Notre Dame Football: Grading the Irish for 2011 Season

After another season of Fighting Irish football, it's time to hand out the season-ending report card.

2011 certainly was a disappointing season, but there's much to be discussed about individual units, so let's take a look at the grades.

We'll be evaluating each position group on the roster.

And away we go!

Quarterbacks

Grade: C

Notre Dame's struggles on offense this season stemmed largely from the quarterback position.

It all started with Brian Kelly's decision to bench Dayne Crist in the season's first game, resulting in the senior ending up at the University of Kansas to finish his collegiate career.

Tommy Rees took the reigns from Crist and showed flashes of brilliance, but couldn't avoid turning the ball over.

The most frightening aspect about Rees is the fact that he hasn't showed signs of significant improvement since being named the starting quarterback the week leading up to the Michigan game.

If the sophomore's performance against Florida State in the Champs Sports Bowl isn't an indication of Rees' lack of improvement, I don't know what is.

From here, Brian Kelly needs to relieve Rees of his starting duties and name a starter in spring ball in order to promote chemistry within the offense.

If I were Brian Kelly, I'd name Everett Golson as the starter. He's the only quarterback on the roster that was recruited and brought in by Kelly.

Running Backs

Grade: A

If there's one individual position on the field that deserves a long round of applause, it's the Irish running backs.

Cierre Wood led the way for Notre Dame's ground attack this season, becoming the 20th back in school history to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark.

If not for some unfortunate luck, Wood may not have been the only 1,000-yard back on the team this season. Wood's teammate, Jonas Gray, went down with a season-ending ACL tear against Boston College.

Gray had 791 rushing yards up to that point and likely would have reached 1,000 had he not suffered the injury.

The good news for Notre Dame is that Cierre Wood will be in the Irish backfield next season and is likely to have another outstanding season behind an offensive line that will be returning three of five starters.

Receivers

Grade: B

Without Michael Floyd on the field this season, it's tough to say if the Irish would have had much success moving the ball through the air.

Unfortunately for Notre Dame, Floyd will be playing on Sundays next fall.

Behind Floyd, there wasn't a true No. 2 receiver on the depth chart. Theo Riddick never panned out at receiver and moved to running back after Jonas Gray went down for the season.

To add to the frustration at receiver, TJ Jones had another quiet season after stepping on campus as a freshman with high expectations.

It'll be guys like Jones and Riddick who will need to emerge as playmakers next season with Michael Floyd no longer in South Bend.

Offensive Line

Grade: A-

Perhaps the most pleasant surprise of the season was the excellent play of Notre Dame's offensive line.

The unit finished the season ranked 29th nationally in sacks allowed, at 17. Not only did the line protect the quarterback well, but it also paved the way for a potent rushing attack. Running backs Jonas Gray and Cierre Wood combined for 1,893 yards on the ground.

Luckily for the Irish, three of the five starting linemen are set to return next season, including center Braxston Cave.

The competition for starting spots at both right tackle and right guard will be two of the bigger storylines entering fall camp, with Trevor Robinson and Taylor Dever having exhausted their eligibility.

Defensive Line

Grade: B+

Brian Kelly's main goal upon taking the head coaching job at Notre Dame was to build a BCS-caliber defensive line.

That goal is very close to being accomplished.

The additions of Aaron Lynch and Stephon Tuitt transformed the defensive line into a great one, and it's bound to improve with incoming freshmen Jarron Jones and Sheldon Day arriving in South Bend for summer school.

A starting front three of Aaron Lynch, Louis Nix and Kapron-Lewis Moore will certainly deserve "elite" status.

Linebackers

Grade: C+

It's no secret that Notre Dame's linebackers, aside from Manti Te'o, were a glaring weakness in 2011.

Dan Fox, Carlo Calabrese, Prince Shembo and Co. struggled mightily in pass coverage and were always a step or two slow against elite offenses. The USC game would be a prime example of that, with the Trojan receivers burning past the underneath coverage time and again. 

However, it was against the run that this group had some success. The unit finished ranked 58th nationally against the run, but those numbers were skewed by two games against service academies.

With another year of experience under their belts, and with Manti Te'o back for another season, Notre Dame's linebackers should be an improved unit in 2012.

Secondary

Grade: B

Notre Dame's secondary was a hard group to figure out this season to say the least. It was always a matter of figuring out which secondary was going to show up to play.

The Michigan game showed fans that because of the weak secondary play, the defense was nowhere near BCS ready.

Yet, the unit slowly showed strides throughout the course of the season, but never truly looked primed to be a shutdown type of unit.

Next season isn't looking much brighter, as Gary Gray, Robert Blanton and Harrison Smith will each be gone.

Special Teams

Grade: B

For Notre Dame's punt return team to have gained only three yards on the season until Michael Floyd's 41-yard return in the Champs Sports Bowl is sickening.

Improvements must be made in the offseason to aid in the field position battle.

Aside from that unit, the others were consistent.

Ben Turk and David Ruffer each showed up throughout the season and never presented any pressing issues.

Coaching

Grade: B-

Brian Kelly and his staff certainly deserve this grade. The amount of sloppy play and turnovers throughout the season fell on the coaches' preparation of the players.

While the season was a disappointment, year three may be even worse. The schedule is not set up for success, so we're in to see what Brian Kelly is truly made of as a coach.

Intangibles

Grade: B

This Notre Dame squad could have easily hung their heads after two soul-crushing losses to begin the season, but they hung in there and reeled off four consecutive victories.

At no point during the season did this team ever quit. The resolve the team showed is something to be applauded. But it was the lack of execution and attention to detail that led to its demise.