re: Was ND THAT out-talented in the NC, or is it development?

They lacked the depth to match Bama and were nowhere near ready to play in a game of that magnitude. Bama's last game was a nail biter against UGA(another team I think would've handled ND quite easily). A lot of players on that roster had also played in last year's championship game. ND's roster had ZERO big game experience to compare with that.

Also, Bama was the most "balanced" offense they faced all year with the best OL unit.

The Sooners could chuck it around but didn't have the OL to protect or run.

The Trojans had their backup QB play the whole game.

And Stanford at the time could run the ball but hadn't established a solid passing game.

And yes, they were out-talented as a team and possibly not as developed(jury is still kinda out on Kelly IMO)