Notre Dame QB Battle Will Be College Football's Biggest Storyline of 2015

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — While Brian Kelly has remained steadfast that Notre Dame football’s quarterback situation in the Music City Bowl matchup with LSU was about 2014—not 2015—the future implications are now impossible to overlook.

Sure, Notre Dame’s 31-28 victory over the No. 23 Tigers on Tuesday shatters a four-game winning streak and helps soothe some of the pains of a 59-day stretch in which the Irish didn’t win a game. But the unknown future at quarterback sits squarely—and solely—at the forefront of the discussion surrounding the 2015 Irish and possibly even the college football season at large.

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It’s an oversimplified breakdown of the 2014 season, but consider this: Notre Dame ascended to No. 5 in the country with a healthy defense and Everett Golson playing at a high rate. The Irish struggled when Golson struggled and when injuries ravaged the youthful defense. So how good can the Irish be next season?

“We want to be national champions,” Irish sophomore linebacker Jaylon Smith said. “When we come back from break, starting in the weight room. We need our leaders to step up and we need to continue to get better.”

Of Notre Dame’s 22 starters against LSU, 20 have eligibility remaining. The Irish will lose senior running back Cam McDaniel and senior tight end Ben Koyack. Defensively, graduate student cornerback Cody Riggs is out of eligibility.

“This team can be great [next season],” Irish sophomore wide receiver Will Fuller said. “As a team we’re only losing a couple people. We’re going to be a force to be reckoned with.”

In actuality, so much of that, of course, depends upon Notre Dame’s quarterback play. In his first career start, redshirt freshman Malik Zaire completed 12 of 15 passes for 96 yards and a touchdown. He added 96 rushing yards and a score on 22 carries. He didn’t commit a turnover.

Golson played as well, going 6-of-11 for 90 yards and tallying a six-yard rush.

“This really was just about this game,” Kelly said afterward. “Playing both of them, my focus was about winning this game, and we’ll figure out the quarterback situation in January. This was just utilizing both of their skills to get a win today.”

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Before even addressing a quarterback competition, it’s worth asking if a two-quarterback system is a viable possibility for the Irish moving forward.

“I’m not really sure,” Irish junior slot receiver C.J. Prosise said. “I guess we’re gonna have to see. It definitely worked out today.”

Kelly is on the record as saying in a perfect world, he’d prefer to use one quarterback. But with two quarterbacks with different skill sets, could Notre Dame survive using both Zaire and Golson in 2015?

“Part of playing Malik and starting him was trying to figure out how we were going to utilize him in the game and how to construct playing two quarterbacks,” Kelly said. “So part of the making the decision to start him was to find out how we are going to move forward and effectively craft and put together a game plan for both of them.”

Prosise said there aren’t many drawbacks of deploying both quarterbacks, even though Kelly admitted Golson profiled more as the passer and Zaire as the runner down the stretch against LSU.

“Not really because Malik can still throw. Everett can still run,” said Prosise when asked about defenses adjusting to their roles.

An alternative is utilizing Zaire as the starting quarterback and calling on Golson in certain situations.

It’s total speculation, of course, but that doesn’t sound too appealing for Golson. It’s only December, but those decisions surrounding Notre Dame’s quarterback quandary will be a major storyline of college football next season. Whatever happens, the freshman- and sophomore-littered (and healthier) Irish are in a position to be vastly improved in 2015, especially if the quarterback position becomes a net positive, not a net negative.

Against LSU, Zaire did his job. Spearheading a run-heavy offense (Notre Dame called 51 rushes against 26 passes), Zaire and the Irish piled up 263 rushing yards.

“We had to have a game plan for today,” said Kelly when asked if Notre Dame could turn to a run-based identity. “We know what we have with both quarterbacks. … We’re going to continue to utilize [Zaire’s] strength; he’s a very good runner of the football. … I think it’s fair to say that both of them can give us some balance in both of those areas.”

Zaire said he was simply focused on “being a facilitator,” commanding the offense and protecting the football. And, in turn, Notre Dame won.

The fates of Zaire and Golson and Notre Dame’s offensive identity are still uncertain. Is Notre Dame ready to turn to Zaire based on less than two full games of work? Is Notre Dame ready to relegate Golson to backup duty? Could both quarterbacks be used? Will Notre Dame shift toward a run-first attack? Those answers could shape the college football landscape.

“They’re both great quarterbacks,” Fuller said. “As long as they don’t get [in] over their head, stick with the plan and don’t turn the ball over, we’ll be unstoppable I think.”

The stakes are high.

All quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Mike Monaco is a lead Notre Dame writer for Bleacher Report. Follow @MikeMonaco_ on Twitter.