly against the Stanford group, losing six of their last eight matchups with their newly acquired rival.
Considering Notre Dame lost to the Cardinals despite having one of the nation’s top quarterbacks, it’s hard to imagine they pull this one off with a renovated offensive approach. David Shaw has had his way with Brian Kelly in the last few years and will likely do the same with limited amounts of change this year. While the departures of Thomas and McCaffrey will be hard to cope with, Notre Dame will be sharing in their pain with some departures of their own.
It should be a close contest but bet on Stanford to slam the door late at home.
Final: Notre Dame 17, Stanford 26 (7-5)
2017 season prediction: 7-5
With the Irish rounding out the regular season with a competitive loss against the Cardinals, expect them to fall out of top 25 contention as the year draws to a close. However, Notre Dame should find themselves in a more favorable position than last year when they were eliminated from bowl game contention. Coach Kelly will likely see his team playing in a somewhat coveted bowl game should the team adhere to the predicted 7-5 record.
Next: Notre Dame 2017 projected 2-deep depth chart
Of course, there are many factors that could contribute to the Irish doing much better or much worse than anticipated. There is the possibility that Wimbush brings his team to a top 25 bowl game in which the team would gladly build momentum towards a 2018 title run, or the team could finish with a record worse or similar to that of last year. Should the latter occur, expect Kelly to have coached his final game with the Irish in South Bend.