Everett Golson Steals the Show in His Return Against Rice

After missing a full season due to poor academic judgement, Everett Golson looked like he never left. All he did was throw for 295 yards with two touchdowns while also rushing for 41 yards with three touchdowns. The stats don't even tell the whole story. He made throws that you would have to see to believe. He also should have had another touchdown pass as it was an easy catch that was dropped.

There is nobody who is a bigger Tommy Rees fan than me, but the playbook was much thinner with him in there. The offense is a lot less limited now and Brian Kelly can finally implement his style of offense. The only thing that makes me nervous about Golson is that the reckless style he plays with puts him at higher risk of injury. Michael Vick always had a hard time staying healthy.

Golson's favorite target was William Fuller who caught 4 passes for 85 yards. Golson distributed the ball around quite well as Ben Koyack, C.J. Prosise, Amir Carlisle, Corey Robinson, and Chris Brown all caught passes.

Notre Dame also had a group of solid runners. Greg Byrant gained 71 yards with a touchdown. Tarean Folston also had 71 yards and Cam McDaniel added 40. Even back up quarterback Malik Zaire gained 58 yards in some mop up duty.

The defense under new coach Brian VanGorder was solid for the most part. They but have a few breakdowns in spots but the Irish only gave up one touchdown that actually mattered. I expected to see a lot more blitzing, but maybe VanGorder is saving it for Michigan.

I was really pleased with the special teams especially the punt returns which has been a problem in recent years. Bryant and Cody Riggs both looked good returning punts. Only a missed field goal by Kyle Brindza was a blunder.

Irish Set to Kick Off Tough Schedule with Rice

After an off season that saw Everett Golson return only to have four other players get investigated for the same thing, it is finally here. Notre Dame is set to start off another season. 2014 is a significant year for the Fighting Irish as it is the inaugural year in their agreement to play ACC teams. In this first year of that agreement, it will not be easy. Their first game against the ACC will be Syracuse at Met Life Stadium. The next ACC opponent is North Carolina who is nationally ranked. The following week is against Florida State in Tallahassee. Their last one is against ACC newcomer Louisville who should still be tough despite losing Teddy Bridgewater and Charlie Strong. This agreement is a  significant moment in modern Notre Dame history and the idea behind this blog.

On top of the ACC games, the Irish have some other tough games. Let's start in the Big Ten. They are not playing Sparty this year, but they end the rivalry with Michigan in week two. There is no doubt that both teams will want to go out a winner. The Irish are unbeaten in the Shamrock Series but this is the first time they face a regular rival in that game. Although the Boilermakers are inferior on paper, they always play the Irish tough and there is just something about a game that features Notre Dame and Purdue at Lucas Oil Stadium that spells tough battle. Then they have a late season meeting with Northwestern who is tough to predict on a year to year basis.

Then looking at the PAC 12 has three really tough games. Stanford is always a physical battle. There is not much more that needs to be said there. Then the Irish have two late season road trips to Arizona State and arch-rival USC. The Sun Devils will want revenge after that epic battle in Dallas last season. Then whenever the Irish and Trojans play, you can throw away the records and know you are in for a battle.

Of course there is the traditional battle with Navy whose wishbone offense seems to always give Notre Dame fits.

It all starts this weekend against Rice who is no walk over either. I know they play in Conference USA but they are the defending champs. They got crushed in the Liberty Bowl by Mississippi State. It is fair to say that the level of competition in Conference USA is not comparable to what Notre Dame plays. However, for a team like Rice, playing in Notre Dame Stadium is a once in a lifetime experience and they will want to make it count.

Bottom line is that Notre Dame's schedule is flat out brutal. If they win 10 games they deserve to be in the playoffs. I don't care what the experts say.

Can Tommy Rees Possibly Make The Washington Redskins Team?

This past draft was a great weekend for the Fighting Irish. Notre Dame had 8 players drafted total which was second only to LSU. Zack Martin went on the first night. The second night saw four players (Stephon Tuitt, Troy Niklas, Louis Nix, and Chris Watt) all come off the board in the 2nd and 3rd round. Then in the late rounds on the final day, Prince Shembo got the call from Atlanta, Bennett Jackson got picked by the Giants, and TJ Jones will join Golden Tate and Theo Riddick in Detroit.

It did not stop there. Five former Irish players signed free agent contracts. George Atkinson signed with Oakland, Carlo Calabrese with Cleveland, Dan Fox with the Giants, Kona Schwenke with Kansas City, but the most surprising one in many eyes was Tommy Rees with the Washington Redskins.

Rees was definitely the most debated quarterback I can ever remember. He was loved by many for his heart and toughness, but disliked by many for his lack of ability. I always liked the kid because I had no doubt he gave all he had. I knew he wasn't the most talented quarterback Notre Dame ever had, but he left nothing out there.

Now here he is signing a free agent deal with the Redskins. It will definitely be tough for him to make the squad. RG III is going nowhere and Kirk Cousins has proven to be a quality back up. Colt McCoy is currently the third quarterback and he was a starter for Cleveland before.

It seems impossible for him with those guys there. However, a door might open for him if Cousins gets traded and that definitely is a strong possibility. But if there is anything I learned about him over the years is to not count him out. Here is a kid who was on a roster with Dayne Crist, Andrew Hendrix, and Everett Golson. On paper, Rees was the least talented but yet all these guys were watching him from the sidelines.

I just want to wish him luck and if he doesn't make it, I hope considers coming back to South Bend as a Grad assistant.

Tuitt and Nix Both Get Drafted After Falling

Former Irish teammates Louis Nix and Stephon Tuitt were part of one of the best defensive lines in college football the last two seasons and both were projected to go in the late first round. But both fell in the draft. The good news is that both landed in good places.

Tuitt was picked in the second round by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the 46th pick in the draft. The Steelers are second to none when you think of hard hitting defenses. And legendary defensive coordinator Dick Lebeau is one of the best of all time. This is a great place for Tuitt to be.

Louis Nix was then taken by the Houston Texans in the third round with the 83rd pick.  Although the Texans had the worst record in the league last year, they do have makings for a really good young defense. JJ Watt is already one of the most feared defensive ends in the league. Then of course the Texans drafted Jadeveon Clowny to play on the other end. Now they can put Nix in between them. That is just scary.

The most notable Irish players left are Troy Niklas, who clearly appears to have made a mistake by leaving early, TJ Jones, George Atkinson, Bennett Jackson, and Tommy Rees.  It will be interesting to see which of these guys get selected on the third and final day or who gets a free agent contract.

Zack Martin Is Going to Dallas

Notre Dame played Arizona State at AT & T Stadium in their Shamrock Series last October. It was their annual home away from home game. Little did Zack Martin know that it would become a permanent home for him. On Thursday, Martin was selected by the Dallas Cowboys.

Martin was the only former Irish player taken in the first round. Many thought that Louis Nix and Stephon Tuitt would also go on the first night. But Nix and Tuitt along with other Irish players such as Troy Niklas, TJ Jones, Tommy Rees, George Atkinson, Bennett Jackson all still await to see where, when, and if they are selected for their NFL futures.

It will be an exciting weekend for these former Irish players.

Quarterbacks Shine in Spring Game

I am never one to take a lot out of spring games. It is against your own team and so it is hard to really access a whole lot. Having said that, this day belonged to the quarterbacks. I was a little surprised to see Malik Zaire start the game over Everett Golson, but I really don't want to read too much into that. 

The fact is that both quarterbacks performed very well, especially in the first half. Zaire had over 200 yards passing and had two touchdown passes. Golson had some really nice throws as well and had a rushing touchdown.

It didn't matter who was in. The offense just marched right down and scored a lot. The quarterbacks were helped by a nice trio of runners in Cam McDaniel, Tearean Folston, and Greg Bryant. They have a young group of receivers led by Corey Robinson.

So who will ultimately be the starting quarterback? My guess would be Golson and here is why. Although Zaire did have better day in the scrimmage, it really looked like the defense was throwing a lot more at Golson. The package appeared very basic when Zaire was in. You also cannot ignore the progress Golson made two years ago in the magical season.

So although, Zaire did start in the Spring game and did have a little better day, it still appears to be Golson's job to lose.

I give the defense an incomplete because they really dialed it down and did not show a lot.

I cannot wait for the Rice game.

Three Areas To Work On In The Spring

With Spring football just underway in South Bend, there is a lot of excitement on where the team can go in 2014. After a step back in 2013, Irish fans are hopeful of a return to being a national title contender. But there are three key areas that need to be worked on during the Spring.

Quarterback

Notre Dame fans might think that this area is fixed with the return of Everett Golson. However, if we learned anything last year, you can never have too much depth at quarterback. Yes, Golson had to spend a year away. He worked with a great trainer and will hopefully be better for it.

But Tommy Rees is gone. While his experience as the starter had it's ups and downs, he was very valuable in a back up role in the 2012 season. While last year, fans called for Rees to be benched on occasion, the reality is that Brian Kelly had nobody else to go to. Andrew Hendrix who was a major disappointment is also gone.

Red shirt freshman Malik Zaire is slated to be the back up. While Zaire does have the talent, he lacks experience at the college level. If Golson is ever out, he is the quarterback. So his development over the spring is huge.

Running Back

This was an area last year that took almost the whole season to figure out. After being suspended for the Pinstripe Bowl, George Atkinson has left the team for the NFL. He was a disappointment to begin with. Amir Carlisle appears to be moving to wide receiver. that could be good because after a great first run of the season he did nothing the rest of the year. Maybe a position change is what he needs or maybe we should never trust a USC guy again.

The only guy who was consistent all year was Cam McDaniel. Then with the late season emergence of Tarean Folston, it became clear on who the two runners who should get the bulk of the carries are. Kelly hopes Greg Bryant can play a bigger role too.

But one thing is for sure. It needs to be settled in the spring and in summer camp. We can't have another year of going week to week with it.

Defense

Once the most feared defense in college football, Notre Dame has lots of reloading to do. Bob Diaco left for Connecticut and will be replaced by former Jets assistant Brian Van Gorder. He will have two huge holes to fill on the defensive line with Louis Nix and Stephon Tuitt both gone to the NFL. Sheldon Day and Jarron Jones will both be expected to have huge roles in this area.

The linebacking unit does have for returning players to start in Jaylon Smith, Ishaq Williams, Kendall Moore, and Jarret Grace. The problem is depth though. The only other guy with any experience is Ben Councell but he is coming off injury. No other player has any significant experience,

In the secondary, KeVare Russell will have to go from being the underclassmen corner to more of a leader back there. This is a unit that does have talent but a lot of youth and little experience. Their development in the spring is also huge.

The Blue-Gold game is April 12. It will be fun to see how all these areas developed over the spring.