After the Stanford game, I have posted a couple of times that I thought Notre Dame would win out during the remainder of the season. Obviously, I was wrong. The only question left is, will they win another game this season?
I was out of the house for about 2 and a half quarters so I listened to the game on The Catholic Channel on Sirius. Who knew there was such a thing? I caught the last quarter and half live and watched what I had missed on my DVR later in the day. Anyway, the announcer was Don Criqui and I didn’t catch the other guy’s name. They were talking about how this was a game where ND had to score touchdowns on every possession and that there was no such thing as a 4th down punt or a field goal in this game. They felt ND should be going for a touchdown on every possession.
“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.”
Does that look familiar? It’s the same comment I made in my post after the Miami game. I followed with this: “They don’t keep up the pressure and go for the kill. One of my very few complaints, but it is a significant one.” It’s the same story, week after week.”
The television announcers even made note about ND’s tempo during the opening drive but, as we have seen so often, this team seems to move away from the things that work to the things that don’t.
Jarron Jones- Speaking of moving away from things that work to those that don’t, what happened to Jones? I saw him on the sidelines only because the camera zoomed in on him and the announcers mentioned him, but I didn’t see him play and he didn’t record any stats. He was the national defensive player of the week last week and this week he doesn’t play against a team that you know is going to run on you? Surprising, but @DenPetDel brought up an excellent point about the Navy chop blocks. I believe that was how Jones was hurt in the past. Anyone recall?
A Quick Note on Navy- They are a very good football team. Ken Niumatalolo took over for Paul Johnson when Johnson left for Georgia Tech after the 2007 season. He actually coached Navy in the Poinsettia Bowl against Utah and Kyle Whittingham, another coach people throw out there as a potential ND target, losing by 3 points in a game that came down to the final seconds. Since that game, Niumatalolo and Navy are 74-38, are 4-3 in Bowl games and have won their last 3 bowls, and finished last year ranked #18 in the country. Say what you will about their competition, but Navy is a damn good team and very well coached. Also, to the eternal dismay of @smcnd and myself, Navy has beaten Army every year since 2001. Ouch.
The Story of the Game- Possession- ND had the ball for 6 (six) possessions during the entire game. I’m not sure I ever saw a game statistic like that. The runner up for story of the game is Punt and punt returns. Navy had none… well, I’ll get to that. ND had one for 32 yards and it went out of bounds.
Too Many Men on the Field- I have numerous times this year that this is an undisciplined football team, and it shows at the worst possible time. You finally stopped Navy. During this particular series it looks like you defense has caught on to the triple option and will be able to stop it moving forward and you force Navy to punt. To have it all called back for having too many men on the field is indefensible. In some ways worse than that, you had the same penalty on the same drive when Navy was on the 1 yard line. How does this happen?
This is How- Post of the Game-
Posts of the Day-
Tulsa- This was like the Tulsa game in 2010 for me. You finish the game and say to yourself, “What the hell just happened here.” This is what really kills me: Trailing by 4, 4 points mind you, ND has the ball with a 4th and 4 on the Navy 14 yard line with 7:28 to go in the game and ND opts to go for a Field Goal. Really? The previous Navy drive, which resulted in a touchdown by the way, took up 9 minutes. Even with a successful FG, you’re still down by 1 point with the chances of seeing the ball again very slim. This was the Bizarro Tulsa game. In that game a FG wins it but BK takes a shot at the end zone. We know that turned out. Here, we need a TD to go ahead and BK goes for a FG. What the hell happened to, “Get used to it.” I liked that guy. He was successful (not in the Tulsa game, but generally). Where did he go? Can we get him back? I was screaming at the TV, “No you f’ing idiot! Don’t do that!”
Navy did a good job of getting ND to play the type of game navy wanted to play. ND had a decided advantage over Navy in the passing game. ND has a deep corps of receivers that are faster than Navy’s secondary. After watching the first series, I thought ND was going to go to the air all day, mix in receivers, and run Navy’s defense ragged. When ND opted for a more conservative approach I was a little confused. If you’re having a difficult time on defense stopping a team who believes in controlling the clock, then you should be trying to score as quickly and as often as possible. Trying to match Navy’s game plan was a mistake. Speaking of playing Navy’s game, I saw Kizer roll right on one play and pitch to an option for no gain. Amateur play calling. Play YOUR game and do what works for YOU. ND should have been putting Navy on an all-day air raid drill.
Torii Hunter- A lot of folks had been clamoring for him to be dropped from the starting lineup recently. He had a great opening series and it was a real loss to the team’s momentum when he went down. Thankfully it wasn’t a serious injury and he came back to finish the game with over 100 yards receiving.
Kizer- Overall, I think he had a great game. ND scored on every possession but one, which is the most important stat. He was 19/27 for 223 yards and rushed for another 52 yards. Right before the Smythe TD reception, ND is facing a 3rd and 10, Kizer does see anything downfield, takes off running, drops his shoulder and barrels through two navy defenders for the 1st down. He’s a tough kid and he’s got a big heart. I do have some criticisms, however. He often floats the ball high and when he misses a receiver, he misses ugly. I brought up last week that throwing to the flats and screen passes don’t seem to be his forte. I believe the TV announcers made mention about the same thing after a failed screen pass. Another issue I had was, if I remember correctly right before the first Yoon FG, it was 3rd and 2 and Kizer felt pressure and took off running but failed to pick up the first. I thought he had time in the pocket to do something and started running prematurely. He threw the ball at the feet of his receiver (don’t remember who it was) who was wide open. I thought he had time to make a play and hit that receiver from the pocket.
That 3rd and 2 was something else I wanted to mention. It’s a short yardage pickup and, despite some misgivings people have on this board, a very good offensive line, yet ND lines up with an empty backfield. I was shocked. I don’t think I can take much more of this crazy play calling. Another poster far more intelligent than me sent me a PM saying the same thing. Is there no more strategy involving deception in football? You have a RB in the backfield, at least Navy thinks you may run it. You put 5 wideouts out there and Kizer still couldn’t find an acceptable target. If you had a RB back there, maybe you take some of the heat off of Kizer by having the RB pick up
Durham Smythe- Nice catch for the touchdown. I may be wrong, but I believe that was the 1st TD by a ND TE all year. This team really missed Alize Jones.
Kevin Stepherson- The one hand, behind the back, catch that he made was one of the best catches I have ever seen.
Secondary- They weren’t challenged often, but they did give up a key 3rd and 9 conversion in the third quarter (I believe it was Nick Coleman) that led to Navy's final TD. Did we have any safeties on the field at all? Their play was terrible. Nothing more to say there.
Great games by James Onwualu and Greer Martini. Without them this would have been an even bigger disaster.
Will Worth- Props to a great job by one of our nation’s future defenders. Played a hell of a game. 5/8 passing and 178 yards rushing. Not to mention the fact that he got every yard he needed at crucial times.
3rd and 4th downs continue to be a mere formality for opposing teams. They runs play like it’s 1st and 2nd down, almost certain to pick up the needed yards. Absolutely stunning how many 3rd and 4th down conversions ND allows.
It Was Over When- Navy converts a 4th and 1 on their own 49 yard line with about 4:30 left in the game. Sure, there was a lot of time left on the clock, but the game was over at that point. How Navy even got that close to a 1st down had me scratching my head. 3rd and 7 and Jamir Tillman rolls for 6 yards. I couldn’t believe it.
Have a great week everyone.
I was out of the house for about 2 and a half quarters so I listened to the game on The Catholic Channel on Sirius. Who knew there was such a thing? I caught the last quarter and half live and watched what I had missed on my DVR later in the day. Anyway, the announcer was Don Criqui and I didn’t catch the other guy’s name. They were talking about how this was a game where ND had to score touchdowns on every possession and that there was no such thing as a 4th down punt or a field goal in this game. They felt ND should be going for a touchdown on every possession.
“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.”
Does that look familiar? It’s the same comment I made in my post after the Miami game. I followed with this: “They don’t keep up the pressure and go for the kill. One of my very few complaints, but it is a significant one.” It’s the same story, week after week.”
The television announcers even made note about ND’s tempo during the opening drive but, as we have seen so often, this team seems to move away from the things that work to the things that don’t.
Jarron Jones- Speaking of moving away from things that work to those that don’t, what happened to Jones? I saw him on the sidelines only because the camera zoomed in on him and the announcers mentioned him, but I didn’t see him play and he didn’t record any stats. He was the national defensive player of the week last week and this week he doesn’t play against a team that you know is going to run on you? Surprising, but @DenPetDel brought up an excellent point about the Navy chop blocks. I believe that was how Jones was hurt in the past. Anyone recall?
A Quick Note on Navy- They are a very good football team. Ken Niumatalolo took over for Paul Johnson when Johnson left for Georgia Tech after the 2007 season. He actually coached Navy in the Poinsettia Bowl against Utah and Kyle Whittingham, another coach people throw out there as a potential ND target, losing by 3 points in a game that came down to the final seconds. Since that game, Niumatalolo and Navy are 74-38, are 4-3 in Bowl games and have won their last 3 bowls, and finished last year ranked #18 in the country. Say what you will about their competition, but Navy is a damn good team and very well coached. Also, to the eternal dismay of @smcnd and myself, Navy has beaten Army every year since 2001. Ouch.
The Story of the Game- Possession- ND had the ball for 6 (six) possessions during the entire game. I’m not sure I ever saw a game statistic like that. The runner up for story of the game is Punt and punt returns. Navy had none… well, I’ll get to that. ND had one for 32 yards and it went out of bounds.
Too Many Men on the Field- I have numerous times this year that this is an undisciplined football team, and it shows at the worst possible time. You finally stopped Navy. During this particular series it looks like you defense has caught on to the triple option and will be able to stop it moving forward and you force Navy to punt. To have it all called back for having too many men on the field is indefensible. In some ways worse than that, you had the same penalty on the same drive when Navy was on the 1 yard line. How does this happen?
This is How- Post of the Game-
Spot on.
Posts of the Day-
Tulsa- This was like the Tulsa game in 2010 for me. You finish the game and say to yourself, “What the hell just happened here.” This is what really kills me: Trailing by 4, 4 points mind you, ND has the ball with a 4th and 4 on the Navy 14 yard line with 7:28 to go in the game and ND opts to go for a Field Goal. Really? The previous Navy drive, which resulted in a touchdown by the way, took up 9 minutes. Even with a successful FG, you’re still down by 1 point with the chances of seeing the ball again very slim. This was the Bizarro Tulsa game. In that game a FG wins it but BK takes a shot at the end zone. We know that turned out. Here, we need a TD to go ahead and BK goes for a FG. What the hell happened to, “Get used to it.” I liked that guy. He was successful (not in the Tulsa game, but generally). Where did he go? Can we get him back? I was screaming at the TV, “No you f’ing idiot! Don’t do that!”
Navy did a good job of getting ND to play the type of game navy wanted to play. ND had a decided advantage over Navy in the passing game. ND has a deep corps of receivers that are faster than Navy’s secondary. After watching the first series, I thought ND was going to go to the air all day, mix in receivers, and run Navy’s defense ragged. When ND opted for a more conservative approach I was a little confused. If you’re having a difficult time on defense stopping a team who believes in controlling the clock, then you should be trying to score as quickly and as often as possible. Trying to match Navy’s game plan was a mistake. Speaking of playing Navy’s game, I saw Kizer roll right on one play and pitch to an option for no gain. Amateur play calling. Play YOUR game and do what works for YOU. ND should have been putting Navy on an all-day air raid drill.
Torii Hunter- A lot of folks had been clamoring for him to be dropped from the starting lineup recently. He had a great opening series and it was a real loss to the team’s momentum when he went down. Thankfully it wasn’t a serious injury and he came back to finish the game with over 100 yards receiving.
Kizer- Overall, I think he had a great game. ND scored on every possession but one, which is the most important stat. He was 19/27 for 223 yards and rushed for another 52 yards. Right before the Smythe TD reception, ND is facing a 3rd and 10, Kizer does see anything downfield, takes off running, drops his shoulder and barrels through two navy defenders for the 1st down. He’s a tough kid and he’s got a big heart. I do have some criticisms, however. He often floats the ball high and when he misses a receiver, he misses ugly. I brought up last week that throwing to the flats and screen passes don’t seem to be his forte. I believe the TV announcers made mention about the same thing after a failed screen pass. Another issue I had was, if I remember correctly right before the first Yoon FG, it was 3rd and 2 and Kizer felt pressure and took off running but failed to pick up the first. I thought he had time in the pocket to do something and started running prematurely. He threw the ball at the feet of his receiver (don’t remember who it was) who was wide open. I thought he had time to make a play and hit that receiver from the pocket.
That 3rd and 2 was something else I wanted to mention. It’s a short yardage pickup and, despite some misgivings people have on this board, a very good offensive line, yet ND lines up with an empty backfield. I was shocked. I don’t think I can take much more of this crazy play calling. Another poster far more intelligent than me sent me a PM saying the same thing. Is there no more strategy involving deception in football? You have a RB in the backfield, at least Navy thinks you may run it. You put 5 wideouts out there and Kizer still couldn’t find an acceptable target. If you had a RB back there, maybe you take some of the heat off of Kizer by having the RB pick up
Durham Smythe- Nice catch for the touchdown. I may be wrong, but I believe that was the 1st TD by a ND TE all year. This team really missed Alize Jones.
Kevin Stepherson- The one hand, behind the back, catch that he made was one of the best catches I have ever seen.
Secondary- They weren’t challenged often, but they did give up a key 3rd and 9 conversion in the third quarter (I believe it was Nick Coleman) that led to Navy's final TD. Did we have any safeties on the field at all? Their play was terrible. Nothing more to say there.
Great games by James Onwualu and Greer Martini. Without them this would have been an even bigger disaster.
Will Worth- Props to a great job by one of our nation’s future defenders. Played a hell of a game. 5/8 passing and 178 yards rushing. Not to mention the fact that he got every yard he needed at crucial times.
3rd and 4th downs continue to be a mere formality for opposing teams. They runs play like it’s 1st and 2nd down, almost certain to pick up the needed yards. Absolutely stunning how many 3rd and 4th down conversions ND allows.
It Was Over When- Navy converts a 4th and 1 on their own 49 yard line with about 4:30 left in the game. Sure, there was a lot of time left on the clock, but the game was over at that point. How Navy even got that close to a 1st down had me scratching my head. 3rd and 7 and Jamir Tillman rolls for 6 yards. I couldn’t believe it.
Have a great week everyone.
