Notre Dame Football: Why Everett Golson Should Start for the Fighting Irish

The debate as to who should be the starting quarterback at the University of Notre Dame has been a fiery one for the better part of a calendar year.

I'm here to settle the debate once and for all.

Everett Golson should be named the starting quarterback for the Fighting Irish.

As a reader, you're likely wondering why I've decided to make such a bold proclamation, and rightfully so. To be concise, Everett Golson is Brian Kelly's guy. 

Golson, a native of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, was the first quarterback commitment that Brian Kelly and his staff received.

He was pursued fervently for his tremendous passing ability in a spread offense, and the numbers back that up.

Golson accumulated 11,364 passing yards during his high school career, but the most impressive figure is the 151 touchdown passes he had at Myrtle Beach High School, good for sixth all-time in national high school history.

Those figures, along with a 3.8 grade point average, are what attracted the Irish coaching staff to Everett Golson. 

If Golson wasn't a perfect fit for Kelly's spread attack, he never would have been recruited by Notre Dame due to his small frame, as he only stands 6'0" and weighs in at 185 pounds.

However, Golson is able to offset what he lacks in size with his ability to pick up yards with his feet. One look at his high school highlight tapes and one understands the tremendous upside he possesses.

Now that he has had a full season to adjust to college life, learn the playbook and familiarize himself with the system, it's his time.

As I've mentioned in previous articles and debates, every BCS-caliber program is led by a steady quarterback, something Notre Dame hasn't had since Jimmy Clausen was still strapping up for the Irish. It's time for Everett Golson to take those reigns.

Brian Kelly would be foolish to entertain the notion of another quarterback competition, as the one held last season blew up in Kelly's face after only half of football against South Florida in the opening game of 2011.

With all due to respect to Tommy Rees and Andrew Hendrix, the reality is that Brian Kelly has been envisioning Everett Golson running his offense ever since he began recruiting the stud athlete out of South Carolina.

Look out, Fighting Irish fans. It's Golson Time.