Notre Dame Football: Bold Predictions for Fighting Irish's 2012 Season

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are hoping to make big strides in Brian Kelly's third season as head coach, but nothing will come easy, especially considering the fact they have a brutal schedule, must figure out a starting quarterback and have to deal with a ton of pressure because of their great history. 

It's a tough job, but Kelly is doing his part to make life better in South Bend. His recruiting classes are very strong, and his system can definitely help bring Notre Dame back to college football glory. 

The 2012 season is going to be very interesting, and the first thing Fighting Irish fans hope they don't see is turnovers. That happened entirely too much a year ago, so expect Kelly and his staff to drill the players this offseason on protecting the ball. 

Everyone has their opinion on how Notre Dame will fare in 2012, and if you're being realistic, the Fighting Irish will do well but not exceptional by any means. 

That being said, here are three bold predictions for next year. 

1. Andrew Hendrix will start the season 

Kelly must decide between Hendrix, Tommy Rees, Everett Golson and prized recruit Gunner Kiel. While I believe Kiel should redshirt, the other three will put up a strong fight for the starting job. 

In the end, it will be Hendrix who wins out and begins the season as the starter. Rees had his opportunities last year, and everything blew up in his face as he consistently turned the ball over.

He may have the most experience, but he definitely wore out his welcome a year ago, and Kelly won't forget all the struggles Rees went through. That's something he won't want to deal with again. Golson will get a chance, but I don't think the's quite ready to be the starter. 

Despite only having limited playing time last season, Hendrix looked good. With another year to improve and get better acquainted with the system, he'll put his skills on full display in 2012. Hendrix is a dual-threat QB that will be making big plays for the Fighting Irish in 2012. 

It remains a mystery if he'll finish the season as the starter, given how deep the Fighting Irish are at QB. The moment he slips up, don't be surprised if he gets benched. It's a possibility when you factor in the Fighting Irish's intense schedule. 

Still, though, Hendrix will do enough this offseason to show he should start the season opener. 

2. Everett Golson will switch positions or transfer 

When Kiel spurned LSU and chose Notre Dame, it meant the pressure for Golson to start now intensified. 

Since Golson won't be winning the starting job (and possibly losing out on the No. 2), the wise move for him would be to look to a different team to earn playing time. 

However, he could also change positions for Notre Dame. At 6'0", 185 pounds, Golson has great speed and agility that helps him thrive in the open space. 

The Fighting Irish need all the playmakers they can get, so moving Golson to a wide receiver/running back hybrid would be a great idea. 

There's a chance Golson could even be beat out by Kiel this year, but if that doesn't happen, it's going to soon. Kiel is the future of the program, and it will cause Golson to miss out on being a quarterback at Notre Dame.

If Golson wants to play QB, transferring is his best bet. If Kelly wants to prevent that from happening, having Golson switch positions so he can earn playing time this season is what needs to be done. 

3. Fighting Irish will improve their record 

In his first two seasons as head coach, Kelly has gone 8-5 both times. That won't happen in 2012, as the Fighting Irish's record will be better. 

Of course, it won't be by much, as I have them going 9-4. Notre Dame will lose to Michigan, Stanford, Oklahoma and USC. 

The Fighting Irish will have close calls in other games, but they'll come out on top. They won't be headed to a BCS bowl once again, but I do have them winning whatever bowl game they go to. 

Closing out the season with a loss against USC will motivate this team during the December downtime to bounce back strong.

That didn't happen this past year, and no doubt the Fighting Irish will remember that. Losing the last game of the season and the bowl game is a horrible way to end the year, which is why Notre Dame will win its mediocre bowl game.