Notre Dame Gets Shut Out Of The All-American Teams

The Irish failed to place a single player on a first, second or third-team All-American squad.
Angela Driskell, Journey Websites

Notre Dame has had quite an interesting football season. On the surface it seems impressive, but in other ways it was underwhelming.

The Fighting Irish were a preseason Top 10 team and remained in the Top 10 until late August. Notre Dame finished the season with a 10-2 record, ranked No. 15 in the College Football Playoff ranking and wins over three Top 25 opponents.

But it seems Notre Dame’s record and season-ending results weren’t overly impressive to outsiders.

All of the post-season awards have been handed out and most of the All-American teams have been released. Outside of long snapper John Shannon winning the inaugural award for that position and linebacker Asmar Bilal being named an honorable mention All-American by Pro Football Focus, the Irish were shut out of the postseason honors.

The only decorated Notre Dame player was safety Kyle Hamilton, who made every Freshman All-American squad imaginable.

It marks the first time since 2013 that Notre Dame didn’t place at least one player on a first or second-team All-American squad, and the first time since 2014 it didn’t place at least two players on those lists.

The College Football Playoff committee, the voters for the Associated Press and Coaches Polls, and the decision makers for the national All-American squads were simply not impressed by what Notre Dame accomplished this season. Well, that’s at least part of it.

That’s a bit surprising for a 10-2 team that lost to a pair of Top 15 teams.

In all my conversations about the topic the main reason is that Notre Dame doesn’t get respect, or there is a bias against Notre Dame, or those voters are “haters.”

Those same “haters” named named six different Notre Dame players to a first or second-team squad last season. Even the 4-8 Notre Dame team from 2016 had three players earn at least one second-team All-American honor.

So what are the reasons for the lack of postseason honors for the Irish players? I think the reasons are different than why the Notre Dame team failed to get much respect for the different polls.

No one on the 2019 Notre Dame team had eye-popping statistics, like we saw from Jerry Tillery, Julian Love or Te’von Coney last season. The only player who popped off on film as “dominant” this season was wide receiver Chase Claypool, who was brilliant for the Irish, but his production doesn’t match other top wideouts that earned All-American honors.

Injuries played a role as well, with standout tight end Cole Kmet missing two games with a shoulder injury and defensive end Julian Okwara missing the final three games of the season with a leg injury. Erratic quarterback play also sapped Claypool and Kmet’s numbers, and Okwara never really lived up to his preseason expectations.

Notre Dame’s underachieving offensive line also played a role. This season marked the first time since 2014 that Notre Dame failed to place a single blocker on a first or second-team All-American squad.

There are some positive reasons for the lack of All-American honors as well, especially on defense. On top of no one having eye-popping numbers, the Notre Dame defense simply lacked the kind of “big-time” play from top-level players that it got from Tillery, Love, Okwara, Coney, Drue Tranquill and Alohi Gilman a season ago.

The 2019 defense was more about the sum being greater than the parts. It seemed every week there were different players stepping up to make plays, and the best players on the defense (Khalid Kareem, Gilman) were often doing the dirty work and leading with their toughness more than they were making the game changing plays that can often lead to All-American recognition.

There is another reason that helps explain why Notre Dame failed to garner much All-American recognition, and why the team failed to impress voters. The Irish had three primetime games this season, and they didn’t impress in any of them.

Notre Dame’s lone victory came against USC, but the way the Irish played in the second half had the discussion being more about the Trojan comeback than how well the Irish played in the first half. It was a win, but the 30-27 victory didn’t knock anyone’s socks off.

The Irish came up short in the loss at Georgia, and no one stepped up with the kind of money plays needed to not only win the game, but also to warrant All-American honors. Kmet and Claypool were outstanding, but when the game was on the line neither got a chance to make a play.

Of course, the final memory most voters and pollsters likely have of Notre Dame was the debacle in Ann Arbor. Notre Dame got spanked by the Wolverines, and the lackluster performance in all three phases of the game likely left as sour of a taste in the mouths of voters and pollsters as it did in that of many Irish fans, and this analyst.

That game came to define the Notre Dame season. When the stage was brightest the Irish came up short, and did so in devastatingly poor fashion. One has to wonder if all the perceived “primetime” failures in recent seasons have finally worn on outsiders as much as they have many Irish fans.

With Clemson, USC and Wisconsin on the 2020 schedule there will certainly be more opportunities for Notre Dame to play in and win a big game against a top opponent, something it hasn’t done since the opening Saturday of the 2018 season.

If the Irish are able to play to their potential and win a couple of those big games I’d be willing to bet the Irish will be well represented on next season’s All-American teams.

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Bryan Driskell
BRYAN DRISKELL

Bryan Driskell is the publisher of Irish Breakdown and has been covering Notre Dame football for over a decade. A former college football player and coach, Bryan and Irish Breakdown bring a level of expertise and analysis that is unmatched. From providing in depth looks at the Fighting Irish, breaking news stories and honest recruiting analysis, Irish Breakdown has everything Notre Dame football fans want and need. Bryan was previous a football analyst for Blue & Gold Illustrated before launching Irish Breakdown. He coached college football at Duquesne University, Muhlenberg College, Christopher Newport University, Wittenberg University and Defiance College. During his coaching career he was a pass game coordinator, recruiting coordinator, quarterbacks coach, running backs coach and wide receivers coach. Bryan earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Salisbury University, where he played quarterback for the Sea Gulls. You can email Bryan at bryan@irishbreakdown.com. Become a premium Irish Breakdown member, which grants you access to all of our premium content and our premium message board! Click on the link below for more. BECOME A MEMBER Be sure to stay locked into Irish Breakdown all the time! Follow Bryan on Twitter: @CoachD178Like and follow Irish Breakdown on FacebookSubscribe to the Irish Breakdown YouTube channelSubscribe to the Irish Breakdown podcast on iTunes Sign up for the FREE Irish Breakdown daily newsletter