Wimbush's Wait Is Over

With DeShone Kizer having announced his intentions to bypass his senior year at Notre Dame and head to the NFL Draft and Malik Zaire traveling the country looking for the best place for him to finish out his college career, the Notre Dame quarterback position has essentially become Brandon Wimbush’s.

While Kizer and Zaire battled for reps during the 2016 season, the New Jersey native remained on the sidelines, preserving a year of eligibility that could potentially allow him to be the Irish’s starting quarterback for the next three seasons.

But for now, the focus is on what’s next and for Wimbush, that means preparing for his first spring practice as QB1.

“He definitely is excited about the prospects of next season,” Wimbush’s personal quarterback coach back New Jersey, Madei Williams told Irish Sports Daily.

When the former St. Peter’s Prep standout signed with Notre Dame in February of 2015, the depth at the position was even greater than anybody knew. Everett Golson and Zaire were headed toward a spring competition and at the time, it seemed if any quarterback would have to leave the school for an opportunity to play it would be Kizer.

But it was Golson, who transferred to Florida State, leaving Zaire to win the job by default and Kizer being elevated to backup. When Zaire broke his ankle in the second game of the 2015 season, Kizer became the starter and all of a sudden, a true freshman was the next guy in line.

Wimbush appeared in two games as a freshman, in mop-up duty during wins over UMass and Pitt, and broke off a 58-yard touchdown run against the Minutemen.

Wimbush hoped to turn this past spring practice into a three-man race between himself, Kizer and Zaire, but that didn’t last for long.

“Going into the spring when he was given the opportunity to potentially compete, he was full-speed ahead and so excited,” said Williams, founder of MAD-QB Quarterback Academy.

“The writing on the wall was there. You can only do so much dividing first-team reps amongst three guys. The offense will lose out on that.”

Head coach Brian Kelly ultimately limited the competition to Kizer and Zaire.

“They had to make a decision and it was a smart decision,” said Williams. “I think it was a good opportunity, even though there was some level of hesitation on his part, he realized and saw the light at the end of the tunnel and understand sometimes it’s good to take a step back and watch and observe and learn from DeShone and Malik.”

Wimbush needed to get something out of the experience.

“If you’re a competitive guy and have a competitive spirit and that burning desire to be the number one guy, it’s always a tough pill to swallow from being a play away from getting in the game to you’re not going to play,” Williams acknowledged.

“You have to come to practice and prepare and be a professional week in and week out, but knowing you’re not going to get in the game. It was slightly frustrating, I’ll be forthright with that, but through a series of talks he’s had with myself and his mom, I think he learned to have a better understanding of the entire situation. With that being said, his perspective and whole approach and mindset changed and allowed him to use this as a huge learning experience. He has the full understanding as to how to approach the whole preparation process.”

Williams was able to observe his predecessors, especially Kizer all season.

“See how DeShone responds to everything he’s gone through this year, the good and the bad,” Williams explained. “This is valuable learning experience for him and helps him understand what it’s going to take as the quarterback of the program and how he’s supposed to adapt and respond in order to prepare himself to be as productive as he possibly can going into next year.”

While Wimbush wanted to play, knowing he wouldn’t presented a greater opportunity to learn.

“When you take yourself out of the fire, sometimes things become a lot more revealing,” the quarterback tutor explained. “You see the total story play out in terms of how the coaches respond and react to all of the things that go on, how the players react, what the culture is like within your meeting room and position group.

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“Sometimes it’s good to just take a step back and watch and observe. You have an opportunity to learn so much from that. Sometimes when you’re in the fold, you don’t get a chance to see it. When you take a step back, you see it from a different perspective. I would say it’s been a rewarding experience for him.”

Williams expects Wimbush to provide a jolt for Notre Dame as the Irish look to wipe the taste of 2016.

“A lot of excitement, a lot of energy in his own way,” he said of what Wimbush will bring. “He’s quiet and laidback, but in terms of the energy, his performance and play is going to bring a certain type of energy to the team.

“That type of enthusiasm is so infectious and contagious and it’s going to make its way and spread all throughout the entire program. He’s a winner. Everywhere he’s gone and anytime he’s got an opportunity to play and be the man, he’s won. Guys are naturally drawn to that type of personality and that type of charisma, he has it. You talk about that It Factor, he’s one of those guys who just has It.

“The physical gifts go without talking. The physical gifts are there. I’m excited about how the intangibles, the things you can’t measure, how they’re going to be a factor in the overall team success next year. Overall, the team was young, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Balls didn’t bounce their way at certain times of the game, they were in every game.”

ISD expert Jamie Uyeyama agrees that Wimbush has more physical tools than recent Irish quarterbacks.

“Everett Golson was seen as the ideal fit for Kelly's offense when he came to Notre Dame and DeShone Kizer is the monster in the pocket NFL coaches want to see, but neither of those two guys have the complete package of physical tools that Wimbush has,” Uyeyama said. “Golson and Kizer are no slouches when it comes to arm strength, but Wimbush can throw lasers like few others.

“Even compared with Kizer, who was praised by many because of his ability to make throws to the wide side of the field, Wimbush has a different level when it comes to making tight throws. The ball just comes out of his hand in a way that always looks impressive. The next time we see him throw a duck that dies in the air will be the first.” 

Uyeyama said part of Wimbush’s arm strength comes from mechanics and part of it is the fact “he’s built like a linebacker.”

“He is 225 pounds and that is only going to help him as a runner as well,” said Uyeyama. “He is capable of running through defenders, most just don't know it yet. We've already seen him run away from people in a brief cameo as a freshman with a long touchdown versus UMass. As an athlete and an arm talent, Wimbush is the best Notre Dame has seen at the position physically in quite a while.” 

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While 2016 was a disaster by any measure, Williams is convinced Notre Dame will be better for it in the long run.

“Going through this experience and young guys taking their lumps, the talent is going to progress and carry over to next year,” he said. “Guys are going to get better and the overall team success is going to be night and day when comparing this year to next season.”

And a fresh quarterback is great for a fresh start, according to Williams.

“Any time you have anything new coming in whether it’s a new coach or a new starting quarterback, there’s always a certain level of excitement that surrounds that particular situation, especially with a kid of Brandon’s caliber. Not too often do you have an opportunity to have someone who was productive at the quarterback position like DeShone and the potential to have someone come in who’s just as effective, if not more.

“I can’t even say the sky is the limit. I don’t think there’s any real limit on his potential. I think the Notre Dame faithful, the ones who know and pay attention, are excited about what he might be able to bring to the field next year. And he’s anxious to get out there and prove to everybody that he’s more than capable of leading the team into the College Football Playoff and potentially getting to a National Championship Game because that should always be the goal year in and year out.”