UNC Football early opponent preview: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Keeping It Heel takes a look at each of the North Carolina Tar Heels football opponents in reverse order. This week we take a look at Notre Dame.
NC State | Western Carolina | Pittsburgh | Miami | Virginia Tech | Virginia
The last time these two teams played was in 2014. Notre Dame was ranked sixth in the country, and North Carolina was in the midst of a three game losing streak.
The game ended in a tie but was a turning point for both schools. UNC, who was 2-4 at the time, would go on to win four of their next five to become bowl eligible.
Notre Dame, who was undefeated, would go on to lose five of their next six and fall completely out of national title contention.
Can the Tar Heels get the big win over Notre Dame this season?
Head Coach: Brian Kelly. Career Record 230-88-2 (59-31 at Notre Dame). This will be his eighth season at Notre Dame and fourth head coaching stop.
Kelly has also coached at Grand Valley State, Central Michigan, and Cincinnati. In his 26 seasons as a head coach, he has had a winning record 23 times. He also has three undefeated regular seasons and two Division II championships.
Best Former Player: QB Joe Montana. Four-time Super Bowl winner, three-time Super Bowl MVP, eight-time Pro Bowler, five-time All-Pro, and two-time NFL MVP.
Montana finished his career with 40,551 passing yards and 273 touchdowns. He is 16th all time in touchdowns, 17th in yards, 16th in completions, 13th in passer rating, and eighth in career wins.
Additionally Montana went 4-0 in the Super Bowl, has the second most playoff wins, and second most playoff touchdowns. When people discuss the greatest quarterback ever, it is usually Montana and New England Patriots All-Pro Tom Brady.
Montana was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000.
Second Best Former Player: WR Tim Brown. Nine-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro, has 1,094 receptions for 14,934 yards and 105 touchdowns in his career.
Brown ranks ninth all-time in touchdowns, sixth in yards, sixth in receptions, fifth in all-purpose yards, and sixth in punt return yards.
Brown holds eight NFL records, six Oakland Raiders records, and was enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 2015. Brown was also the first and one of only two wide receivers to win the Heisman Trophy.
Last Season: Went 4-8. Notre Dame is one of four independent schools that doesn’t play in a conference. The Fighting Irish’ season highlights included a win over Miami.
That was it. The Irish did not win consecutive games all season and lost to three teams who finished the season with a losing record.
This Season: Because Notre Dame is independent, they always schedule tough opponents and never play FCS schools. This season will be no different, with 11 of their opponents having winning records last season as well as making bowl games.
Notre Dame, despite their record, also had some turnover which could make winning harder once again. Despite his success, Kelly is on the hot seat in South Bend and if things don’t turn around, he may be out of a job.
The Irish do play seven home games this season, but do face some tough teams in South Bend. A 5-7 record appears likely, which would mean a second straight missed bowl game and probably a new head coach the following year.
Best Current Player: WR Equanimenous St Brown. Last season he caught the ball 58 times for 961 yards and nine touchdowns. Last season was a big jump for St. Brown, who has one reception for eight yards the year before.
St Brown will be looked on to help a passing unit that lost its top two passers last season.
Match-up: Saturday, October 7th in Chapel Hill
Prediction: The last time this game was in Chapel Hill was in 2009. UNC found a way to win that game. Both teams will be looking to start new quarterbacks, but the Tar Heels should have a slight advantage there, thanks to LSU transfer Brandon Harris.
The key will be which defense steps up best. If the Tar Heels can get some stops they should be able to get a win.
Final score: UNC 21, Notre Dame 17.
Sure, it’s Notre Dame. But like some other schools of late, the name doesn’t have the same impact that it once did. The Fighting Irish have a coach fighting for his job and another tough season ahead of them.
The game stays close, but UNC pulls away late.