Precocious predictions for Notre Dame's 2024 season — and beyond
The Notre Dame football team reports back for training camp next Tuesday and starts practicing Wednesday, July 31 — exactly one month ahead of the season opener, Aug. 31 at Texas A&M.
Without waiting for more clues, intel and position battles to play out during the run-up to the season, here’s a perhaps precocious test of intuitive/predictive powers, with 24 projections for the 2024 Irish football season — and beyond:
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1. REGULAR-SEASON RECORD: 11-1.
2. POSTSEASON GAME AND OPPONENT: First-round home playoff game vs. Michigan.
3. FINAL RANKING: No. 7
4. OFFENSIVE AND DEFENSIVE MVPS: QB Riley Leonard and CB Benjamin Morrison.
5. THREE BREAKTHROUGH PLAYERS: OG Billy Schrauth, WR Beaux Collins, LB Jaylen Sneed.
6. THREE ASCENDING PLAYERS OF NOTE, BUT LARGELY OFF THE RADAR: S Adon Shuler, LB Jaiden Ausberry, TE Cooper Flanagan.
7. FRESHMAN SURPRISE: RB Kedren Young.
8. FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: LB Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa.
9. INCOMING TRANSFER OF THE YEAR BEYOND RILEY LEONARD: WR Kris Mitchell.
10. TOP 2025 NFL DRAFT PROSPECT: CB Benjamin Morrison.
11. PLAYER WHO WILL HELP HIS DRAFT EQUITY THE MOST FOR 2025 DRAFT: QB Riley Leonard.
12. ND’S NATIONAL RANKING IN TOTAL OFFENSE AT SEASON’S END: 20.
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13. ND’S NATIONAL RANKING IN TOTAL DEFENSE AT SEASON’S END: 3.
14. SACK LEADER AND TOTAL NUMBER OF SACKS BY ND AS A TEAM: 36, Boubacar Traore.
15. LEADING TACKLER: LB Jack Kiser.
16. THREE MOST OVERLOOKED SIGNIFICANT 2024 CONTRIBUTORS: C Ashton Craig, LB Jack Kiser, K Mitch Jeter.
17. TRAP GAME: Oct. 19 vs. Georgia Tech at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
18. BEST PLAYER WHO ND WILL FACE IN 2024: DE Nick Scourton, 6-4, 280-pound junior transfer from Purdue.
19. NOTRE DAME FANS’ BIGGEST BEEF WITH THE 2024 SCHEDULE: Louisville game being only shown on Peacock.
20. MOST OVERPLAYED, OVERBLOWN ANGLE ON THE 2024 SEASON: Speculation Notre Dame NEEDS to join a conference.
21. MOST OVERPLAYED, OVERBLOWN ANGLE ON THE 2025 SEASON: Speculation Notre Dame NEEDS to join a conference.
22. RALLY-KILLING SONG THAT NEEDS TO BE REMOVED FROM ND STADIUM PLAYLIST FOREVER: Heaven Is a Place on Earth.
23. FINAL NATIONAL RANKING, BY RIVALS.COM, OF NOTRE DAME’S 2025 RECRUITING CLASS: 8th.
24. NOTRE DAME’S STARTING QB IN 2025: C.J. Carr.
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