Notre Dame Football Recruiting: 4 Holes Brian Kelly Has to Address

Brian Kelly hasn't yet had the success on the field that many Notre Dame fans were hoping for, as the Irish have managed to finish just 8-5 in Kelly's first two seasons. However, you do have to give credit to Kelly for the success he's had on the recruiting trail since he arrived in South Bend.

Kelly has put together two top-rated classes over the past two years, and he's yet again assembling another great group of talent with Notre Dame's 2012 recruiting class. 

Irish fans are hoping that this infusion of talent will result in more wins on the field, something that never happened during the Charlie Weis era. 

Kelly knows that there are specific needs that have to be addressed with the 2012 recruiting class, and here's a look at the four biggest holes he has to fill.

Wide Receiver

Notre Dame is definitely going to miss the presence of standout wide receiver Michael Floyd, who hauled in 100 passes for 1,147 yards and scored 10 touchdowns as a senior in 2011. 

Next season, the Irish will have to count on WR Theo Riddick and TE Tyler Eifert to be go-to receivers for the offense. However, 2012 is likely going to be the final season for both, as Riddick will be a senior and Eifert will likely declare for the 2013 draft. 

That means Brian Kelly has to start planning for the future and bringing in some receiving weapons that can make plays in his spread offense.

Luckily for Kelly, he's managed to land one of the top receivers in the country, Deontay Greenberry, a 4-star prospect from Fresno, California. 

Greenberry's got the potential to be a star in South Bend, and it helps that Kelly was able to land commitments from two other talented receivers—Justin Ferguson (Flanagan, Florida) and Chris Brown (Hanahan, South Carolina), who will both be able to add immediate depth to the receiving corps. 

Cornerback

Cornerbacks Gary Gray and Robert Blanton, two seasoned senior starters, are both leaving South Bend, which means Notre Dame will be breaking in two brand new cornerbacks in 2012. 

The Irish coaching staff was hoping that one of those replacements would be Ronald Darby, one of the fastest and most coveted cornerback recruits in the country, but Darby decommitted from Notre Dame last week—which was a tough blow to take for Kelly and his crew. 

Notre Dame still has a commitment from highly rated California native Tee Shepard, but it wouldn't hurt for Kelly to go out and snag another top cornerback prospect like Yuri Wright out of New Jersey or Davonte Neal out of Arizona to help add some depth to the position. 

Offensive Line

Brian Kelly has done a terrific job recently of bringing in quality defensive line recruits like Louis Nix, Aaron Lynch and Stephon Tuitt, but in 2012, Kelly's got to turn his attention to the other side of the trenches and bring in a few offensive line reinforcements. 

With Trevor Robinson, Taylor Dever and Mike Golic Jr. all departing, Notre Dame's going to have some new faces on its offensive line in 2012. 

Depth will be needed, and it's a good thing that Kelly has already picked up commitments from three offensive linemen—Ronnie Stanley (Bishop Gorman, Nevada), Taylor Decker (Butler, Ohio) and Mark Harrell (Charlotte Catholic, North Carolina). 

The biggest prize out there, of course, is OT Arik Armstead, a 5-star recruit that Notre Dame would love to nab. 

If Kelly could somehow find a way to convince the former USC commit to come to South Bend, it will be a major boost for the 2012 class. 

Linebacker

Notre Dame got some great news when LB Manti Te'o, one of the best defensive players in the country, announced that he would be returning for his senior season. 

With 2012 being Te'o's last year, though, finding some linebacker help for the future wouldn't hurt. 

The Irish have already picked up a commitment from linebacker Nick Baratti, who played for Klein Oak High School in Texas, but adding another young linebacker to the mix certainly wouldn't hurt.