Notre Dame Football: 5 players to watch this Spring

Taking advantage of a very strong defense coming back in 2018 is an obvious move for Kelly. The Irish return a boat load of starters that include experienced players like senior linebacker Drue Tranquill, senior nose guard Jerry Tillery, and senior free safety Nick Coleman.

Another player to watch on the Notre Dame defense this year is rising junior cornerback Julian Love. As one of the nation’s best in terms of interceptions in 2017, with three, Love is ready to become a lock down corner that garners the respect he deserves.

Somehow, Love still flies under the radar on a pretty consistent basis. An Irish secondary that needed a bit more athleticism injected to play at a really high level in 2018 might have played a role in Love not getting the right level of exposure to match his level of production.

Love also racked up an extraordinary amount of pass deflections in 2017, with 20. The next best in that department for the Irish was fellow cornerback Nick Watkins with just eight. Love led the team in both interceptions and pass deflections and that could continue in 2018.