Notre Dame Football: 5 potential breakout candidates for 2017

Last, but certainly not least, is former four-star dual-threat from Jersey City, N.J., Brandon Wimbush. The talented athlete is pegged to start at quarterback for the Fighting Irish in 2017, and he probably didn’t think that would happen two years ago, buried on the depth chart as the third quarterback.

More: Notre Dame Football: Projected 2-deep depth chart for 2017

However, both Kizer and Zaire are gone, leaving Wimbush as the only quarterback on the roster with experience. Unfortunately, his experience isn’t plentiful. In fact, he’s attempted just five passes in his career, completing three of them for 17 yards.

Wimbush has also rushed for 96 yards, including a long of 58, and a touchdown. All of his collegiate stats come from his freshman year in 2015 when he was considered the No. 3 dual-threat quarterback in the class, according to 247Sports.

Now that he finally gets the keys to the offense, he will be expected to churn out the type of stats that his predecessor put up. Kizer’s shoes will be difficult to fill, but the Notre Dame coaches have been impressed with Wimbush thus far and there’s a chance he could be just as good.

Next: College Football: Top 50 breakout candidates for 2017

Heck, Wimbush might just be a better runner than Kizer and Zaire, making him a true threat to break out at any moment. It’s tough for defenses to worry about both the run and the pass during a pass play. Are 3,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards out of the realm of possibility? I wouldn’t count it out.