CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2019 Notre Dame

11–⁠2, coached by Brian Kelly, finished No. 12 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Notre Dame in 2019, game by game: won at Louisville 35–17; won vs. New Mexico 66–14; lost at No. 3 Georgia 17–23; won vs. No. 18 Virginia 35–20; won vs. Bowling Green 52–0; won vs. USC 30–27; lost at No. 19 Michigan 14–45; won vs. Virginia Tech 21–20; won at Duke 38–7; won vs. No. 21 Navy 52–20; won vs. Boston College 40–7; won at Stanford 45–24; won vs. Iowa State 33–9+52−31Won 35–17 at Louisville+18LouisvilleWon 66–14 vs. New Mexico+52New MexicoLost 17–23 at No. 3 Georgia-6No. 3 GeorgiaWon 35–20 vs. No. 18 Virginia+15No. 18 VirginiaWon 52–0 vs. Bowling Green+52Bowling GreenWon 30–27 vs. USC+3USCLost 14–45 at No. 19 Michigan-31No. 19 MichiganWon 21–20 vs. Virginia Tech+1Virginia TechWon 38–7 at Duke+31DukeWon 52–20 vs. No. 21 Navy+32No. 21 NavyWon 40–7 vs. Boston College+33Boston CollegeWon 45–24 at Stanford+21StanfordWon 33–9 vs. Iowa State+24Iowa State
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2atLouisvilleW 35–⁠1779%
Sep 14vsNew MexicoW 66–⁠1488%
Sep 21at3GeorgiaL 17–⁠2341%
Sep 28vs18VirginiaW 35–⁠2069%
Oct 5vsBowling GreenW 52–⁠093%
Oct 12vsUSCW 30–⁠2774%
Oct 26at19MichiganL 14–⁠4552%
Nov 2vsVirginia TechW 21–⁠2077%
Nov 9atDukeW 38–⁠760%
Nov 16vs21NavyW 52–⁠2076%
Nov 23vsBoston CollegeW 40–⁠781%
Nov 30atStanfordW 45–⁠2476%
Dec 28Bowls & playoffvsIowa StateCamping World BowlW 33–⁠969%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Iowa State 33–⁠9 in the Camping World Bowl; No. 12 in the final AP poll.

In program history: The 17th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 131 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 9
  2. Wk 2: 8
  3. Wk 3: 7
  4. Wk 4: 7
  5. Wk 5: 10
  6. Wk 6: 9
  7. Wk 7: 9
  8. Wk 8: 8
  9. Wk 9: 8
  10. Wk 10: 16
  11. Wk 11: 15
  12. Wk 12: 16
  13. Wk 13: 15
  14. Wk 14: 15
  15. Wk 15: 14
  16. Wk 16: 14
  17. Final: 12
Record
11–⁠2
Conference
—
AP final
No. 12 peak No. 7
Points
478–⁠233
Coach
Brian Kelly
Elo
1776 +85 this season
SP+ rating
17.7 No. 19 of 130; offense No. 20, defense No. 22, special teams No. 48
SRS
17.2 No. 11 of 130 in FBS
Returning
66% of last season’s EPA, No. 55 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 16 roster talent No. 14 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Chip Long
Defensive coordinator
Clark Lea
Captains
Ian Book, Jalen Elliott, Chris Finke, Alohi Gilman, Robert Hainsey and Khalid Kareem
Most valuable player
Chase Claypool
Offense
Spread
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense17th of 130
  • Defense10th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted25th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted9th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.2146%1.2817th of 130
Defense-0.0339%1.0810th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.18 off
-0.02 def		46% off
39% def		—25th off
9th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.1own 3119% allowed
Defense3.1own 2626% caused

CORE rating 14.7, 15th of 130 (offense 3.5, defense -11.2).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsIan Book QB3,034 yds
Passing touchdownsIan Book QB34 TD
Rushing yardsTony Jones Jr. RB857 yds
Rushing touchdownsTony Jones Jr. RB6 TD
Receiving yardsChase Claypool WR1,037 yds
Receiving touchdownsChase Claypool WR13 TD
TacklesDrew White LB80 tkl
SacksJeremiah Owusu-Koramoah LB8.5 sacks
InterceptionsKyle Hamilton S4 INT

Top recruits in the 2019 class

Kyle Hamilton S★★★★No. 60
Zeke Correll OC★★★★No. 95
Quinn Carroll OT★★★★No. 118
Jacob Lacey DT★★★★No. 175
Andrew Kristofic OT★★★★No. 184
John Olmstead OT★★★★No. 186
Isaiah Rutherford CB★★★★No. 196
Isaiah Foskey WDE★★★★No. 212

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2019 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.884
Running backs14.00.896
Receivers13.00.875
Offensive line44.00.939
Defensive line63.70.887
Linebackers43.80.898
Defensive backs44.00.926
Athletes and specialists33.00.841
Whole class243.70.898

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2020

The 2020 draft
Rd 2Cole Kmet TEChicago Bears
Rd 2Chase Claypool WRPittsburgh Steelers
Rd 3Julian Okwara OLBDetroit Lions
Rd 4Troy Pride Jr. CBCarolina Panthers
Rd 5Khalid Kareem DECincinnati Bengals
Rd 6Alohi Gilman SLos Angeles Chargers

Roster 119

The 2019 roster

119 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2019 line; 69 have a stat line. See the roster