“And that is going to bring us to the end of the 1st quarter, a 1st quarter dominated by Notre Dame…” Dan Hicks.
I thought I’d start out with that comment because we haven’t heard something like that for quite some time. I liked the way I felt when I heard it. A win by any other name is still a win. I’ll take it, despite the heart palpitations it gave me.
First Drive- The first series was terrific and it was what we always expect when from this offense. Unfortunately, we haven’t seen an opening drive this fluid and efficient for some time. This was the offense I thought we were going to see all the time when Brian Kelly arrived from Cincinnati and he was going to have better players to execute his scheme. I made a note to myself after Doug Flutie said that ND was faster than we’re used to seeing and how efficient they were. Sorry to be the cynic, but I said it won’t last because that’s the way the Kelly teams play: They don’t keep up the pressure and go for the kill. One of my very few complaints, but it is a significant one.
Defense- It continues to improve, particularly with regard to the run defense. Geek Stat: Miami only managed to rush for 18 yards. Of course the sacks on Brad Kaaya subtracted 35 yards, but after excluding that, they still only have 53 yards rushing. It was Miami’s lowest rushing total of the year. Granted, Miami only rushed for 42 after the sacks were included, but they did rush for 167 yards against Florida State.
Jarron Jones- He was a man playing against children. It was a great game for him and at the best possible time for Notre Dame. He was the difference in this game, whether by his tackles/sack or by eating up double teams and allowing Nyles Morgan to roam free.
Nyles Morgan- Another great game. I can remember reading a longtime, respected, poster last year who said Morgan didn’t have the instincts to play linebacker at this level. Not to call him out, but it goes to show that we can all be wrong.
Isaac Rochelle- I thought he had a very good game, overall, but one play stood out in my mind. In the third quarter, he nearly had the Miami’s Ahmand Richards in the backfield for a loss. The Richards turned the corner and eluded Rochelle. It happens. Richards is by far the faster player. Richards then leaps over Julian Love for an additional gain. He beauty of the play is that Rochelle sticks with the runner and pushes him out of bounds after he eluded Love. It showed a lot of heart, IMO.
Secondary- I have high hopes for these young kids in the next couple of years. One thing that impressed me how they kept up with the Miami receivers. Flutie made a point out of saying how fast the Miami receivers were. The ND secondary did a great job matching their speed. Also, shouldn’t Todd Lyght get some credit for developing these young guys?
One Problem with the Defense- One constant between the Van Gorder defenses and this one is that too often, 3rd and long is just a formality. As the game progressed, it was like Miami relished being in a 3rd and long situation because they were confident they were going to convert. Third down has been a tremendous weakness for this team all year.
Josh Adams- Ran the ball well on about 4 carries in the first quarter and then I didn’t see him again until the 3rd quarter. Did I miss something? Any idea why he wasn’t used more? That 4th quarter TD run was a thing of beauty. It looked like it unfolded in slow motion. I thought he was going to be stopped at the line of scrimmage for no gain and then, BOOM! He’s off to the races. Great piece of running by Adams!
4th and 1 in the 3rd quarter- I read a lot of comments that Kizer adjusted the play. I also read quite a few comments that the play failed due to Torri Hunter’s bad block. I think some people are putting way too much stock in Doug Flutie’s analysis. I saw nothing in the development of that play that led me to believe that it was not the play that Brian Kelly sent in. Also, sure Hunter had a bad block, but that play was going nowhere. CJ Sanders was going up and back due to the high throw from Kizer. I’ll let a better football mind than me describe the play:
Offense in General- Overall, a good game. They moved the ball and scored points. The offensive line protected Kizer well all game. The receivers and Kizer were in sync for most of the game and ND rushed for 148 yards. Not perfect, but good enough.
On Side Kick- Let’s be honest, we were all caught off guard by that play. I think it was more desperation by Miami than anything else. They had to try something to get their team going. Granted, it didn’t result in any Miami points, but I think it was a game changer. If ND gets the ball and scores, Miami was probably finished. The issue I have with the player reaction and, as a result, the coaching was this:
Ugly Stats: In the 4th quarter, NBC put up a graphic about Consecutive Points allowed by Notre Dame this season. It looked like this: Texas- 17; MSU 36; Duke 21; Stanford 17; Miami 17 (at the time. Eventually 27). I didn’t realize it was that bad. But this gets back to my earlier point about not keeping the pedal to the floor and going for the throat.
I noticed more screens in this game than I have for a while, and none of them were particularly effective. Kizer tends to sail the ball high when throwing across to the sidelines. Perhaps that’s why we haven’t seen many.
Pride “fumble”- It happens. I’ve seen the ball bounce off of people during kickoffs/punts and result in fumbles several times in all of the football games I’ve watched in my life. I’ve never seen it happen twice in the same season to the same team, however. The first was Miles Boykin in the MSU game.
The Final ND TD- I was in a lounge at a hockey rink watching ND score their final TD, making the score 27-26, Miami. A man I didn’t know was sitting with some of his friends and he said, “I fully expect this imbecile Kelly to go for 2 here.” I laughed and thought, “Yeah. He’s been watching for a while.”
Brian Kelly- Hicks and Flutie made it a point to mention several times how they and Jack Swarbrick did not think that Kelly has lost his team and how they continued to think he was right for ND.
Time Outs- I will never understand the way that this team uses, or I should say abuses, time outs. Mind boggling.
Durham Smythe Fumble- Perfect hit on the ball by the Miami player. Not much Smythe could do about it. I have to say I was really impressed with Kizer following the play and getting in the pile and getting that ball. He didn’t have a perfect game, but that kid is a warrior.
Final ND Drive- First and goal at the one, the offensive line is down in a three point stance and Kizer is getting the play from the sideline. It seems like it goes on for an eternity before he turns and begins to audible the play. The entire left side of the line goes off sides. Poor job of communicating the play by the coaches. That puts you back 5 yards and eventually ND settles for a FG.
Tackling- I still see some terrible tackling. Either missed tackles altogether or broke tackles. It’s improved quite a bit, but the problem lingers.
Punt Block- All things considered, this wasn’t as big of a disaster as it could be. It was still a net 23 yard punt and Miami was still on their 32 yard line.
Justin Yoon- Great game, both on kickoffs and on FGs.
It Was Over When- Nyles Morgan sacked Kaaya on the last play of the game and not a second before. I went down to the very last moment. The pessimist in me was worried that Miami was going to score a last second touchdown, never mind a FG.
Jimmy Clausen- Pre-game, when the hosts were talking about the keys to the game Clausen starts talking about the how “scheme wins the battle.” Damn, I cringed thinking about the “decided schematic advantage.”
Mike Brey Interview- How can you not love that guy? I really enjoyed listening to him on the sideline and how he talked about the teamwork among the various coaches at ND. He’s a hell of a coach as well.
Worst comment of the game- Hicks: “Columbus just discovered another first down.”
Post of the Day-
I always love the commercials that ND sponsors during their games. This one with Ryan Roeder was really something else, however. Using gold to detect breast cancer? Man, the things I don’t know and that I can’t imagine. Thank God for folks like him. The Pacqui Kelly angle was awesome and it was a great tie-in with Breast Cancer Awareness month.
I posted last week that I thought ND was going to win out and get to a bowl game. I stand by that prediction. What do you think?
Have a great week everybody.
I thought I’d start out with that comment because we haven’t heard something like that for quite some time. I liked the way I felt when I heard it. A win by any other name is still a win. I’ll take it, despite the heart palpitations it gave me.
First Drive- The first series was terrific and it was what we always expect when from this offense. Unfortunately, we haven’t seen an opening drive this fluid and efficient for some time. This was the offense I thought we were going to see all the time when Brian Kelly arrived from Cincinnati and he was going to have better players to execute his scheme. I made a note to myself after Doug Flutie said that ND was faster than we’re used to seeing and how efficient they were. Sorry to be the cynic, but I said it won’t last because that’s the way the Kelly teams play: They don’t keep up the pressure and go for the kill. One of my very few complaints, but it is a significant one.
Defense- It continues to improve, particularly with regard to the run defense. Geek Stat: Miami only managed to rush for 18 yards. Of course the sacks on Brad Kaaya subtracted 35 yards, but after excluding that, they still only have 53 yards rushing. It was Miami’s lowest rushing total of the year. Granted, Miami only rushed for 42 after the sacks were included, but they did rush for 167 yards against Florida State.
Jarron Jones- He was a man playing against children. It was a great game for him and at the best possible time for Notre Dame. He was the difference in this game, whether by his tackles/sack or by eating up double teams and allowing Nyles Morgan to roam free.
Nyles Morgan- Another great game. I can remember reading a longtime, respected, poster last year who said Morgan didn’t have the instincts to play linebacker at this level. Not to call him out, but it goes to show that we can all be wrong.
Isaac Rochelle- I thought he had a very good game, overall, but one play stood out in my mind. In the third quarter, he nearly had the Miami’s Ahmand Richards in the backfield for a loss. The Richards turned the corner and eluded Rochelle. It happens. Richards is by far the faster player. Richards then leaps over Julian Love for an additional gain. He beauty of the play is that Rochelle sticks with the runner and pushes him out of bounds after he eluded Love. It showed a lot of heart, IMO.
Secondary- I have high hopes for these young kids in the next couple of years. One thing that impressed me how they kept up with the Miami receivers. Flutie made a point out of saying how fast the Miami receivers were. The ND secondary did a great job matching their speed. Also, shouldn’t Todd Lyght get some credit for developing these young guys?
One Problem with the Defense- One constant between the Van Gorder defenses and this one is that too often, 3rd and long is just a formality. As the game progressed, it was like Miami relished being in a 3rd and long situation because they were confident they were going to convert. Third down has been a tremendous weakness for this team all year.
Josh Adams- Ran the ball well on about 4 carries in the first quarter and then I didn’t see him again until the 3rd quarter. Did I miss something? Any idea why he wasn’t used more? That 4th quarter TD run was a thing of beauty. It looked like it unfolded in slow motion. I thought he was going to be stopped at the line of scrimmage for no gain and then, BOOM! He’s off to the races. Great piece of running by Adams!
4th and 1 in the 3rd quarter- I read a lot of comments that Kizer adjusted the play. I also read quite a few comments that the play failed due to Torri Hunter’s bad block. I think some people are putting way too much stock in Doug Flutie’s analysis. I saw nothing in the development of that play that led me to believe that it was not the play that Brian Kelly sent in. Also, sure Hunter had a bad block, but that play was going nowhere. CJ Sanders was going up and back due to the high throw from Kizer. I’ll let a better football mind than me describe the play:
Offense in General- Overall, a good game. They moved the ball and scored points. The offensive line protected Kizer well all game. The receivers and Kizer were in sync for most of the game and ND rushed for 148 yards. Not perfect, but good enough.
On Side Kick- Let’s be honest, we were all caught off guard by that play. I think it was more desperation by Miami than anything else. They had to try something to get their team going. Granted, it didn’t result in any Miami points, but I think it was a game changer. If ND gets the ball and scores, Miami was probably finished. The issue I have with the player reaction and, as a result, the coaching was this:
How can you send your guys out there without a basic understanding of the rules as well as what they need to do on any given contingency? Special teams should help you win games, they should never be the reason you lose games.
Ugly Stats: In the 4th quarter, NBC put up a graphic about Consecutive Points allowed by Notre Dame this season. It looked like this: Texas- 17; MSU 36; Duke 21; Stanford 17; Miami 17 (at the time. Eventually 27). I didn’t realize it was that bad. But this gets back to my earlier point about not keeping the pedal to the floor and going for the throat.
I noticed more screens in this game than I have for a while, and none of them were particularly effective. Kizer tends to sail the ball high when throwing across to the sidelines. Perhaps that’s why we haven’t seen many.
Pride “fumble”- It happens. I’ve seen the ball bounce off of people during kickoffs/punts and result in fumbles several times in all of the football games I’ve watched in my life. I’ve never seen it happen twice in the same season to the same team, however. The first was Miles Boykin in the MSU game.
The Final ND TD- I was in a lounge at a hockey rink watching ND score their final TD, making the score 27-26, Miami. A man I didn’t know was sitting with some of his friends and he said, “I fully expect this imbecile Kelly to go for 2 here.” I laughed and thought, “Yeah. He’s been watching for a while.”
Brian Kelly- Hicks and Flutie made it a point to mention several times how they and Jack Swarbrick did not think that Kelly has lost his team and how they continued to think he was right for ND.
Time Outs- I will never understand the way that this team uses, or I should say abuses, time outs. Mind boggling.
Durham Smythe Fumble- Perfect hit on the ball by the Miami player. Not much Smythe could do about it. I have to say I was really impressed with Kizer following the play and getting in the pile and getting that ball. He didn’t have a perfect game, but that kid is a warrior.
Final ND Drive- First and goal at the one, the offensive line is down in a three point stance and Kizer is getting the play from the sideline. It seems like it goes on for an eternity before he turns and begins to audible the play. The entire left side of the line goes off sides. Poor job of communicating the play by the coaches. That puts you back 5 yards and eventually ND settles for a FG.
Tackling- I still see some terrible tackling. Either missed tackles altogether or broke tackles. It’s improved quite a bit, but the problem lingers.
Punt Block- All things considered, this wasn’t as big of a disaster as it could be. It was still a net 23 yard punt and Miami was still on their 32 yard line.
Justin Yoon- Great game, both on kickoffs and on FGs.
It Was Over When- Nyles Morgan sacked Kaaya on the last play of the game and not a second before. I went down to the very last moment. The pessimist in me was worried that Miami was going to score a last second touchdown, never mind a FG.
Jimmy Clausen- Pre-game, when the hosts were talking about the keys to the game Clausen starts talking about the how “scheme wins the battle.” Damn, I cringed thinking about the “decided schematic advantage.”
Mike Brey Interview- How can you not love that guy? I really enjoyed listening to him on the sideline and how he talked about the teamwork among the various coaches at ND. He’s a hell of a coach as well.
Worst comment of the game- Hicks: “Columbus just discovered another first down.”
Post of the Day-
I always love the commercials that ND sponsors during their games. This one with Ryan Roeder was really something else, however. Using gold to detect breast cancer? Man, the things I don’t know and that I can’t imagine. Thank God for folks like him. The Pacqui Kelly angle was awesome and it was a great tie-in with Breast Cancer Awareness month.
I posted last week that I thought ND was going to win out and get to a bowl game. I stand by that prediction. What do you think?
Have a great week everybody.
