The ND offense under Chip Long looked like the offense of very talented Semi-Pro team. Very little consistency but made lots of big plays vs out manned opponents.
But when ND ran into ranked Power 5 teams with equal athletes (Georgia, Michigan, USC) ND struggled to score points. ND could not break 30 vs USC who did not have a good defense, and could not break 20 vs Georgia or Michigan.who did have good defenses.
ND needs more consistency out of the O-Line regarding run blocking, more talent at RB, and way more consistency out of the QB position vs top flight opponents.
When you cannot run the ball, you have 2 choices.
1. Get a QB like Joe Burrow, go Empty Set, Scat Protection and operate. Until the defense loosens up.
2. You abandon the run, the pass rush tees off on you, and you struggle to score points.
That is ND's world right now, when they cannot run the ball