I talked to some USC people this week and they were surprised that ND didn’t seem to adjust or at least put forth a more varied defense.
Defenses do tend to get more fatigued than offenses.
But ND won the TOP by 2 minutes vs SC. That should correlate to everyone ripping and roaring on D. It did not, why? Because the offense crapped the bed most of the first and third quarter and the D just didn't play well second half. This allowed SC to stay in the game and continue running or passing the ball.
The biggest issue with the d in my mind were 3 parts
1. Lea didn't mix it up enough, kelly said it as much, but the overall plan was good
2. Tackling - MTA had Stepp stonewalled on 2 big plays and whiffed on both, leading to a 3rd down conversion and a TD, Gillman also tackled very poorly
3. Not fitting coverages properly by safeties - Jalen got burnt in the first half but it was a bad throw because of pressure - Gillman was late and bad angle 2nd half and the TD was caught
ND didn't play well on either side and USC made very good adjustments on the bye after washington because washington played the same D ND did. Still, ND beat their rival, a very talented team.
What if young doesn't randomly fumble ball and goes up 24-3? What if MTA doesn't whiff on the easiest behind the LOS tackles he'll ever have? What if our senior safeties followed game plan and actually covered their responsibilities? What if the offense actually pushed the ball just a little bit to Kmet and Claypool who were dominating their coverages? Again, ND got what they deserved because they didn't play well, a much closer game than necessary.