Notre Dame Football: 3 takeaways from playoff-clinching win over USC

2. Depth has been Notre Dame’s best friend

There’s no question that it’s always important to have a group of stars on a football team. However, it can be argued that it’s equally as important to have significant depth considering the multiple facets of college football. As for the Irish, they certainly have their fair share of both stars and depth.

It was backup quarterback Ian Book who came in and led the Irish to a dominant 56-27 win over Wake Forest, providing a confidence that simply wasn’t there with Wimbush under center. However, it was back to back dominant wins over Stanford and Virginia Tech that solidified Notre Dame as a potential playoff contender under Book.

Similarly, there has been no lack of depth along a defensive line that features numerous starting caliber linemen along one of the nation’s more complete rotations. We saw depth serve its purpose again today with players such as Jamir Jones and TaRiq Bracy playing meaningful snaps throughout the game.

Then there’s the group of reliable contributors along the two-deep depth chart who constantly contribute in more ways than one. Chris Finke exemplified this today, helping the Irish convert on multiple third down conversions while executing an early touchdown catch to perfection. Regardless of how this season plays out, Notre Dame should have a good deal of talent in 2019.