Why Will Fuller's Return to Notre Dame Means Irish Will Contend Again in 2016

Part of contending for a national championship is recruiting at a championship level. But that doesn't always mean signing 4- and 5-star players. It means keeping them around a little longer.

On Wednesday, Notre Dame wide receiver Will Fuller announced that he plans on staying on more year. "I need to graduate," Fuller said, via JJ Stankevitz of CSNChicago.com. "That's what I came here for."

Whether Fuller actually follows through on that won't be known for a couple of months. That's not to say he isn't a person of his word, but the temptations of the NFL—and the paycheck that comes with it—are tough to resist.

Bleacher Report draft guru Matt Miller had Fuller pegged as a first-round talent. If NFL draft evaluators feel similarly, that's a lot of money Fuller could be turning down.

Fuller is making life-changing decisions. He deserves the time to consider his options. But if getting a degree is that important to him, that's his prerogative.

Let's assume Fuller does return for 2016. It's perhaps the biggest "recruit" head coach Brian Kelly will have going into the new season. And the Irish already have the No. 14-ranked class nationally, according to 247Sports.

The most immediate thing Fuller's return would do is keep Notre Dame's offense explosive. That's an important component to winning a ton of games and diversifies an offense.

Fuller is college football's best deep threat because of his straight-line speed. His 12 touchdowns are tied for fifth in the nation and his 20.45 yards per catch is best among receivers with at least 40 catches. Baylor's Corey Coleman has 58 catches at 20.31 yards per catch.

Rotoworld NFL draft analyst Josh Norris broke down Fuller's game to Stankevitz:

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Simplified, Fuller is a high-variance player.  Big play or bust. Most teams would live with the drops because of his big-play ability, a trait that is difficult to find. Some wouldn't, as we've seen young WRs see less opportunities for this reason. 

I do think Fuller added more balance to his game this season, and maybe that is something he wants to build on, but overall his role early on will be in the 12-plus-yard areas of the field.

"

When you have that kind of deep threat at your disposal, it opens up an entirely new portion of the field for the offense. It's no surprise Notre Dame ranks among the top 25 teams in college football in explosive plays of at least 20 yards and sixth nationally in explosive drives, per Football Outsiders.

Just as importantly, Fuller has built a strong rapport with quarterback DeShone Kizer.

Coming off the bench for the injured Malik Zaire, Kizer has developed nicely over the course of the season, and the long ball to Fuller has been a fun part of his game.

As long as you can throw the ball, you can probably get it to Fuller. Zaire connected with Fuller seven times for 142 yards and two touchdowns in the season-opening win over Texas.

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The point being, Notre Dame is likely headed for a quarterback competition in the spring since Zaire and Kizer have shown the ability to make big plays. No matter who starts in 2016, having Fuller outside the hash marks makes for a matchup nightmare all season.

Of course, Fuller's return by itself isn't everything. Among those who will—or are likely to—depart for the 2016 NFL draft are tackle Ronnie Stanley, defensive tackle Sheldon Day, linebacker Jaylon Smith and cornerback KeiVarae Russell.

That's a ton of lost talent.

But if Notre Dame has shown anything in 2015, it's that it has impressive depth and resiliency. The Irish have been one of the most snake-bitten teams, losing everyone from Zaire to running back Tarean Folston and nose tackle Jarron Jones.

Yet the Irish sit at 8-1. For every injury, there's been a No. 2 and/or No. 3 willing and able to step up.

Because of that, Notre Dame is in a position to play in season-defining games. A Nov. 28 game against Stanford has huge playoff implications. If the Irish win out to 11-1, they will be directly in the playoff conversation with a team comprised of a lot of backups.

That playing experience will carry over into 2016 and should pay dividends against teams like Michigan State, Stanford and USC. Kelly and this Notre Dame coaching staff have done as good a job of developing talented players as anyone in college football in 2015.

With Fuller in the fold for another year, there's no reason to think Notre Dame can't be in this position at this time next year.

Ben Kercheval is a lead writer for college football. All quotes cited unless obtained firsthand. All stats courtesy of cfbstats.com unless noted otherwise.