Back Corner Fade
“Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.” –Michael Corleone in the Godfather III.
Admit it. You’re ready for football. You’re probably sick of baseball for the summer, if you have kids you’re probably ready for them to head back to school, and you’re just done with picking weeds and cutting the lawn. It’s time for that sweet, sweet release from the real world, even if it’s just for three hours (or in NBC’s case four hours) of Notre Dame Football.
I’ll be the first one to say it, for the first time since Kelly’s first year, I’m really excited about the start of the season. According to BK himself, he pulled a Michael Jackson, had a discussion with the man in the mirror, and he made a change. It’s going to be a new look offense, a new defense, and I’d suspect that the special teams are going to be better as well. Add to that, a new strength and conditioning program and I think the boys have all the makings of a very solid season. That being said this isn’t a Top 10 team by any stretch, but I’d also be shocked to see this team look as truly pathetic as they were last year.
We’ll get back to our gold helmeted hero’s in a minute. Let’s take a look at some pre-season thoughts and predictions for 2017:
· The Leaders and Legends League, better known as the Big 10, once again proves that out of conference games against good opponents is an after-thought. Consider this, out of the four Big 10 schools in the pre-season Top 25, Ohio St has the highest strength of schedule ranking at 52 (they do play Oklahoma at home.) And they wonder why they get curb stomped during bowl season.
· Speaking of schedules, best of luck to the Syracuse Orange this season. How about this: at LSU, at Miami, at FSU, at Louisville, and Clemson comes to the Dome. I know that Dino Babers is highly thought of in the coaching circles, but they could have Lou, Knute, Leahy, or Bud Wilkerson coaching them and it wouldn’t matter. Basketball will be here soon enough Cuse fan.
· UAB is playing football again. Hell, I never even knew they left.
· Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Alabama is loaded. Yes, they only return 11 starters (6 on offense, 5 on defense) but does it really matter? Jalen Hurd is well on his way to legendary status and he has a stable of backs to take the pressure off him. Wait until the college football world sees freshman running back Najee Harris. I had a chance to watch him last year on two occasions and he’s the real deal.
· Don’t expect Clemson to fall much even with they lose of DeShawn Watson. People tend to forget that that defense was very young last year and they bring back a ton of guys with playing time for Brent Venables to work with. They’ve also recruited very well. What kid wouldn’t want his own decked out apartment with a killer flat-screen on the university dime?
As the season gets closer, we’ll go more in-depth with some of the other programs and what to expect from them. Let’s now take a look at the Irish schedule, a prediction, and just for fun, let’s see who the opponent plays the week before they play us.
Temple (obviously it’s week one): obviously the Owls have been a steadily rising program over the past few years and have shaken the image of being Joe Paterno’s homecoming opponent for 40 years. That being said Matt Rhule made the head scratching decision to go to Baylor and Geoff Collins is the new kid in town. Prediction: Expect this to be ugly for both teams. New coaches, new systems, and it’s opening day. ND will win this, and probably never be challenged, but it’s not going to be a thing of beauty. ND by 13.
Georgia (Appalachian St.): Stop the 2-headed monster of Chubb and Michel and make Jacob Eason beat you. Easier said than done, obviously. Georgia comes to town with loads of talent but are classic under-achievers. Night game, at home, and I expect ND to have a few surprises for the Dawgs. Just a gut feeling, but this is going to be an ND night. ND by 10.
@Boston College (Wake Forest): So after an emotional win over an SEC power, the boys head up for a noon game at BC’s glorified high school stadium to take on the Eagles and their Super Fans. Just once, it’d be nice to just knock the ever loving hell out of these guys. Isn’t going to happen this year either. ND will win in ugly fashion but it’s a win against baby brother. Irish by 7.
@MSU (W. Michigan): MSU had a lovely off-season now didn’t they? Throwing that all aside, the bottom line is that they simply aren’t going to be very good. Being on the road at night is always tough, but MSU shouldn’t and won’t beat ND. This will be Wimbush’s coming out party. ND by 16
Miami (CMU): Welcome back, Chuck Martin. Not much really to say about this. Should be long over by halftime. Irish by 31.
@North Carolina (Georgia Tech): Trap game if there ever was one. Yes, Carolina lost a ton of talent, especially on the offensive side of the ball, but Larry Fedora will have his guy’s ready. ND also has mid-terms and SC on the horizon. ND by 6.
USC (Utah): They’re gonna be good. Pains me to say it, but the Trojans are once again the class of the west coast. I expect ND to fight hard and play with SC into the 4th quarter but Sam Darnold is the difference in this one. SC by 7.
NC State (Bye): No hurricanes this year, but I also don’t expect ND to score a ton of points in this one either. If you haven’t noticed, NC State has a terrific front seven. Two weeks to prepare and ND being down from the tough loss to SC is the difference. NCSU by 3.
Wake Forest (Louisville): I expect Elko Bowl I to go in ND’s favor and it’s going to be bad. Wake plays at Louisville the week before, and ND is looking to extract some punishment after back to back loses. ND by 27.
Miami (Va Tech): A lot of people are excited about this Miami team this year. I’m not one of them. Breaking in a new QB and the fact Mark Richt has never won a big game in his life and his streak will continue. ND by 9.
Navy (SMU): New year, new QB, expect the same results. Like BC, the close games (and loses) to these guys is nauseating. Senior Day is always emotional then having to play the cut-block kings is always fun. This year, I think the Irish get them and get them good. ND by 20.
Stanford (Cal): Speaking of teams I’m sick of losing to, these guys top the list. David Shaw (and his punchable, smug face) just have BK’s number. This Stanford team, however, is not what they’ve been the past five seasons. ND goes out west and takes care of business to close up the season. ND by 12.
So there you have it, sports fans: 10-2. Glass half full? Yeah, probably, but I also think this team has the ability to do just that, win 10 games. The biggest fear is depth and any injuries along the defensive front or at safety and we have ourselves some serious issues and those 10 wins are a pipe dream.
Anyway, you slice it, it’s simply good to have football back. September 2nd can’t get here soon enough.