Notre Dame Football: 5 takeaways from 2018 season
By Jacob Wilson
5. The offensive line has great potential
“Showing promise” may seem like an understatement considering the strong play of the Irish offensive line this season, but standards are much higher along Notre Dame’s offensive line than they would typically be for most other programs. In this case, the Irish offensive line unit finds itself being compared to the ones that have gone before them, not the NCAA average.
2018 gave Notre Dame fans a great look into what next season might hold in regard to the offensive line, with the majority of the unit expected to return in 2019. With captains Alex Bars and Sam Mustipher presumably heading to the NFL Draft, offensive line coach Jeff Quinn will be tasked with finding yet another combination that gels the way the last few have.
We’ve already had a taste of what the team will look like without Bars as sophomore Aaron Banks took over at left guard following the former’s season-ending knee injury in a win over Stanford. Should Liam Eichenberg, Tommy Kraemer, Robert Hainsey, and Banks remain starters, center would be a position of great competition over the course of the upcoming offseason.
Given the losses of Quenton Nelson, Mike McGlinchey, and offensive line coach Harry Hiestand, the Notre Dame offensive line appeared to have more questions than answers heading into 2018. Nevertheless, the group put forth a strong 2018 season, paving the way for an even greater 2019 should the unit remain intact.