2015 is a “Playoff or bust” season for Notre Dame, considering the amount of talent that will be leaving for the NFL next spring. The loss of starting quarterback Malik Zaire in Saturday’s thrilling come-from-behind victory over Virginia may have shattered any hope of making a run for the playoff, before the season was even in full swing. Zaire suffered a fractured ankle on an innocent-looking quarterback draw late in the third quarter and will miss the rest of the season. Replacing him is sophomore DeShone Kizer, who threw the game-winning touchdown with just twelve seconds remaining to save the game and potentially Notre Dame’s season.
Kizer played like one might expect a quarterback to play in his first game, missing receivers on simple hitch and slant routes, most likely because of nerves. Kizer was predictable, the majority of his throws going to Notre Dame’s best receiver Will Fuller, including the 40-yard touchdown pass to win the game. If Notre Dame is going to be successful with Kizer, he will need to improve his intermediate passing game. He cannot continue to throw behind and underneath receivers the way he did on Saturday. Notre Dame fans can expect to see a lot of short and safe throws from Kizer against Georgia Tech next weekend, in an effort to boost his confidence level and get him in a rhythm.
Experts have praised head coach Brian Kelly for his ability to develop and work around the strengths of his quarterbacks since he arrived at Notre Dame; pointing to Kelly’s 2009 season at Cincinnati, in which he led the Bearcats to a 12-1 record using three different quarterbacks. Notre Dame fans haven’t seen this ability in Kelly, who has been unable to produce consistent quarterback play during his tenure. Even in 2012, when Notre Dame reached the BCS title game, now Florida State quarterback Everett Golson needed backup Tommy Rees to finish off three games. It is time for Kelly to live up to this high praise and develop Kizer into, not an elite quarterback, but one that can complete enough critical passes to give Notre Dame a chance to win.
There is enough talent surrounding Kizer that he does not have to be perfect. Kelly mentioned this in his post game press conference, saying, “He’s got great weapons around him, and we saw that tonight.” He can rely on an experienced offensive line that includes a possible first pick in the NFL draft in Ronnie Stanley. Kizer also has receiver Will Fuller, who seems to catch any ball thrown his way, and running back C.J. Prosise, who showed his explosiveness in last year’s bowl win against LSU and has continued to impress this season after starter Tarean Folston was lost for the season.
Kelly understands that his quarterback is inexperienced and needs to complete passes to gain confidence. It was evident against Virginia that Kelly was trying to make things easy for Kizer, keeping all throws within a few yards of the first down marker, with the exception of the game winning throw. “We’re just going to have to balance the offense, and do the things he [Kizer] is capable of doing,” Kelly said when asked how Zaire’s injury changes the offensive game plan. Reports coming out of spring practice and fall camp were that Kizer is not a very accurate passer, but that he has great arm strength, and that showed Saturday. Fans can expect Kelly to use play action to free up Will Fuller downfield in order to utilize Kizer’s arm strength. Kelly also talked about Kizer’s ability to run, citing that he is a bigger body. Zaire’s injury, however, might serve as a warning for Kelly. With true freshman Brandon Wimbush being the only other recruited quarterback on the roster, designed runs for Kizer might not be the best option. If Notre Dame couldn’t afford to lose Zaire to injury, they surely cannot afford to lose Kizer as well.
Beyond providing Kizer with easy throws, Kelly can help him by simply taking the ball out of his hands. C.J. Prosise has emerged as the clear number one choice at running back after a great showing against Texas in week one and against Virginia on Saturday, racking up a combined 253 rushing yards in the two games. Kelly has taken a lot of criticism for not running the ball enough in the past few seasons, and he must change his ways if Notre Dame’s offense is going to be effective without Zaire at the helm. Prosise, along with freshmen Josh Adams and Dexter Williams, should be getting the ball more with the inexperienced quarterback, but the question remains if Kelly acknowledges this. Notre Dame’s offensive line has played exceptionally well in both of the first two games, all the more reason for Notre Dame to start running the ball more. Notre Dame has not taken a single snap under center yet this season, and this may need to change as well if the running game is going to become a bigger part of the offense. If Kelly continues to be pass-happy, Kizer’s inexperience could show and hurt Notre Dame’s chances to win games.
Whether Kelly will rely more on the run game or trust Kizer to run the offense in the same way Zaire did remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: Notre Dame’s playoff hopes look grim after Zaire’s injury. As bleak as these hopes may be, this is college football, and anything can happen. In recent years, we have seen freshman quarterbacks shock the country and win the Heisman Trophy, as well as a third string quarterback win the national title; so if Kizer’s Hail Mary throw is any indication, Notre Dame fans might be in store for something special – maybe even divine.
