I think ND can make a Nat'l championship run in '07.

If memory serves me correct, the last two nat'l championships came in years when people didn't expect it (A Holtz rebuilding year, Montana coming from off the bench etc etc). Hence, the team didn't start off the season with the weight of the world on their shoulders.

Next year, with all the pundit attention ND gets, could be quite a mess for the team to deal with.
atepesm | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 2:10 pm | #

It's possible, but I expect a little bit of a letdown after all-world BQ ankles to the NFL. Somebody out of Sharpley, Wolke, Frazer and Jones will be taking over, and unlike Brady, who had two years of starting under his belt, the next guy's going to be relatively green.

Who knows, though -- maybe by then we'll have a top-10 rushing game (Aldridge, Walker, Schmidt, Schwapp, Prince, etc), and our offense might have a completely different flavor. If we've learned anything about Charlie, it's that he'll adjust to his team's strengths.
Jay | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 2:22 pm | #

Very true, Jay.

If there's a Corey Dillon (2004 version) among that group of backs, you can be sure that Chaz will pound it deep into the hole with regularity. In that scenario, the young QB can pass in non-obvious situations using a lot of play action.

Take a look at what Weis did with Brady when Mo Lewis went happy-go-jacky on Bledsoe. He kept it simple to start with, and once Brady had more confidence, he took some shots down the field.
Coach Leahy | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 2:41 pm | #

Year number "3" for the coach has typically turned out to be a charm.
snark | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 2:45 pm | #

My hopes are that Charlie is able to land the youngest Clausen brother as the star QB. His freshman year would be in 2007 (right after Quinn graduates), and if the power running game can support a freshman QB learning the ropes, then Quinn's records may not last for very long. This Clausen kid is supposed to be the most highly recruited QB in high school, and he is only a junior. The current top schools on his list are ND and USC.
Domer97 | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 2:50 pm | #

About 1st year starters and "National Championships", remember how USC was supposed to be down because Palmer graduated and some guy named Leinhart was starting?

For now? Beat Stanford. (Charlie would be proud of me for staying on message.)
SeanH | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 2:55 pm | #

It could be quite an interesting year in '07 even when Brady leaves. We have two great QBs coming in this year with a long time to learn the system and be coached. More importantly though, while this year's team is great, with the way Charlie is recruiting we should expect that by '07 the overall speed and talent level of the team should be significantly upgraded. This means a faster defense, with and increase at 'talent' across the board at positions such as CB, S, LB and OL. These coaches have shown an excellent ability to really teach these players to improve, and I truly believe the sky's the limit. Lastly, though back-to-back trips to Happy Valley and Ann Arbor look rough, the fact that they are back-to-back means that the team will be quite used to significant crowd noise, which can make the second seem a bit less scary.
Brad | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 3:04 pm | #

Minor note: unless we are playing Duke on a Sunday, the 2007 game should be 11/24/2007, not 11/25/2007.

The first eight games of the 2007 are a bear, especially since Brady Quinn will likely not be at ND.

The UNC and Army games in 2006 will be the "four-ticket" games.
Dad the Domer | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 3:05 pm | #

That is one brutal schedule (especially penn st and Michican't back to back). Though it is to early to say how hard the opponents will be next year, regardless they are still top 25 talent teams. I am not to worried though as Charlie will always give us the advantage each week. Speaking of Penn st they do remind me of ND's situation this year as what a difference a coach makes. After 34 years as their offensive coor he finally stepped down and in came a new one and now look at them. You gotta know your x's and o's.
James | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 3:15 pm | #

DtD -- I think the typo is with the Stanford game on UND.com. They list it on 11/25/07, which is a Sunday.
Jay | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 3:24 pm | #

Looking at next year's schedule...it obviously looks tough, but shouldn't GT and PSU have new QB's? I believe Reggie Ball and Michael Robinson are both seniors, so that might help us out a bit.

And do we give Stanford the same consideration as USC by playing home games in the warmer October time and away games in November? Being lazy and not looking at old schedules, I had never noticed that before.

And away games at the Big House and Happy Valley! I'm already looking forward to the next couple of years!
ND fan | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 3:51 pm | #

Every pundit and his brother will have us in their top 3 to open next season. Most will place us at #1. It's going to be a challenge for Charlie to keep them focused and fired-up through that schedule. I think that we will beat USC but I am worried about a letdown somewhere in the middle - Stanford, UM, etc. These schedules lack the advantageous placement of bye weeks that we got this year. It would be nice to see BQ square-up with Vince Young (if he stays) for the NC!

As for '07, I am not worried about the QB situation. I think Charlie will have Frazer or Jones ready to roll before that season begins. One of them will be on the field a lot in November next year. Jimmy Clausen should take his show over to USC in the tradition of Todd Marinovich. I may be wrong but I have serious concerns about a kid who gets held back a year in grammar school.

I also have faith that Minter and his crew will have a wrecking machine defense built by then. I see signs of life this year and I remember the Zorich years fondly.
Ben | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 3:55 pm | #

For 2007, I thought that Kevin White removed BC from future schedules for trashing or locker room a few years back, or dashing our hopes season after season.
The Contrarian | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 4:18 pm | #

We did remove BC from future schedules, but we still have contracts to play them like 4 more times I believe. THEN they are off the schedule.
Brad | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 4:24 pm | #

BC was off because of our commitment to schedule 3 Big East games in the future. They had been one of them.

As for Claussen and grammar school, when we liven in Atlanta it was standard practice to hold all the boys back one year so they would be bigger for football. Being from the north and a family of small people we did not do that. As a result, Matt is one grade ahead of all his friends from Atlanta. Fortunately, when we moved to Virginia he is more or less on track. However, a number of the boys were held back here too. I would not read anything into the decision to hold him back other than football.

Reggie Ball is back for one more year, but Michael Robinson does leave.

Our NC run will have to come next year. UM, PSU, UCLA at home. Only USC on the road. Without BQ, I can't see making a run with a first year starter and all those road games. Never know though.
Andy | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 4:36 pm | #

ND fan,

Reggie Ball at GT is only a junior and will return, as will their stud wide receiver Calvin Johnson. This may even be something of a trap game on the road to start next season. Of course, all of this was said about Pitt this year, and, well...

I remain among the few who believes that the '06 slate might actually turn out worse for us than '07. The O-line and D-line will take major losses, and we will be so thin at linebacker they'll have to run around in the shower to get wet.

I agree with Brad and Ben, though: I have confidence in Charlie's recruiting and Minter's coaching that by '07 we will be much deeper in the places where football games are truly won and lost -- the lines.
Chi-townTexan | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 5:38 pm | #

FWIW, Penn State's year looks like it's going to be a one-year fluke. They graduate Robinson, four or five starting OL, the entire DL, the entire secondary, and I think a linebacker. While they've recruited skill positions well recently, I don't think they've done quite as well on the lines. You'll be picking up Morelli in his second start behind a totally new OL and firing at a totally green secondary. I wouldn't get too worried.
Brian @ mgoblog | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 5:39 pm | #

For 06, you've got the Big 10 Champ and the probable national Champ (PSU and USC), some solid teams (UCLA, Mich, GTech), some middling teams (Purdue, MSU, Stanford, NC) and the academies. That seems like a nice balance from a year out.
PantsB | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 6:50 pm | #

let's not put too much pressure on these guys for next year... they will be loaded, but the schedule can be ridiculously hard (like many years. But not this one, obviously).
James | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 8:01 pm | #

Is there a return game to UNC on the schedule down the road. I'd like to combine a road trip to Chapel Hill with an ND game.
Tom | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 9:32 pm | #

One web site showing future schedules has us playing at UNC on 10/18/2008. I have seen another web site state the same.

(http://www.maplenet.net/~trowbridge/NDSched.htm)
Dad the Domer | Email | Homepage | 11.22.05 - 11:06 pm | #

My God, ND plays all three service academies in '06?!

Umm... only the service academies do that.
Ben | Email | Homepage | 12.01.05 - 11:31 am | #

I don't know how any of you can say USC is going to be half as good as they are now. Assuming LenDale White stays, they will have a new QB and a defense whose weaknesses this year were only masked by the sheer dominance of their offense. ND shouldn't be worried about USC next year, as the game will most likely feature two similar teams with offensive capabilities and an evolving defense.

There are four possible losses in the 06 schedule: GTech, Michigan, Michigan State and Stanford.

Beware of revenge games. Michigan has lost a lot to ND in the recent past, so they will be hungrier next year. As will Stanford following this year's defeat. Michigan still has more talent than ND, and if improvements are made by the coaching staff, ND will have to play mistake-free football simply to keep it close. ND has a terrible habit of losing to MSU as well. This must be corrected next year with a convincing win, esp. considering the Michigan game is nowhere near an assurance. GTech could be a complacency game. If ND is ranked high and they go into GTech unprepared, they may well lose. So, next year is a big question mark for this team. I'm inclined to believe there will only be one-two loss(es), to Michigan and maybe to MSU.
Mike | Email | Homepage | 12.08.05 - 2:14 am | #