Jonathan Daniel / Getty Images

With a year to settle in at Notre Dame and adapt to college football, Jimmy Clausen looks to make his sophomore season much more successful than his freshman one was.

Clausen never vented, though, to be fair, he was pretty much off-limits to the media save for post-game interviews. He absorbed the blows, though both physical and verbal.

For those who loathe Notre Dame, and their numbers are legion, Clausen's arrival was like a gift from, well, God. There is no more marquee position in sports, perhaps, than quarterback at Notre Dame. But Clausen's predecessor, Brady Quinn, had proven a difficult character to defame. A square-jawed Midwesterner, Quinn (alias BQQB) worked hard-harder than anyone on the team--, played and spoke with determination, and never made news off the field. In fact, his sister, now married to Green Bay Packer linebacker A.J. Hawk, was an easier target for bloggers than was BQQB.

Clausen arrived as the extreme opposite of Quinn. It began with the ill-advised Humvee limo ride to the College Football Hall of Fame for his announcement that he'd chosen Notre Dame. Such a stunt was red-carpet and unwelcome in a section of the country that is shag carpet. The schaudenfreude surrounding Clausen gained momentum as a shroud of secrecy enveloped his elbow surgery; followed by a misdemeanor for driving a car in which there was alcohol (Clausen will turn 21 on September 21); followed by Notre Dame's near-comic ineptness offensively last season.

Charlie Weis, Notre Dame head coach and founder of Letsmoveon.org, spoke for Clausen, himself and the rest of the program when, after the 38-0 loss to USC last season, he advised haters, "Enjoy it now. Have (your) fun now."

The season actually ended fairly well for Clausen. In his final three games, all starts, he threw six touchdown passes against one interception. Although he still was sacked thirteen times, he lived. And, when the season was over, thanks to wins at UCLA and Stanford, he was still undefeated in his home state (a streak that will be sorely tested this November 29th at USC).

This Saturday Clausen will start Notre Dame's season opener, as opposed to being the third passer called upon that day. He will line up behind five offensive linemen, four of whom started most if not all of last season. He will throw to wideouts he played with last season (David Grimes, Duval Kamara and a far more developed Tate) and hand off to a trio of running backs who all have a year's experience.

He is nearly 20 pounds heavier. Stronger.

When Notre Dame lines up against San Diego State on Saturday, observers are going to be shocked at how far Jimmy Clausen has come in just a year. At how much more potent and in sync the Irish offense is. The Aztecs are not Georgia Tech, of course. It is easy to forget, though, that Quinn and Jeff Samardzija and Maurice Stovall and even John Carlson barely registered on anyone's NFL radar before their junior seasons.

Clausen is only a sophomore. Leading a huddle filled with sophomores and juniors and a freshman (tight end Kyle Rudolph) or two (wideout Michael Floyd). His best days are still ahead of him, as are those of this Irish offense. But they are so much nearer than the awful year that Clausen leaves behind.

More news

Joe Raymond / AP

Who will be the starting QB?

After Notre Dame's Blue and Gold game, it appears to be a three-way race for the starting QB position. Keith Arnold breaks down this race and each area of the offense as he projects the opening day starting lineup.

A Blue and Gold glimpse

CFT: ND AD confident playoff will have room for Irish

Headlines

• Label

CFT: Notre Dame QB Rees pleads not guilty

Irish: Rees, Calabrese face uncertainty after arrests

CFT: Rees arrested, charged with resisting officer

Irish: DE Lynch quits Irish football program

Kelly throws more at his four quarterbacks

CFT: Miles keeps digging his own hole on Kiel

Irish: Former ND QB Blair Kiel passes away at 50

Irish: David Robinson's son headed to ND