Who’s important?

Here at Talking Irish we read a lot of articles from websites about Notre Dame Football, some good, some bad, and some just ugly.  Recently, I read a piece on Inside the Irish ranking the Top 25 Notre Dame Football players on this year’s team by Keith Arnold.  This obviously led to some debate but no big surprises.  The article also got me thinking - figuring out who the best players are is debatable but doable, but what I wanted to know is who the most important players are.  So I figured I would rank them (at least how I see it).  Of course, some of the best players will make this list but as far is positioning on the list, I will assume they will reach basic expectations based on proven success in past seasons.

#25 Daniel Smith.   With two years and minimal action in South Bend, the 6’4” wide out’s time has to come sooner than later.

#24 DaVaris Daniels.  Time for potential is over.  Can he be the future of Irish receiving?

#23 John Goodman.  Not only do we need a good receiver but we also need a veteran leader mentoring this group of young wide outs.

#22 Amir Carlisle.  This will not only deepen the Irish backfield but prove we can get top notch talent to transfer to South Bend (especially from Southern California).

#21 Prince Shembo.  With the departure of Darius Fleming, the defense needs someone who can out pressure on the quarterback from the linebacker position.  Shembo is that guy.

#20 Ishaq Williams.  Williams showed some flashes of brilliance during his freshman campaign and has built on that during the spring and summer.  We need him to develop into the defensive monster we all hope he can be.

#19 Davonte Neal.  Not since “The Rocket” have the Irish had a playmaker weapon like this kid could be.  What Atkinson has shown is a spark, but we need a flame.

#18 Kapron Lewis –Moore.  The defensive line needs someone to lead by example and be the “elder statesman” with the young and talent of Tuitt, Hounshell, Springman, Schwenke, Nix, and Day.

#17 Stephon Tuitt.  His versatility on the defensive line will come in more than handy depending on rotations, situations and God forbid, injury.

#16 Robby Toma.  Toma will make or break the slot receiver position for Kelly’s offense for 2012 and set the tone for his offense in the future.

#15 Zeke Motta.  Next to Slaughter, Motta is the most experienced member of the defensive backfield. It is imperative that Zeke performs more than adequately.

#14 Nick Tausch.  Let me know how important he is after a few two-point wins or loses.  Enough said.

#13 T.J. Jones.  With the departure of All-World Michael Floyd and the fact that heading into the fall practice Notre Dame’s best wide receiver is their tight end, a true wide receiver needs to step up.  Although there are a lot of receivers on the roster with potential, T.J. is seen as the experienced leader of the group.

#12 Theo Riddick.  Running back, wide receiver, running back, slot receiver.  Riddick was a Kelly kind of recruit before there was a Kelly recruit; get a good athletic kid on the field and figure it out later.  The Irish need Riddick to prove that point.

#11 Manti Te’o.  The cornerstone of the defense if not the entire team, as goes Manti so go the Irish.

#10 George Atkinson III.  For many happy returns of the day, and even though Wood is clearly number one, when he needs a rest we cannot slow down at the running back position and George must cement his place as the future of Notre Dame’s running game.

#9 Chris Brown and Justin Ferguson .  These two highly touted freshmen are the examples of how the Irish can reload instead of rebuild.  Notre Dame needs them to contribute at a higher level sooner than most freshmen are expected to do.

#8 Jamoris Slaughter.  The 5^th year safety (who has also played cornerback) will, like Motta, need to prove his worth.  He has to be the leader, the rock, the cornerstone, the glue that holds the defensive backfield together.  If this this does not happen, it could be very ugly defending the passing game.

#7 Cierra Wood.  The running game starts with Wood, period.  With no clear cut quarterback, the running game is more important than ever.   If Wood does not dominate (especially with the line in front of him), it would be devastating to the mental well-being of this team. 

#6 Tyler Eifert.  Currently, there is no one as important on the offensive side of the football as Eifert.  Until one or more of the receiver candidates step up, the passing game lives and dies through Eifert.

#5 Andrew Hendrix or Everett Golson.  Regardless of the starting quarterback in Dublin, it will be imperative for consistency and confidence of the offense and the team that he plays well enough to keep the job.  The Irish DO NOT need a next man because of poor or inconsistent play here.   He sets the tempo.

#1 Bennett Jackson, #1A Lo Wood,#1B  Josh Atkinson, #1C Jalen Brown.  Heading into the season not one cornerback has a college start under their belt.  Opposing offenses know this and should attack this inexperience.  This is why these players are the most important on the team, or at least in it may be the most important that they play well.