All I hear is how Notre Dame is going to lose and still make the playoffs, as if the outcome is somehow already decided. They could be right, but last I checked, the game was played on the field, not on the main board at rivals, so yea. You look at Clemson and this year fits their MO - they have some near misses during the season playing a few patsies and half the time it's a question of keeping them motivated through all the blowout wins with all the talent they have on that team. They ebb and flow and are vulnerable at times through the season. Later on, when the playoffs come, they're capable of taking it to a whole nother level and can even blow out other elite teams like Alabama and OSU. Did ND catch them in the doldrums during the regular season on the road with Lawrence out and half the defense injured? To be fair, yea we probably did. I think part of it was that Ian Book when from a guy that looked indecisive and couldn't complete short screen passes and whether he wanted to scramble or stay in the pocket, to a guy that literally conjured up echos of Johnny Manzel with his improvisational skills and had Clemson on their heels for a good portion of the night. I mean seriously, Skalski was out and Book repeatedly made Venables kid (the linebacker, not the DC) look ridiculous on several plays. I don't think they had fully accounted for that heading into the previous matchup. Will they make the proper adjustments to account for this the second time around and will having Skalski and Lawrence back swing things back in Clemson's favor?
Maybe, probably. Everyone seems to think so.
Last I checked, however, these games come down to fundamentals - blocking, tackling, controlling the line of scrimmage, the run game, limiting penalties, and getting pressure on the quarterback, etc. These are the areas that Notre Dame excels at. I don't know what got into this team but guys like Tremble and Kiren Williams have been lights out on blocking and the whole line is grading out as tops in the nation. That gives us a fighting chance. Maybe Lou can tell us how many holding and false start penalties the irish have had all season, but I suspect you could probably count them all on the fingers you have attached to your hands. That's phenomenal. The Irish won the line in the first game with Clemson on both sides of the ball and there's no reason to expect that they can't do it again if they play hard nose and physical like they did before. All these things give us hope it will play out just like it did before.
Does Lawrence make that much of a difference? Ungalailai played lights out and the national analysts want to make it sound that it doesn't matter much, but to be fair I think it does matter, a lot in fact. He had a lot of yards and completions, but what matters more in these games are things like converting third downs, limiting mistakes, red zone efficiency, the leadership you provide in the huddle, etc. and Lawrence is, let's face it, a once in a generation quarterback. Who knows what his script is, but if he loses to ND on December 19th, that would be it for Clemson's 2020 season and for his college career overall. I don't see him sailing off quietly into the night without throwing haymakers at the Irish defense. Have teams gotten much pressure on him overall? Ever? If the Irish have a fighting chance they've got to disrupt him in the backfield like they did DJ Ungelailai before. I seem to recall Lawrence likes to stay in the pocket, but he's pretty athletic as well when he takes off, so we'll see.
Last time, the Irish shut down Etienne and took their chances with the passing game. The problem this time is that Lawrence and Etienne feed off one another and elevate eachother's game to lofty levels when they play together. They're like Gretzy and Curry playing together for the Oilers way back when. I don't think that was the case when Ungelailai was in there. Will it matter? Again, the Irish's best shot is still probably sticking with the same game plan and employ the same bend but don't break scheme that worked well last time.
How about intangibles? Clemson plays elite football at the end of every year and they look like they're in step with that this season. Can the Irish elevate their game accordingly not playing at home, and with dings on the offensive line? The way I look at it is this next game is basically the start of post-season play for the Irish though some argue that the game is inconsequential since we could lose and still get into the playoffs, I just don't think Brian Kelly and the Irish are looking at it that way. You beat Clemson again and all stigma of the 2012 blowout to the tide and the drubbing they took in the semifinals to the eventual NC tigers - you can toss all that out the window. The Irish would be a force to be reckoned with. And on top of it all this would be Brian Kelly's third shot in the playoffs (I count 2012 though, yes, that was before the current system was all set up), most of this team's upperclassmen have been there before so it's not so much deer in the headlights as it would be execute and control the tempo. Do the Irish have that next level that they can rise to in order to vanquish a team that let's face it, is certainly capable of winning it all? I don't really have an answer, but I will say that of all the teams since 1988, except maybe 1993, this is the squad that I have the most confidence in. They look like a team of destiny.
What would a win mean to this program? All these big wins are tough and mean a lot, but as we saw in 2012 when the Irish rose up and beat Oklahoma on the road, what lasting good did it do? They feel good and you remember them, but in my humble opinion to really move the needle you need at least two like that in the same season. Then you go from it was a fluke to it being a testimony that the program is on elite footing - and that's what Notre Dame needs. It would take all those previous shots from Joey Getherall and Reese Davis and jam them so far up their asses that they'd be burping up echos of our fightsong for weeks. Two elite wins earn you street cred in the playoffs that solidify the mindset against an alabama or OSU. It cements your footing with elite recruits that are considering Notre Dame. Two elite wins in the same season - you can't overstate how amazing that would be for this program.
Anyways, I know this is a shitty ending to a long rambling stream of consciousness, but I'm really interested in hearing all your thoughts for this upcoming game. The last one was the game of the year in college football and the ratings for this one are going to be through the roof. I fully admit I don't have a firm grasp on how it will go and I'm hopeful we do well, but we'll see.
Thanks for reading and stay safe during the pandemic!
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