The University of Notre Dame is nothing more than a small Catholic school in the middle of the state of Indiana. However, anyone that has ever seen college football can tell you that the small school is one of the greatest programs of all time. They have won double digit national championships, they also have the most Heisman winners in college football history, and some of the greatest players to ever put on a football helmet have spent their college years in South Bend.

 But it’s been over 30 years since the fighting Irish of Notre Dame have been to the mountaintop of college football. With the way that their recent seasons have gone and with the way that their offensive coordinator search is currently going, it may very well be another 30 years before they reach that mountain top once again. They all but officially hired Utah offensive coordinator, Andy Ludwig, at least until the issue of his nearly $3000,000 buyout came to the table.

Now at a school like Notre Dame $3 million especially when it comes to a football related issue is nothing more than a drop in the bucket. So for the Fighting Irish to not want to pony up that kind of money shows that the school is just no longer serious about winning football games. At least football games that actually matter like playoff victories, and national championships.

As it seems Athletic Director, Jack Swarbrick has become comfortable with going 12 and 0 and making it to the playoffs but going no further. When Marcus Freeman was officially named as the head coach of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish after Brian Kelly skipped town, fans saw it as a new opportunity and a new beginning for a program that has struggled more than ever over the last 20 years.

Make no mistake about it, the school has had some great moments over the last 20 years in football but nothing quite like what they are used to. This is a program that is used to lifting national championship trophies, and being one of the best teams in the country year in and year out. But today, as I sit here writing this article, as a lifelong Notre Dame fan it kills me to say that this just isn’t the same program that people like my grandfather and older generations grew up watching.

This Notre Dame program is nothing more than a shell of itself these days. From countless academic scandals, and several other missteps under the Brian Kelly era, to the Freeman era and home losses to Marshall, It just never seems to get better these days. At this rate, Notre Dame may never be considered a national championship contender again and they will just fall in line with the other 60+ teams that play power five schedules every season, but have zero chance of sniffing the playoffs or lifting the championship trophy.

They will need to make an absolute homerun when they hire their next offensive coordinator and at the moment, all signs point to it being their current tight ends coach. In today’s world of college football I’m not sure if that’ll be enough to move the needle and get them over the mountain top.

Even if you do consider Notre Dame as Tight End U like many do, a lot of people were expecting them to go out and hire an experienced offensive coordinator, and simply not promote from within. 2023 will be a massive year in the trajectory of this program as it is expected to be one of the best recruiting classes ever. If they still fail to produce results, then questions will need to be asked, and one of those main questions are, is Notre Dame a dying program?