QB Zaire ready to take Irish offense, run with it
When twoyear starting quarterback Everett Golson announced in the spring that he would transfer to Florida State, the makeup of Notre Dame’s offense changed overnight. Junior Malik Zaire, who assumed the starting job and started the Irish’s 2014 Music City Bowl win against LSU, is far from a stranger to Notre Dame fans, but he is a different player.
Golson and Zaire shared snaps last year, and though the coaching staff will say that both can pass and both can run, Golson was considered the passer and Zaire the runner.
Zaire was partly a specialist,
and he will be asked to pass more as the full-time starter in 2015. But given his skill set and his supporting cast — including Doak Walker Award candidate Tarean Folston at running back — Zaire will lead an offense new to Brian Kelly and Notre Dame fans. Since 2008, Kelly has never had a quarterback at Notre Dame or Cincinnati run the ball on more than 23% of snaps. That’s about to change, and that percentage could be nearly doubled.
Notre Dame will not change its base offense — it will still run a spread with a dual-threat quarterback, but it will be a spread with different strengths. Offensive coordinator Mike Sanford said building the offense’s identity has been the biggest focus and improvement since Golson’s transfer.
“There’s probably been a little bit of a shift in our identity from going into spring until now,” Sanford said. “Because of personnel situations, I think obviously the quarterback, itself, settling that has definitely changed how we’re going to go about attacking defenses, whatever that may be.”
And then, with a smile and a laugh, he said, “It could be we’re going to throw the ball 97 times a game, I don’t know.”
One thing is certain: After ranking 97th nationally, according to the Football Outsiders statistics website, in the percentage of run plays it called on standard downs — that is to say, not obvious passing situations — Notre Dame’s run-to-pass ratio will climb substantially after its quarterback change.
Essentially, Notre Dame is getting a different kind of dualthreat quarterback to allow it to run a different kind of spread.
Whereas Golson thrived passing the ball in run-pass option scenarios, Zaire will lead a runbased spread. Zone read runs — where the quarterback has to decide to run it himself or hand the ball off based on the defense — and option pitches, which were simply part of Kelly’s spread system with Golson, can be a true focal point with Zaire and Folston.
A big player who still has the ability to get around the defen- sive line and linebackers on the zone read, Zaire is almost 3 yards a carry better than Golson to this point in his career. If he continues to make the right decisions in the zone read — offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley said Zaire is “naturally good” at it — this running game that returns Folston and four offensive starting linemen will be one of the country’s most efficient.
The win against LSU, when Zaire ran the ball 22 times for 96 yards, compared to 15 passes, provides a good blueprint for what he can do with his legs. Zaire said he just does “what the game plan says,” and that running the ball was key against LSU, but it figures to be efficient against anyone with him and Folston in the backfield.
But to simply call Zaire a runner, as was the case last season, would misconstrue how Notre Dame will use him this year. The Irish’s passing game will not look the same as it did in 2014, and it’s possible Zaire would struggle as a passer in the Golson offense, but this offense has the potential to be a lot more exciting.
“I never really understood what a dual-threat quarterback is,” Zaire said. “I feel like if you’re able to sustain plays and able to keep on your feet in the pocket, those are the things that continue drives.”
Under Golson, Notre Dame ran a methodical offense, preferring to march down the field rather than pick up big chunks of yards at a time. The Irish ranked 42nd in explosiveness last year, according to Football Outsiders, as Golson found success with midrange passing.
By contrast, Zaire can be a home run hitter, as evidenced by a 68-yard touchdown pass in the Irish’s spring game, which was in the air for at least 50 yards. He and Folston still will look to maximize efficiency in the run game, but they have the ability to break free for big runs and to take advantage through the air when opponents go all-out to defend the run. Zaire still needs to improve his accuracy on shorter throws, but those aren’t the throws that made him the starter.
If all goes according to plan, Notre Dame’s offense could resemble last year’s national champion Ohio State, with a physical runner at quarterback who also has a penchant for the deep ball, and a dynamic option game star at running back. The run game will be the focus and the passing game will go for the jugular.
That’s not what Notre Dame fans are used to seeing, but if the Irish follow the Buckeyes’ lead to the College Football Playoff, nobody in South Bend will complain.