Notre Dame football: 3 takeaways from season-opening win over Duke

1. Notre Dame needs young receivers to step up

While Ian Book only threw for one touchdown, he certainly didn’t have a bad day. While completing 19 passes, he also had 12 incompletions. This could cause concern, but requires a deeper look into the situation.

Going into this year, Book lost one of his top targets, Chase Claypool, to the NFL draft. The wideout situation is actually very similar to what the Duke Blue Devils dealt with last year. Last year, they needed young guys to step up and fill the void left by their predecessors. Notre Dame is going to have to do the same exact thing this year.

One player that caught my eye was freshman tight end Michael Mayer. The 6-foot-5 Kentucky-native has been referred to as “baby Gronk” early on in his time in South Bend, as commentator Mike Tirico pointed out. He had a clutch catch on a third down where he dragged Duke defender Joshua Blackwell. Not long after this, the Irish would score a touchdown, further extending their lead. Looking back, that play seemed to be the nail in the coffin for the Duke Blue Devils.

Along with Mayer, junior receiver Joe Wilkins Jr. could be a key piece to this offense in 2020. The Irish are going to need their receivers to step up to the challenge this year if they want to compete for an ACC title.

Ian Book is a good quarterback, we know that. However, he can only do so much if his receivers don’t replace the talent this team lost. They seemed to struggle to help out Book while running their routes. The Irish receivers seemed to stick to their assigned routes a bit too much, not improvising enough. While improv is never the original goal, it’s sometimes necessary in order to counter the defensive attacks of opponents.

The Notre Dame receiving corps wasn’t bad in the opener, but it’s hard to believe that the Irish can compete for a title if their offense is as underwhelming as it was today. Obviously, it was the first game of a wild season, but it’s something newly-extended Brian Kelly and his staff will need to address.