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NCAA Football

Notre Dame Right to Have “Supreme Confidence” in Malik Zaire

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Richard Mackson – USA TODAY Sports

When news broke out of South Bend that Everett Golson would be transferring for his final year of eligibility, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish took the news in stride. In a statement from head coach Brian Kelly, the program thanked Golson for his time with the team but revealed that this decision did not take the coaching staff entirely by surprise. According to the release, the team had been preparing “with this possibility in mind” and went on to say they had “supreme confidence” in new starter Malik Zaire moving forward, and with good reason.

Zaire came to Notre Dame as the No. 5 dual-threat quarterback recruit in the nation and has shown tremendous promise when given the opportunity. He appeared in seven games last season, coming in for specific packages at first before outright replacing Golson against the USC Trojans in the regular season finale and starting the Music City Bowl against the LSU Tigers. In that start, Zaire was an efficient 12-of-15 passing for 96 yards and a touchdown while rushing 22 times for 96 yards and another touchdown in a 31-28 win.

He has seemingly carried that momentum over into the spring and would have likely demanded an expanded role in the offense next season even if he hadn’t beaten out Golson for the starter’s job. Zaire’s athletic ability are on par (if not even better) with Golson and he possesses incredible arm strength to stretch the field in the passing game. Many people see similarities between Zaire’s rise and Golson’s back when he was a redshirt freshman and led the Irish to the BCS National Championship game.

Where Irish fans hope the comparison parts, however, is in how the next chapter unfolds for Zaire. Golson’s career got derailed when he got into trouble academically and was suspended from school for the entire 2013 season. When he made it back for the 2014 season, he suffered a drastic slide in his decision making and ball security, committing 22 turnovers in the final 10 games of the season (in which Notre Dame went just 5-5). Now, he’s hoping a fresh start somewhere new will help fix the flaws that have developed in his game.

The hope for Zaire is that he can stay out of trouble and continue to unlock his massive potential in South Bend. So far, he’s shown great athleticism balanced with sound decision making as he has avoided the turnover bug that plagued Golson last season. If he can stay on the path he is on now, Malik Zaire has all the tools to be a truly special quarterback for Notre Dame and reward Brian Kelly for the “supreme confidence” he is showing in him now.

You can follow Tyler Brett on Twitter @ATylerBrett, on Facebook and on Google.

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