Why Malik Zaire must play in 2013.

The plan for true freshman and early enrollee Malik Zaire was to have him redshirt in 2013, learn the offense and get accustomed to big time college football life while senior Tommy Rees would play the backup role.  Zaire would play the role of back up in the 2014 season, maybe even pushing Golson a bit for the starting role.  Now, with Everett Golson stumbling academically, everything has changed. 

On the surface, the plan is go with Tommy Rees who has been named the starter while fellow senior (redshirt) Andrew Hendrix will be the backup so that Malik can save a year of eligibility.  However, things may be different if we look forward to the 2014 season.  First, we have to understand that there is no guarantee that Golson will make his way back to South Bend, and if he does, if he will be in the right physical or mental shape to resume his role as starting quarterback.  I think it is a 50/50 shot at best for Golson even coming back to the Notre Dame campus.  Tommy Rees will be gone, as he will have used up his four years of eligibility.  Andrew Hendrix will have a year of eligibility left, but if he has not worked his way into any quality playing time by now, it is unlikely that he will be of much assistance, and who knows if Kelly will want to use a scholarship spot on a fifth year backup quarterback. 

Zaire is the only quarterback coming in for 2013 and there are no current verbal commits at quarterback for the class of 2014.  So the best case scenario is that the Irish will have Hendrix - a fifth year senior who has not played meaningful snaps, Golson - who will have been away from the team for a season, and Zaire – a late freshman commit who may or may not have taken a game snap.   The worst case scenario - Golson does not come back and Hendrix does not return for a fifth year, leaving Zaire (who did not take a game snap because he was redshirted) and no incoming freshman quarterback with walk on Charlie Fiessinger as a backup.  Please note that Hendrix is a pre-med student and will be looking at Medical Schools for the fall of 2014.

I am not for playing freshmen unless they are absolutely necessary for the team.  This is definitely the exception to that rule.  Zaire is not needed for this season but he may be essential next season and needs to have some work in his portfolio.  Malik does not need to start, but it could be catastrophic if Notre Dame’s ONLY option in 2014 is a Redshirt Freshman with NO game experience.

It is what it is.

With Brian Kelly naming Tommy Rees as his starter for the Irish, everyone can move forward with their summer and focus on the fall without the constant speculation and questions surrounding a traditional quarterback controversy.

“We always move forward,” Kelly said. “I don’t live in the past, and I don’t spend too much time in the future. I live in the present, and in the present, we have Tommy Rees. We have Tommy Rees, who is an established player, and he will be our starter. We think Andrew Hendrix and Malik Zaire can contribute, but Tommy will be our starter.” – Brian Kelly at Grand Valley dinner in Grand Rapids

It would be nice for Rees to start against Temple in South Bend on August 21 and be 12-0 as a starter when the clock strikes zero at the end of the Stanford game in California on November 30 with no hiccups along the way, but that might be a bit much to ask.  Sure, there are concerns with Rees, especially compared to the lost incumbent – starting with speed, agility and athleticism (career long run of 12 yards and a long run of 2 yards last season) and the BIG one, turnovers (30 in his career, 24 interceptions and 6 fumbles).

On the flip side, there are a lot of programs that would love to have the experience of Tommy Rees running their offense heading into the 2013 season; appearing in a total of 33 games, 18 games as a starter (14-4), 34 passing touchdowns,  and a career passing completion of almost 58% for over 4,400 yards.

Another thing to keep in mind is that like every other player in the country, from season to season there is the excitement of the development in the off season.  Fans and coaches alike come to the first practice of the season looking to see what players have taken their game to the next level – whether they’re stronger, faster, or in the case of the quarterback - smarter and more accurate.   Maybe the most important for a quarterback from year to year is the understanding of the playbook, which is not an issue for Rees.  At the very least, fans should be excited that Rees has possibly improved and an improvement of a quarterback with a winning percentage of 82 a good thing.

The biggest thing Rees has working for him are his teammates.  The senior has the respect and loyalty of his fellow Irish players.   As far as his relationship with Coach Brian Kelly, most people see it as one of a lot of yelling and disappointment on Kelly’s side, but I see it as one of a player and coach who know each other and know what to expect from each other.

At the end of the day our choices are limited.  Option #1: Rees, who we are pretty familiar with - his good, bad and ugly as mentioned above.  Option #2: Andrew Hendrix, a 6’ 2” 220 lb. senior with limited game experience, appearing in a handful of games with no starts.  His stat line (even for a reserve) is minimal at best - 23 completions for 304 yards with 1 TD and 2 interceptions while rushing for 203 yards on 33 carries for an average of 6.2 yards per carry and one touchdown.  Option #3:  Malik Zaire, a true freshman who was an early enrollee and at 6’1” and 205 lbs. is more of a dual threat quarterback than Golson (as Golson is a scrambler and Zaire is a runner).  In my opinion, Zaire has had a solid spring and received high praise from the coaching staff while throwing the only TD pass in the Blue & Gold Scrimmage.

Note: 6’1” 185 lb. non-scholarship quarterback Charlie Fiessinger is also on the roster.