Quarterback Malik Zaire is one of six key Notre Dame players that have been knocked out for the season, and the season is only three games old. 0 Shares Print SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Before the season — and the carnage — started, Brian Kelly stood before a lectern in front of media members from across the country and declared this Notre Dame outfit faster, more athletic and, most importantly, deeper than the group that ran the regular-season table just three seasons ago. “Maybe we don’t have singularly one superstar here or there, but the depth of the group is a whole different football team than that group,” Kelly said during the Fighting Irish’s Aug. 18 media day. Four days earlier, starting defensive tackle Jarron Jones had torn the MCL in his right knee, ending his season. One day after Kelly’s remarks, starting nickelback Shaun Crawford tore his ACL. We’re not even a quarter of the way through the season, and Kelly has been proven emphatically right over and over again. Starters in the offensive backfield (Malik Zaire, Tarean Folston), contributors in the defensive backfield (Drue Tranquill) and a starting tight end (Durham Smythe) have joined the list of the walking wounded, leaving the No. 6 Irish down six significant players for the rest of a season that began with College Football Playoff hopes. Notre Dame’s strong play through three wins — particularly against a Georgia Tech team that entered this past weekend ranked 14th — suggests that it is business as usual for the Irish, who have repeatedly declared that their goals remain attainable. Ohio State’s well-told run to last year’s national title seemingly shelved injury excuses for any program that views itself among the elite. …
Continue Reading: Can Fighting Irish maintain through injuries the way Ohio State did?
