Written by In The Bleachers
| 02 July 2007
The Fighting Irish has gone to BCS bowl games in each of the past two seasons. Some experts say they shouldn't have gone to either game because they did not deserve it. Well I am here to tell everyone 5 reasons why Notre Dame will not play in a BCS game in 2007-08.
5. No more Brady Quinn. There is only one certainty when it comes to the Notre Dame quarterback situation, Zach Frazer will not be it. Frazer has transferred to UConn after learning that he was no longer in the running for the Irish quarterback job. The remaining three people left are junior Evan Sharpley, sophomores Demetrius Jones and true freshman Jimmy Clausen. Of the three, only Sharpley has seen any real action. Many thought that Clausen would have the job when he left High School early to enroll, but elbow troubles have hampered his attempt. The Domers have an early tough schedule and whoever gets the starting nod is going to have to grow up quick behind an offensive line that will have to replace two starters.
4. Not only do the Irish have to replace their top passer, they have to replace their top two leading receivers (McKnight & Samardzija) and their top rusher (Walker). Charlie Weis has done an excellent job recruiting since he has come to Notre Dame, but it is going to take a miracle from Touchdown Jesus for the Irish to be able to drum up the offensive power they had last year. Junior David Grimes should be the #1 receiver with sophomore George West and junior D.J. Hord providing depth. Freshmen Duval Kamara and Golden Tate will fight for playing time too. The Irish might have to rely on their defense until their offense gets going.
3. Speaking of defense, that has been the achilles heel of the Irish for the Charlie Weis era. Corwin Brown will take over as defensive coordinator and will switch to the 3-4. That all sounds well and good, but do they have the personnel to pull it off yet. Until they get some speed at cornerback and safety, the Irish are going to be prone against the pass. And that is exactly how they have been getting burnt the past two seasons. Tom Zbikowski was burnt toast against LSU, rumor has it that he got faster. Only time will tell for the safety.
2. I realize that the biggest reason the Irish have been getting the breaks to go to BCS games is their fan base and how well they travel, but their bowl performance has to come into play. Their last bowl win, Jan 1, 1994 against Texas A&M. They have lost their past 3 BCS bowl appearances against Oregon State, Ohio State, and LSU by a combined score of 116-43. Not exactly good games by any measure. Money talks as we all know, but I think this year if Notre Dame is borderline, the BCS will pass.
1. Once again Notre Dame plays a tough schedule. For them to make the BCS one would have to figure that they have to win 9 of their 12 games. With road games at Penn State, Michigan, Purdue, and UCLA; and home games against Georgia Tech, USC, and Boston College, the Irish are going to be hard pressed to win 9 games. It is not much of a stretch to say that the Irish could start off the year 1-3, but 2-2 is more plausible.
