Notre Dame Football: 3 biggest concerns heading into 2020 season

1. Notre Dame football’s defense may not be elite

Not only did the offense lose a lot of weapons, but the defense also lost some key players as well. Notre Dame has to replace its entire secondary from last season. The only defensive back that got significant playing time who returns in Kyle Hamilton.

The Irish have been busy in the transfer portal to help shore up the secondary. Isaiah Pryor from Ohio State and Nick McCloud from NC State will help bring depth to the secondary.

In addition to the secondary, the Irish will be without Julian Okwara and Khalid Kareem. Although, the front seven does not lose much in the way of experience. Even with that returning experience, they need the replace the 10.5 sacks they lose from Okwara and Kareem.

This season, the question is whether or not the Irish can take the next step. If you look at the schedule, the defense has to be elite in order to hang with Clemson. When you talk about the defense being “elite” you are really talking about the defense holding up to get them to the playoff.

We know the Irish do not play in a conference and might have to go undefeated to get into the playoff. Most importantly, they have to be good when the offense does not play well.