I'm betting that Golson starts the bowl game and plays well enough to keep the debate going through the Spring.
That leads us to the next subject: Brian Kelly will have his most important year as a D1 head coach next year IMO. Not only will expectations be through the roof & excuses (as legit as they may be) not tolerated; it will set up his future going forward.
If I'm an NFL exec & BK has ever been on my radar, I'm watching closely how he handles 2015. With expectations sky high, will he meet (or even exceed expectations...is that possible?) them or flame out w/ another 4-5 loss season? If he can't handle the adversity & pressure he's going to go through from now thru this time next year, he sure as hell won't be able to handle the expectations of a big city NFL team.
If he can get next year's team to the CFB Playoff, then he's done a helluva job b/c all we've heard since the injuries started snowballing is how great ND should be next year. All of us ND fans know that ND hasn't done well in recent history w/ high expectations. The best years have been when ND flew under the radar and turned out to be a pleasant surprise until falling flat in the bowl game (1998, 2000, 2002, 2005, 2012).
Also, BK has been coaching a long damn time. We don't know what kept him from pulling the trigger on Golson earlier than he did. Ego/stubborness aside, he obviously never saw enough out of Zaire to give him confidence that he could lead the offense despite EG's inconsistency. Now he's got what he never wanted...a QB controversy.