Notre Dame Football: Strengths, Weaknesses and Secret Weapons

Notre Dame football has championship aspirations and expectations in 2016, but the Fighting Irish must overcome some notable weaknesses to reach their ultimate goals.

Fortunately for Brian Kelly's squad, there isn't a program better prepared to overcome a string of misfortune under center. However, injuries continue to plague the Irish, whose roster already needs to replace several key starters.

But the program will encounter a relatively favorable and home-heavy schedule. If the Irish consistently play to their strengths, the College Football Playoff might come calling.

Strengths

Best Quarterback Depth Chart in the Nation

The saying goes, "If you have two quarterbacks, you have none." However, that applies more to two-quarterback systems on game day than a competition with multiple answers.

DeShone Kizer has the most experience. After assuming the starting role in 2015, he helped lead Notre Dame to a 10-3 final record. Kizer completed 62.9 percent of his 334 passes for 2,880 yards and 21 touchdowns, adding 520 rushing yards and 10 scores.

Kizer's primary competition is Malik Zaire, who overtook Everett Golson late in 2014 and initially won the starting job last year. Zaire managed 428 yards and four touchdowns through the air while scampering for 103 yards in seven quarters of action. His season ended due to a broken right ankle at Virginia.

The Irish will find a resolution to the competition during fall camp. Either way, Brandon Wimbush—the No. 3 dual-threat quarterback of the 2015 class—will be available if necessary.

Well-Rounded Special Teams

Winning a football game is immensely difficult without earning an advantage in two of the three phases. Notre Dame's special teams will provide a regular boost in 2016.

Tyler Newsome notched 44.5 yards per punt—which ranked 15th in the Football Bowl Subdivision—and also handled kickoff duties. After blasting seven punts for an average of 52.7 yards during the spring game, Newsome earned MVP honors.

Justin Yoon drilled 15 of 17 field-goal attempts, including his final 12. He connected on 50 of 52 extra-point attempts.

C.J. Sanders scored twice as a returner, taking one punt and one kickoff to the house. He tallied 7.3 and 22.9 yards on punts and kickoffs, respectively.

The coverage units must improve, but the Irish can dramatically affect a game's outcome in this phase. Specialists are people, too.

Weaknesses

New Set of Receiving Options

Richard Shiro/Associated Press

Will Fuller was a first-round pick. Nobody should be expected to perfectly replace someone of his caliber, especially a speedster who averaged 20.3 yards on 62 receptions with 14 scores.

But it also doesn't help that Chris Brown (48 catches, 597 yards and four touchdowns), Amir Carlisle (31/351/1), C.J. Prosise (26/308/1) and Corey Robinson (16/200/1) are each gone.

Consequently, Torii Hunter Jr. (28/363/1) is the only top-six receiver who returns in 2016.

Now, by no means is Notre Dame unprepared to address the departures. Equanimeous St. Brown, Corey Holmes, Miles Boykin, Alize Jones (13/190/0) and Sanders were all 4-star recruits.

They'll fill the spaces around Hunter while Durham Smythe starts at tight end and the backfield attempts to replace Prosise's pass-catching production.

However, the question that lingers is how quickly a collection of young and inexperienced reserves will consistently contribute.

An Average Front Seven

The Irish won't have an elite defense in 2016. Kelly essentially admitted as much without directly saying it.

Since the unit mustered a No. 45 finish nationally with Sheldon Day, Romeo Okwara and Jaylon Smith on the field, the Irish shouldn't be expected to excel without the trio.

Replacing Day and Okwara—who accumulated 29 tackles for loss and 13 sacks combined—will be particularly difficult. That process began during spring practice.

"The young guys are learning how to step up and play," defensive line coach Keith Gilmore said, per Tim Prister of Scout. "(But when) you've lost Sheldon and you've lost Romeo, I've got to find some guys to be physical at the point."

While Nyles Morgan, who is stepping in for Joe Schmidt, carries larger responsibilities as the defense's vocal leader, Smith had 114 tackles. Te'von Coney and Greer Martini will attempt to replace Smith.

Although the defense doesn't need to be shockingly great, "pleasantly respectable" would suit Notre Dame. But there's no guarantee that it'll be anything better than average.

Secret Weapon

Mike Sanford, Offensive Coordinator and QB Coach

Coaches bear the majority of the blame when things go wrong, while players often receive the praise when a team has success.

Mike Sanford helped the Irish avoid a lot more problems in 2015.

When a quarterback gets injured and a redshirt freshman takes over under center, losses are supposed to follow. That didn't happen, largely thanks to Sanford's impact.

He'll need to replicate the success this season, working with associate head coach Mike Denbrock to shift the burden of producing from a veteran receiving corps onto the quarterback—but doing so without overloading Kizer or Zaire.

The simple version? Notre Dame will lean on its offense in 2016. What does this mean? The Irish are relying on Sanford.

All recruiting information via 247Sports. Stats from CFBStats.com or B/R research. Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Follow Bleacher Report CFB Writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.