2009 Notre Dame Fighting Irish College Football Predictions

2009 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Predictions
2008 Record: (7-6)
Coach: Charlie Weiss, 5th year (29-21 overall)
Off. Coordinator: Charlie Weiss (1st year)
Def. Coordinator: Jon Tenuta (2nd year) and Corwin Brown (2nd year)
Returning Starters: 18 (10 offense, 6 defense, kicker, punter)
Ret. Starting Quarterback: Yes (Jimmy Clausen)

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Offense: The Irish return 10 starters from an offense that was mediocre. They averaged just 24.7ppg and 355.1 yards per game, which is one of the reasons why Charlie Weiss has taken over the offense. The key will be the progression of junior Jimmy Clausen (6-3, 217), who threw for 3,172 yards with 25 TDs and 17 picks. He has to improve his footwork and limit the interceptions. They have two outstanding targets returning in junior Golden Tate (58 receptions for 1,080 yards) and sophomore Michael Floyd and sophomore TE Kyle Rudolph (6-6, 258). At running back, junior Armando Allen (5-10, 195) is back after rushing for 585 yards and three TDs. They also have quality backups in Robert Hughes (382 yards) and James Aldridge (357 yards). The ofensive line returns four starters and at left tackle Paul Duncan (6-7, 308) started 12 games in 2007.

Defense: The defense returns six starters from a unit that allowed 22.2ppg (42nd in the nation) and 329.9 yards per game (39th in the nation). With Corwin Brown getting bumped up to associate head coach, Jon Tenuta will call the plays and that means even more blitzing. The line will be the biggest concern with just one returning starter in junior Ian Williams (6-2, 310). Ethan Johnson (6-4, 275) came off the bench last year to record 3.5 sacks and should make a bigger impact as a starter. At linebacker, junior Brian Smith (6-3, 245) is a beast, who can play inside our out. But they have to replace the other linebacker spots. The secondary adds Harrison Smith (6-2, 212), who was a linebacker last year and moves to free safety. At strong safety, senior Kyle McCarthy (6-1, 203) was the leading tackler last year with 110 stops. They also return senior starting corner Raeshon McNeill (6-0, 190). Darrin Walls (6-0, 190) is back after starting in 2007 at corner. He missed last season due to personal reasons.

Outlook: The schedule is tough, but not as difficult as in recent years. It looks a lot more favorable with winnable home games against Navy, Uconn, Nevada, Washington (bad team), Boston College (down year) and Stanford on the road. Washington State in San Antonio should be a win, while they take on their toughest team-USC-at home. This should be Weis’ best team as the have an opportunity to win at least nine games and anything less would be a disappointment.

This FBS Independents conference prediction is courtesy of the ATS Sports Blog. If you are looking for winning college football betting picks be sure to choose ATS Consultants this year, A featured sports handicapping service on Touthouse.com