The current version of the four-team playoff appears in its twilight, and it will be remembered as a positive incremental evolution that bested its predecessor but ultimately became stale.
The hiring of Denbrock reunites him with Kelly, as the two first worked together in the late 1980s at Grand Valley State. Denbrock also spent seven years on the Notre Dame staff with Kelly.
Ridder could be in the NFL today. Instead, he's still making money, becoming a star and perhaps winning a national championship. Will this be a trend?
Freeman has brought an aura of freshness to one of college football’s stuffiest brands. Can the energy and interest nudge Notre Dame higher than the peaks it reached under Brian Kelly?