Student survey reveals high expectations for Golson, team

Over the summer, the Irish Rover Sports Editors disseminated a Google poll to gauge the reactions of Irish fans to the upcoming football season.  Respondents were asked questions ranging from which home game they were most excited about, to their opinion of the Campus Crossroads project.  The survey received over 50 responses, 56 percent of which came from students currently attending Notre Dame.

Overall, respondents were very enthusiastic for the 2014-2015 football campaign with 71 percent reporting “very high” or “high” enthusiasm for the upcoming season.  Much of this excitement stems from the return of quarterback Everett Golson. Golson himself received a net approval rating of 58 percent with 77 percent of respondents showing great faith in the quarterback.  Golson lived up to this rating with five touchdowns against the Rice Owls, his first game since returning to the university, and three against bitter rival Michigan.

The Michigan game was by far the most anticipated of the Fighting Irish’s home schedule this year, netting over 50 percent of the total vote.  Tied in second with ten percent are the October 4 matchup against Stanford in the Battle for the Legends Trophy and the November 15 game against Chicago-based Northwestern.  Forty-eight percent of respondents ranked the October 18 game against Florida State as the most anticipated game of the away slate.

Brian Kelly fared well in the survey, with 59 percent of respondents ranking his performance in his first four seasons as good or very good and only four percent as poor or very poor.  In fact, over 87 percent of respondents approve of Brian Kelly as the head coach of the Fighting Irish. This is despite multiple scandals involving academic ineligibility, including the expulsion of Golson.  Kelly’s time at Notre Dame has not been entirely smooth sailing, as he has clashed with the student section on several issues, most recently last season in his decision to disallow players from remaining on the field to sing the Alma Mater after a loss.  The decision was reversed by the team at the beginning of this season.

The 2014 team has high expectations despite having two new coordinators and a host of new starters both on offense and defense.  Seventy percent of respondents to the survey believe the Irish will finish the regular season with nine or more wins, with 17 percent predicting a perfect campaign.  Following a defensive performance the likes of which the University of Michigan has not witnessed since 1984 (the last year the Wolverines were shut out in a game), the defense may be well on its way to replicating the dominance of the 2012 squad.

The Campus Crossroads project did not fare as well, scoring a net favorability rating of 14 percent.  The project has been controversial, facing stiff opposition from many students.  The central problem expressed is a concern in the reorientation of the center of Notre Dame’s campus from the traditional Dome-Basilica-centric design to one revolving around Notre Dame Stadium.  Already the administration has announced that the Commencement Exercises for the Class of 2015 will have to be relocated due to construction in and around the stadium.

Regardless of opinions on the expansion of Notre Dame Stadium, students still support the Fighting Irish football team and the 2014 team seems to have a special feel to it.  With a performance living up to his vaunted expectations, Everett Golson could find himself in the National Football League next season playing professionally.  Some wide receivers, such as Will Fuller and Chris Brown, seem to be just one play away from being the threat that Irish fans have dreamed of since Michael Floyd graduated and was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals.  Even Ben Koyack seems poised to lift the mantle of Tyler Eifert, Kyle Rudolph, Anthony Fasano, and Troy Niklas as the latest in a long line of great Notre Dame tight ends.

To be sure, the team still has a long way to go.  Games against Florida State, Stanford, Southern California, Northwestern, Louisville, and North Carolina will not be easy.  However, with the impressive performances logged thus far in the season, with Everett Golson’s uncanny ability to escape a collapsing pocket, and Joe Schmidt’s sixth sense when it comes to sniffing out offensive play-calling, many fans are starting to wonder if this team could go on an historic run.

Ten games remain until the Irish discover whether they will be invited to the inaugural College Football Playoff and without a doubt, it’s going to be an exciting ride.

 

John McMackin is a junior studying history and theology and living in Keenan Hall. He’s excited to be headed to the Shamrock Series game in Indianapolis. To share some hip restaurant locations, or just to chat, contact him at jmcmack1@nd.edu.