After losing three of his first four games as head coach of Notre Dame, it looked like Brian Kelly's first season on the job might be a trying one. That would not be the case.
Kelly's Irish rebounded to win seven of their last nine games and capped off the season with an impressive 33-17 win over Miami (Florida) in the Sun Bowl to finish 8-5.
With eight starters back on both sides of the football, Kelly believes his Irish will be even better in 2011.
Offense
The Notre Dame offense endured a drop-off as it transitioned from Jimmy Clausen and a pro-style attack to Dayne Crist and the spread. The Irish averaged 26.3 points and 379.7 yards per game after posting averages of 30.1 points and 451.8 yards a contest in 2009.
A drop-off was inevitable after losing Clausen to the NFL. He emerged as one of the most gifted passers in the country during his final season at Notre Dame and helped the Irish boast the fifth-best passing attack in the nation with 323.5 yards per game.
Dayne Crist and Tommy Reese weren't able to completely fill Clausen's big shoes, but they more than held their own. Together, they helped Notre Dame rank 34th nationally with 253.1 passing yards per game.
Crist began the year as the starter and threw for 2,033 yards and 15 touchdowns with seven interceptions before enduring a season-ending knee injury. Rees led the Irish to a 4-0 finish in relief while throwing for 1,106 yards with 12 touchdown strikes and eight interceptions. If healthy, Crist is likely to emerge as the starter once again.
Wide receiver Michael Floyd emerged as one of the top playmakers in the nation last season when he caught 79 passes for 1,025 yards and 12 scores. Unfortunately, Notre Dame's signal-callers may not have the luxury of throwing to the most proven wideout on the roster.
Floyd was suspended indefinitely following a DUI arrest in March—his third alcohol-related offense—but I don't believe his punishment will end up fitting the crime. Kelly is saying all the right things from a public relations perspective, but he knows how important Floyd is to his football team. I don't think Floyd will miss more than one or two games.
Besides keeping the starting signal-caller upright, an experienced offensive line that returns four of five starters will be charged to open up holes for running back Cierre Wood, who averaged nearly 5.1 yards per carry as a freshman.
Defense
The biggest reason for Notre Dame's improvement in the win column was an improved defense. The Fighting Irish only gave up 20.2 points and 357.2 yards per game after giving up 25.9 points and 397.8 yards per game in 2009.
Junior inside linebacker Manti Te'o returns to lead the defense after a spectacular 133-tackle campaign. His 133 stops were the most by a Notre Dame defender in 27 seasons.
Two other starting linebackers also return, including outside backer Darius Fleming, who is coming off a six-sack season.
In all, six of eight starters in the front seven return, including senior defensive ends Ethan Johnson and Kapron Lewis-Moore. They anchor the defensive line.
The secondary will miss cornerback Darrin Walls, but Gary Gray and Robert Blanton are both capable in coverage. Free safety Harrison Smith is also back after a seven-interception campaign.
Prediction
A 10-2 regular season. With so many key players back on both sides of the football, I see no reason why the Golden Domers shouldn't be better than they were a season ago. In other words, it could be a bad year for Notre Dame haters.
Don't be surprised if the Irish find their way into a BCS game this season. College football oddsmakers have listed Notre Dame at 28/1 to win the BCS championship.
Be sure to check out the rest of my 2011 college football predictions.
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