Notre Dame Football: Hot and Cold Takes for Iowa State

Quick Note

Bowl Season is upon us and the talk of the town has been the firing of Chip Long and the search (both inside and outside of the current staff) for a new Offensive Coordinator. Do the Irish put their faith in Tom (tommy) Rees? Do they look for outside hires? Do they abandon the run and just let Kelly throw the ball 100 times a game? These are the types of debates that hit home during this Holiday Season, and no better place to continue those debates than right here.

I am of the mindset of letting Rees make his debut as a play caller during this bowl game, and evaluating based off of that. I am hoping for the best as it clearly seems like the players want to perform well in his debut. He also has plenty of time to prepare so there should be no excuses. Either the offense comes out and shines, or it doesn’t. However you feel about the situation, it has at least made a great storyline for the otherwise uninspiring matchup in Orlando in the Camping World Bowl against the formidable Iowa St. Cyclones.

Back to the Regularly Scheduled Program

I’ve gotten off track here, so let’s get to the content the people want. HOT AND COLD BOWL TAKES. Bowl takes tend to be wild as there are so many factors that go into these games. Are the teams motivated? Are all of the players playing? Are players going to be tired after spending time in Harry Potter World (this definitely isn’t from personal experience....).

Cold Take

Kyle Hamilton finishes with 2 interceptions

Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Iowa State is a VERY pass heavy offense, which will put Hamilton (that’s freshman All-American Kyle Hamilton to you) on the field early and often. He will be playing in the middle of the field for a lot of the game and will get plenty of opportunities to make plays on the ball. This is also a unique situation because he will more prep time for this game than any other. From everything I have heard, he is a student of the game and will take advantage of that time to dig deep into the film room. This combined with his freak athleticism and ability to always be around the ball will allow him to flourish. Hamilton will again be a bright spot for the future and will give the fans even more optimism heading into the off season.

Hot Take

Jafar Armstrong finishes with over 150 all purpose yards

Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

Jafar has been clearly banged up all year, lacking the explosion we saw last year and heard about throughout camp. It wasn’t until last week that I saw that explosion come back. He had a couple of hard runs at Stanford on limited carries. With even more time off and hopefully more opportunities should let him get loose. Also, Tom Rees will look to get creative and (finally) utilize the 2 back sets we all envisioned to start the season with Armstrong operating out of the backfield and in the slot. I have always been a big fan of Armstrong for his work ethic, personality, and overall likability. Here is to hoping he bursts on the scene this year, even if it is much later than we intended.

Your Takes: Please leave your takes below (hot, cold medium-any temp). I will feature the Top Takes next week. GO IRISH!

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