Notre Dame football: 5 bold predictions for Irish in October
By Jacob Wilson
Notre Dame football will head into midway point of its regular season with a 4-1 record, far surpassing what many expected after a dismal 4-8 season. Here are five bold predictions for the Irish in the month of October.
The Irish entered the 2017 season with many questions to answer coming off such a terrible 2016 campaign. However, the pressure of being on the hot seat has served head coach Brian Kelly quite well. Notre Dame missing their first bowl game since 2009 didn’t sit well with Kelly who immediately set up meetings with each and every player on the Irish roster.
From starting quarterback DeShone Kizer to fourth string defensive backs, Kelly made sure that every player had their respective voice heard. Whether Kelly’s meetings translated to this season’s success or not, it’s clear he’s found a way to inspire this group in ways he hasn’t before. Notre Dame’s 4-1 record is evident of Kelly’s success in getting his players to completely buy in.
With their sole loss coming to one of the nation’s top teams in Georgia, it’s hard to take anything away from the Irish. They have blown out lesser competition to this point and currently rank 12th in the nation with a 23.2 average scoring margin. However, Notre Dame’s schedule gets significantly more difficult in October with two games against ranked competition in USC and N.C. State.
With much more football to be played, here are five bold predictions for the Irish over the month of October.