Notre Dame Football: Could Dayne Crist Lose His Starting Job To Injury?

It is good to be back on Bleacher Report. I told myself a few months ago that I would not write another article until Notre Dame beat a ranked opponent. Did they ever do that or what last weekend?

This first season under Brian Kelly has definitely had it's ups and downs. Offensively, the Irish have had more injuries to key players that I ever remember one team having. Kyle Rudolph, Armando Allen, and Theo Riddick are three key players who have missed significant time due to injury. Even Michael Floyd, their best offensive player, missed a game.

While all those injuries were big, there is no bigger injury than the one by starting quarterback Dayne Crist. For the second straight year, his season has been cut short due to a season ending injury.

Now the Irish are under the direction of true freshman Tommy Rees. Rees has done very well for himself too.

He played most of the Tulsa game and played very well for the most part. He did have one interception returned for a touchdown and had the one that pretty much handed Tulsa the game. It was a questionable call for Kelly though to throw in that situation when a field goal would have won the game.

Now the Irish have Army and then USC. If they win one they will become bowl eligible. Unlike last year, I think a 6-6 Notre Dame team will accept a bowl bid. It is the first year under Kelly and with all the injuries the circumstances are alot different than a year ago.

So what happens if the Irish beat Army this weekend and win their bowl game with Tommy Rees? Will he be the starter going into spring? Better yet, what if the Irish beat USC with Ries. Being realistic, I don't expect that to happen. The Trojans aren't the team they used to be, but their talent level is still greater than Notre Dame's and the game is in Los Angelos.

I understand that Crist was playing really well in his first year as the starter after sitting behind Jimmy Clausen for two years. However, there are some factors that cannot be ignored.

First and foremost, Crist is injury prone. Not only has he suffered two season ending injuries, but let's also not forget the Michigan game. He missed almost the entire first half before returning in the second half. During that time, the Irish struggled with Rees who clearly wasn't ready yet and also with Nate Montana. The end result may have been different had Crist been healthy the whole time.

Second, Crist was brought in by Charlie Wies and Rees was brought in by Kelly. I do think that Kelly will play the best player whether he recruited him or not, but that is still a factor that cannot be ignored.

Third, Crist will be around for two more years and Rees still has three. While I do think that is a very minor factor, it has played a role in the past. The most notable example was Matt Leinart and Matt Cassel at USC. Both were looking really good in camp but Leinart would be around for one more year than Cassel.

All these factors could make for an interesting battle between Crist and Rees. The fact is that I really like both of them. If I were Brian Kelly this would be a very difficult decision. It is one I am glad I don't have to make.

Having said all of this, this whole article is a moot point if Notre Dame does not win another game and doesn't go to a bowl game yet another year. If that happens, Crist is the uncontested starter.