When news broke that Notre Dame starting quarterback Everett Golson had been suspended for "poor academic judgment," the initial reaction among the fanbase was panic. After hiring coach Brian Kelly and giving him a fairly long leash by university standards, the coach was able to whip his ready-made team into title contenders. Hope ran high throughout the program and its faithful after years of watching from the sidelines.
Kelly started Tommy Rees during the 2011 season, mainly due to a very good freshman performance and in-game experience. But 2011 wasn't so kind to Rees as he suffered through a season of mental mistakes, and more importantly to Kelly's offensive scheme, 14 interceptions. Many were worried that just as the team began building steam, it would fall helplessly back into the void known as irrelevance.
Enter Everett Golson. Kelly rolled the dice on the entire 2012 season by starting Golson. Although he started out a bit shaky, many credit him with guiding a very talented team through an undefeated season and a berth in the BCS National Championship game.
Although the team fell short in the title game, no one was second guessing Kelly's decision to start Golson. But with Golson out of the picture for the upcoming season, do the Irish really have reason to panic? A closer look at the stats of the two quarterbacks may have the answer.
When comparing Golson's 2012 season with Rees' 2011 season, the first thing you might notice is the similarities between the two. Golson threw for 2,405 yards and a 58.8% completion rate while Rees passed for 2,871 yards while finishing the season with a 65.5% completion rate. Some may argue that Rees' 20 touchdown passes trump Golson's 12, unless you add in the 6 rushing scores Golson contributed, which makes their scoring output virtually even.
The argument can also be made that Rees' yardage totals are higher until you add rushing yardage. Golson ran for 298, while Rees, mainly a pocket passer, lost 56 yards. This puts Golson's total yardage at 2,703, while Rees comes in at 2,815, still a negligible difference.
The only difference between the two quarterbacks is their interception totals. Golson recorded only 6 interceptions to Rees' 14, but chances are good that Rees sees the field more clearly now, thanks to Kelly plugging him into the game anytime Golson began to struggle during the 2012 season. If Rees used those opportunities wisely, it's unlikely he throws more than 10 interceptions and could likely throw for more than 3,000 yards this season.
The big question on everyone's mind this preseason has been how badly Notre Dame may suffer without Everett Golson's services. But from what I can see, they're no worse for wear. Sure, Golson could scramble, but he ran mostly when he felt pressure and seldom showed the necessary patience to wait for a play to materialize downfield, so it shouldn't be long before the fans settle in and see what the coaches already see.
Will the Irish return to the Big Game again this year? That's a tall order for most teams, but as we've seen recently, it's not impossible. One thing is for sure, they still have an experienced quarterback on the field to guide them.
- Kevin Hicks
@kevinhicks77
kevin.projectcfb@gmail.com
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