Good Morning Everyone
A lot of good vibrations from the board this week. The early signing period was a big success with a couple of very big late additions, and The Irish are getting ready for what will again be the biggest game in all of college football. There was a lot of bad football being played this year, but one thing was pretty constant, and that's ND came out week after week and showed the country why this team is one of the best in the country.
So Who's this guy?
That's @IrishinFLA1 who scored a ticket for the game. He'll be in the end zone, and I know that he was encouraged to create some sort of incident this afternoon. We'll standby and see what happens.
Just like the first game, I have a feeling that ND will come out on top. I know a lot was made of Clemson missing a few starters, but how much of a difference will that really make? DJ threw for 439 yards and 2 TD's while completing 29 of 44 passes. Will Lawrence do that much better? Maybe in the run game on the read option where he is very good, but I would expect the hits to come from the ND defense, and I wonder if Clemson will indeed make their living with that play this afternoon. I'll go along with what Ian Book had to say "Our 11 guys will be there, and that's what matters. I’m excited that all those guys are back, and we can play them, and have all those people be quiet once the game is over and we get this win.”
My keys to the game for Notre Dame on offense: Much like the first game, ND needs to run the ball. We may not get another 65 yard TD run from Kyren, but having success on first downs and getting positive yardage will go a long way. In the first meeting ND was 10-19 on 3rd down and it needs to equal that tonight. Take care of the football, and convert red zone opportunities into TD's, and make them pay when they come on the blitz.
Defensively, just like ND had success in converting 3rd down plays, Clemson was 4 for 15. This was the biggest stat of the game for me, and although ND may not repeat that, it needs to come close. What worries me most on defense is Lawrence running the ball. He's night and day different from DJ in that regard, and our ability to stop the read option and Lawrence tucking the ball and taking off will be the key to our success.
YOUR GAMEDAY FORECAST
As I'm typing this it's 27 degrees in Charlotte. At kickoff expect the temperature to be 50 degrees with intermittent clouds, winds out of the SSW at 6mph, and no chance of rain. By the 4th quarter the temperature should dip down to 43 degrees with no chance of rain.
I know everyone is excited about the playoffs, but ND needs to win this one first. I want the program to get the respect it deserves, and it will do so by winning, and not just making it close. ND deserves the #2 ranking after this game, and at worst #3. No way in hell should any team not named Clemson jump us.
On a personal note, this game is going to be a little different for me. Little Starkey has a basketball game an hour away, and I'm going to tape the football game and watch it when I get home. Not sure I can do it, but have told several people, some on this board, that I'm going into complete radio silence starting at 4:00, so please no text messages ( @Mizzo37 ).
The regular season was awesome, and I don't want to stop the momentum. Lets get the win today, and get into the playoffs on a high note!
Good Luck Everyone.
GO IRISH!
