ARLINGTON, Texas — Brandon Wimbush set two goals for himself at Notre Dame: graduate and win a national championship.
Losing his job as the team’s starting quarterback didn’t change those goals.
“That’s our standards of excellence here and I’m fully bought in on that,” he said on Thursday at Cotton Bowl media day inside AT&T Stadium. “That’s why I’m here and that’s why I’m sticking by my guys.”
After leading Notre Dame to 10 victories a year ago and getting the Irish off to a 3-0 start, he was replaced by Ian Book. Notre Dame’s offense, handcuffed by Wimbush’s passing struggles, was averaging just 23.3 points per game, and Book took the unit to another level.
On Monday, Stadium’s Brett McMurphy reported Wimbush was planning to transfer. The New Jersey native said Thursday he will make that decision when the season is complete. As a graduate transfer, Wimbush would be immediately eligible and a hot commodity among quarterback-needy programs.
“I want to play football at the highest level, meaning the NFL, so whatever gives me the best opportunity to do that, I’ll go that route,” Wimbush said.
Both coach Brian Kelly and Book raved about Wimbush’s leadership and maturity during the difficult transition. The two quarterbacks remain close friends.
“They’re just unique young men in that they really care about each other and they’re selfless,” Kelly said. “It’s rare.”
It was the beginning of the end for Clemsoning, the made-up word once used to describe a collapse by the Tigers. It was also the last time Notre Dame and Clemson met: Oct. 3, 2015.
Both teams entered the showdown undefeated. The Tigers prevailed 24-22 in Death Valley and went on to shed their chokers label, reaching the national championship game, where they lost a heartbreaker to Alabama.
“That was such a big game for us and kind of a turning point,” WR Hunter Renfrow , a freshman then, said.
Clemson was up big, taking a 21-3 lead into the fourth quarter, but needed to hold off a DeShone Kizer-led Irish rally, stopping a two-point conversion with seven seconds remaining.
“I think we’ve made a lot of steps along the way, and that was definitely one of those steps,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said.
Clemson has become a national powerhouse, second only to Alabama. Notre Dame has joined them on the sport’s biggest stage for now.
