That our defense next year could be worse than this year.
It also could be better. Lots of guys got their feet wet this year and there were some really good athletes waiting in the wings and/or coming off injuries (Crawford, Jones, .
Jaylon Smith will be impossible to replace with one guy, but we have a good group of young guys who have skills. I think one or two of them could step up and help make up for the lost production -- 114 tackles. Coney, Bilal, Bajaras, Hayes, Kelly (fingers crossed), all have a shot at contributing to the lost production.
Joe Schmidt will not be difficult to replace. IMO any other linebacker who will be on the team could replace and improve Joe's production on the field. The MLB should, in most cases, lead the team in tackles. Schmidt had, what, half the tackles that Smith had? I find it difficult to believe that any other LB on the team would be that unproductive. Plus, he was terrible in coverage. Maybe he will be missed in the locker room (although I have some doubts about this) but the guys that ND has recruited at LB over the past few cycles are all better athletes that Schmidt. Hopefully the staff will put the best guys on the field next year.
Jarrett Grace provided some good depth coming off the bench this year, particularly against Navy and OSU. His leadership will be missed more than his production. Again, we have a lot of athletes who are going to step in next year with fire in their eyes.
Matthias Farley will be difficult to replace, and we will be think at safety next year. Hopefully Redfield finally puts it together in his senior season or some of the young guns step up and surprise. But, we didn't get a ton of production out of the safety position this season anyway. Won't take much to at least equal that production. Here's hoping some of the 6 or 7 DBs we are bringing in will come ready to compete.
Elijah Shumate was always one of my favorites, and he had a decent season. See comments under Farley.
KeiVarae Russell had a surprisingly unproductive season and at times even seemed like a liability in coverage. I think guys like Crawford, Watkins, and maybe some of the true freshmen next season will step up, just like KVR did when he was a freshman.
Romeo Okwara had a big year. Too bad his redshirt was burned as a freshman, because he'd be a nice piece to bring back next year. Trumbetti has been productive at times this year, and hopefully he can make some strides toward consistency that will make up for Romeo's lost production. I like Kareem coming in next year to help get after QBs.
Sheldon Day was the heart of the DL, and his production will be difficult to replace. However, Jones coming back healthy will be huge for ND. Would have be awesome to have them both in the lineup this season, but that ship has sailed and presumably been burnt at some point during the year. I think Jones, at least, minimizes the huge loss of Day. If he comes in hungry, he could have a big year for us next year. Cage will continue to progress as well, I think. We need a few young guys to step up in the interior, but that seems to be the case every year.
All in all, while we lose a lot of talent, we have a lot of talent coming in behind them, too. We also have some pretty good productive players coming back. We might start off a little worse off, but as these guys gain experience, I expect the D to be much more athletic next year overall.
