Potential all over the roster in 2018 means a big season coming for Notre Dame football. How will the Irish show out in Spring Practice?
Notre Dame football has enough talent on the roster to compete at the highest level among top teams in the nation in 2018. Even though the same could be said down the stretch in 2017, things fell apart at the end. It’s time for Brian Kelly and the Fighting Irish to put it all back together for Spring practice and the Spring Game in 2018.
Enough momentum should come from the New Year’s Day Citrus Bowl victory over head coach Ed Orgeron, star running back Derrius Guice, and the LSU Tigers. A victory over any team that is one the same level as LSU can help build confidence entering the off-season.
There’s some questions to be answered for the Fighting Irish during Spring Practice. Getting exposure for Notre Dame’s top three quarterbacks duking it out for the starting job will be a big headline. Brandon Wimbush, Ian Book, and incoming freshman Phil Jurkovec could all vie for the starting role on the Notre Dame offense.
Once again, Notre Dame faces one of the toughest schedules in the nation in 2018. It was tough to face in 2017, and got the best of them down the stretch. The 2018 campaign kicks off for Notre Dame against the Michigan Wolverines. It does not get much easier from there, as the Stanford Cardinal, Virginia Tech Hokies, Navy Midshipmen, USC Trojans, Northwestern Wildcats, and Florida State Seminoles.
Nothing is going to come easy to the Irish as they look to fight for their first ever berth in the College Football Playoff. Here’s a look at five players to watch for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the Spring Practice and Spring Game in 2018.
The running back depth was rebuilt by Kelly during the 2017 season. Losing a star rusher like Josh Adams would hurt any offense, but thanks to that aforementioned effort by Kelly, the Notre Dame backfield should be set for another big year.
Two of the most important running backs that are key to Notre Dame’s success in 2018 are Dexter Williams and Tony Jones Jr. Williams is the likely starter this year, but Jones Jr. is going to get a significant amount of the workload too.
While Notre Dame’s quarterback situation is not set at the moment for one particular starter, the running backs look ready to go. More than anything, both Williams and Jones Jr. need to adjust well to being in the spotlight now with Adams out of the picture.
Any running back that racked up less than 300 yards on the ground in the previous year and is expected to pick up the pace for someone like Adams has an extreme amount of pressure on them. Jones Jr. did average more than 5.0 yards per carry in 2017.
The Notre Dame quarterback battle will be one of the more interesting to watch among all in the nation this off-season. Wimbush got most of the action in 2017, but Book did get a significant amount of playing time too.
In victories over the North Carolina Tar Heels and Wake Forest Demon Deacons, Book showed some serious potential. His pocket presence and overall accuracy sets him apart from Wimbush. Accuracy is a huge issue for Wimbush on a consistent basis.
The four-star prospect Jurkovec could make a good run at getting some early action. But, Book and Wimbush compose the bulk of the attention in the quarterback battle. Book does need to show progress in his decision making ability on the run.
Tossing four picks and just four touchdowns is not the greatest stat line, especially for a quarterback with the surrounding talent present on the Irish offense. Book does have some strides to make, but he’s a big threat to taking the starting role from Wimbush.
Among the candidates across the nation that could breakout in 2018, rising sophomore tight end Alize Mack has to be listed. Notre Dame needs to find some different answers for passing targets for Wimbush, Book, or Jurkovec.
Wide receiver Miles Boykin looks primed to take the primary target role in the Notre Dame offense, after his strong performance in the Citrus Bowl victory. But, Mack has the opportunity to be the second look from the quarterback on most plays.
Through 10 games in 2017, Mack caught 19 passes for 166 yards and one touchdown. And, at 6-foot-4 and just over 250 pounds, Mack is built like a boulder and will be hard to cover and bring down for opposing defenses.
Senior tight end Durham Smythe was an integral part of the Notre Dame offense the last few years, and he leaves a big void. Mack is a great candidate to fill that void and have a true breakout campaign in 2018, with the possibility of more than 500 receiving yards and five touchdowns.
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.
As the only incoming freshman on this list, four-star inside linebacker Jack Lamb has some work to do to establish himself in Spring Practice. But, he does get a leg up by enrolling a semester early and entering the campus in South Bend.
Notre Dame’s highest rated overall prospect in the 2018 recruiting class is four-star cornerback, the 11th best at his position in the nation, Houston Griffith. But, cornerback has a bit more proven experience at the top than linebacker for the Irish.
The Irish also have a lot of turnover on tap after the 2018 campaign concludes. Lamb will stay directly in the spotlight until he potentially assumes a full starting role in the linebacking corps in the coming years. There’s no doubt he has the talent to do so.
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The presence of Tranquill, Te’Von Coney, Jamir Jones, etc. allows Lamb a year to really learn and grow. There’s some tackle machines in the middle of the defense for the Irish. At 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds, Lamb could use his already developed size to make a difference in 2018 and 2019.