Week 12 Recap: USC 49, Notre Dame 14

Notre Dame’s disappointing finish to the 2014 season came to a disastrous end yesterday when the USC Trojans pummeled the Fighting Irish, 49-14. The Trojans got off to a fast start and never looked back as the Irish delivered a lackluster performance to close the campaign at 7-5. The only good news to take away from yesterday is that an excruciating season is finally over. Now, the Irish will have a few weeks to recover and prepare for a bowl game.

USC had no problems against a depleted Irish defense, scoring 35 points in the first half. Quarterback Cody Kessler lit up the Irish secondary with 372 yards passing and six touchdowns. The Trojans also added 205 rushing yards with Javorius Allen (93 yards) and Justin Davis (81 yards) leading the way. I knew that Notre Dame would have trouble against USC’s offense since I predicted the Trojans would put up 41 points, but they made it look even easier than I could have imagined. I guess it really shouldn’t be a surprise considering all of the injuries, and it didn’t help with several more occurring during the blowout loss. At one point, Notre Dame had three true freshmen and a 5^th-year journeyman in Justin Utupo playing the bulk of the defensive line snaps. Regardless of the injuries, this game should have been more competitive if the Notre Dame offense did its job.

In a game where everyone knew the Irish would have to keep up with the Trojans offensively, Notre Dame laid an egg. Quarterback Everett Golson was very erratic by completing just seven of his eighteen pass attempts for 75 yards and one interception. Golson was also credited with a fumble when he tried to throw a pass while being hit, which would eventually lead to him being benched before halftime. Sophomore Malik Zaire replaced Golson and played well by throwing for 170 yards and rushing for another 18 yards and a touchdown. Zaire showed his inexperience by completing just nine of his twenty passes, but he made some nice throws and at least provided a little bit of a spark to the offense. As promising as Zaire looked, the brightest spot of the game was Greg Bryant. The sophomore running back looked electric at times, rushing for 79 yards and a touchdown on seven carries. Bryant has been hampered with injuries throughout much of his time at Notre Dame, but it appears that he is ready to breakout. It’ll be interesting to see how much Brian Kelly utilizes Bryant in the bowl game, but his future looks bright. With Cam McDaniel departing, Tarean Folston and Greg Bryant should provide a formidable one-two punch for the Fighting Irish next season.

Before I wrap up the 2014 season, I’d like to take a moment to address a couple of things that I read over the weekend. Throughout the years, I have learned how to avoid reading emotionally charged comments from angry fans or Notre Dame haters after a loss, but yesterday the comments found me. I follow several Notre Dame beat reporters on Twitter, and a few of them either retweeted or responded to some fans’ reactions.

First, the idea that Notre Dame should reject an offer to go to a bowl game is moronic. While I am frustrated with how they are playing and don’t want to see another embarrassment, this team desperately needs the extra fifteen practices that you get for going to a bowl game. This team is very young and could use those three weeks to get better and playing in a bowl game against another quality opponent is a valuable experience for such a young team.

Second, the notion that Brian Kelly should be fired is idiotic. Obviously, this season was a disappointment (especially after starting 6-0), but that is not grounds for termination. Realistically, this team was projected to win about seven or eight games (I said nine) by just about every national pundit, so going 7-5 isn’t a shock to most people. I know people don’t want to hear the excuses, but this team was devastated with injuries on defense and were forced to play a lot of young players. With having a young team even prior to the injuries, Notre Dame should be positioned for a good season next year. At this point, firing Kelly would do more harm than it would help this program. Now, if the Irish win seven or eight games next year, then the “Fire Kelly” claims will warrant much greater attention.

-Eric Tichelbaut

Twitter: @etichel07

Week 12 Preview: Notre Dame at USC

The 2014 regular season comes to an end tomorrow afternoon when Notre Dame (7-4) travels to southern California to take on their rival USC Trojans (7-4). With both teams out of playoff contention and no chance of making a significant bowl game, this game is all about pride. The Trojans dominated this rivalry for nearly a decade in the 2000s, but the Irish have had the upper-hand in recent years by winning three of the last four matchups. Who will prevail tomorrow?

The story for Notre Dame on offense has become a broken record. They must protect the football and minimize careless mistakes. If the Irish can do that, they will likely win because they should be able to move the football with relative ease against a USC defense that ranks 71^st in total defense (402.6 yards per game) and 53^rd in scoring defense (24.6 points per game). Like they have all season, the Irish should have success through the air as the Trojans’ defense has struggled against the pass by allowing 267.5 yards per game, good for 108^th in the country. Everett Golson will likely throw for over 300 yards, so if he can avoid multiple turnovers, then the Irish should score 30-plus points. Although the Trojans have played poorly against the pass, they have excelled versus the run by allowing 135.1 yards per game which places them 30^th in the nation. While that means USC has an above average run defense, Notre Dame should be able to find some running room since I expect the Trojans to be more worried about the pass. Tarean Folston will get the bulk of the carries, but Brian Kelly hinted that Greg Bryant will likely get some carries now that he is fully healthy. It would be nice to see one of them break off a long touchdown run in a game that figures to be very tight.

The Irish defense has been a disaster over the last several weeks, and I do not think that will change much tomorrow. With a number of injuries and many inexperienced players playing significant minutes, the Irish will likely struggle to stop an explosive USC offense. Quarterback Cody Kessler (30 TDs and 4 INT) leads a Trojan offense that is averaging 441.5 yards per contest and 33.8 points per game. Kessler has completed 69.7 percent of his passes for 3,133 yards which places him among the nation’s best passers. Considering that Notre Dame’s defensive line and secondary is very depleted, it could be a very long day for the Irish defense. If Notre Dame is going to win this game, then they will have to create some turnovers to give their offense more possessions to keep up the amount of points USC should be able to put up. If worrying about the passing game wasn’t enough, the Irish will have their hands full trying to stop USC’s rushing attack. Javorius Allen has been a workhorse for the Trojans by accounting for 1,244 yards and nine touchdowns on 231 carries. Allen has rushed for over 100 yards in eight out of eleven games, and I would be shocked if he didn’t rush for well over 100 yards tomorrow afternoon. As you can see, the Trojans should have no problems moving the football and putting up points against a defense that has been lousy for over a month.

Both teams will move the chains and light up the scoreboard, but Notre Dame’s tendency to make critical mistakes will cost them once again. USC wins a shootout.

Prediction: USC 41, Notre Dame 38

Twitter: @etichel07

Week 11 Recap: Louisville 31, Notre Dame 28

Notre Dame’s recent struggles continued last Saturday when the Fighting Irish fell to the Louisville Cardinals, 31-28. The Irish started off slow and trailed the Cardinals 17-6 at halftime, but a nice second half effort made for an exciting finish. In fact, Notre Dame scored 14 unanswered points to take a 20-17 lead in the third quarter, but the Cardinals running game was virtually unstoppable which led to two more Louisville touchdowns to give them a 31-20 lead. The Irish would cut the lead to 31-28 when Everett Golson found Will Fuller for a 28 yard touchdown, and then added a two-point conversion on a Golson scramble. Notre Dame would have a chance to either take the lead or tie the game in the final minutes, but they came away empty when a promising drive stalled and Kyle Brindza missed a game-tying 32-yard field goal. With the defeat, the Irish have now lost four of their last five games to add to a disappointing finish to a once promising season.

Notre Dame’s offense got off to a decent start against a great Louisville defense by converting on two field goal attempts in their first three drives, but the offense struggled for the rest of the first half. After Golson threw another ill-advised pass into the arms of a Louisville defender, it looked like the Irish offense would be plagued by turnovers once again. However, Golson responded quite nicely by playing well in the second half and finishing the afternoon with 236 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Tarean Folston had another impressive performance with 134 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries, while wide receiver Will Fuller added 109 yards and a touchdown to his outstanding season. Unfortunately, the Irish offense was unable to overcome their struggles in the first half which ultimately proved to be the difference in the game.

The Irish struggled once again on defense by allowing 409 yards of total offense, highlighted by a dominating 229 yards rushing. The Notre Dame front seven proved to be no match versus the Louisville rushing attack as the Cardinals carried the ball 50 times on the afternoon which contributed to a 10-minute advantage in time of possession. After falling behind 17-6, Notre Dame’s defense did play pretty well during the second quarter and part of the third quarter, but Louisville was able to score when needed as the Irish tried to mount a comeback. If the struggles weren’t enough, the Irish also continue to lose impact players on their defense which led to nine freshman playing significant minutes on defense. Regardless of the inexperience, the Irish need to be much better on defense moving forward. The only real positive to take away from the recent struggles is that a lot of freshmen are getting valuable experience which should bode well for the future.

Unfortunately, many Irish fans are tired of waiting for next year…

-Eric Tichelbaut

Twitter: @etichel07

Week 11 Preview: Notre Dame vs Louisville

The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame (7-3) will try to avoid a three-game losing streak when they host the Louisville Cardinals (7-3, 24^th ranked) tomorrow afternoon. After last week’s debacle, Notre Dame’s hopes of playing in a prestigious bowl game have most likely evaporated, thus leaving the Irish to play for pride the rest of the season. After two disappointing defeats and losses in three of their last four games, Notre Dame should not need any extra motivation to get a much needed victory, but tomorrow is Senior Day. As is the case every year, the Irish will want to do whatever it takes to get a win and send the seniors off on a positive note.

Notre Dame’s offense will get their toughest test since facing Stanford because the Louisville Cardinals’ defense ranks 10^th in the country in scoring defense at 17.8 points per game and 5^th in total defense by allowing just 285.7 yards per contest. As well as Louisville has played defensively, they have not played many explosive offenses and they struggled to slow down Florida State when they surrendered 42 points. Given that, I believe the Irish can have success as they have all season. Of course, the biggest problem this season has been the turnovers and Louisville’s defense has thrived on creating takeaways. The Cardinals are tied for 11^th in the country with 25 takeaways this season, so Everett Golson and company must protect the ball much better than they have the previous weeks. In addition to the turnovers, Louisville’s defense is tied for 9^th in the nation with 33 team sacks, so protecting Golson could be an issue. To counter this, I expect to see plenty of wide receiver screens and short passes, so the offensive line must make solid initial contact to avoid a repeat performance from the Arizona State game. I’m sure Brian Kelly will attempt to establish a running game, but that could be difficult against the 2^nd ranked rush defense that is allowing a measly 87.4 yards per game. Notre Dame’s success in the “run game” might have to come from less conventional plays such as read-options, jet-sweeps, draws, and the aforementioned screen passes that will essentially serve as a running play. Notre Dame will not be able to line up, and run it straight at this Cardinals’ defense, so Kelly will have to be creative in order to maintain solid drives throughout the game. Based on the expected game plan, I am predicting Will Fuller and Corey Robinson to put up some high reception and nice yardage totals to lead the Irish offensive attack.

To put it lightly, Notre Dame’s defense is an absolute mess right now. However, they have an opportunity to turn it around against a Louisville offense that will be led by a true freshman quarterback. Reggie Bonnafon has taken over the reins after starting quarterback Will Gardner fell to a season-ending injury. Bonnafon has attempted 92 passes while appearing in seven games, so he does have some experience under his belt. The most notable difference between Gardner and Bonnafon is his ability to run, so the Irish defense could be challenged considering their troubles against some mobile quarterbacks this season. Bonnafon rushed for 76 yards on 13 carries last week, so it will be important for the Irish front-seven to stay disciplined and keep containment. In addition to Bonnafon, the Irish will have to deal with a pair of 400-plus-yard rushers in Brandon Radcliff (445 yards) and Michael Dyer (414 yards). For Notre Dame to have success on defense, they must bottle up Radcliff and Dyer on first and second down to force obvious passing situations. If that occurs, then defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder can dial up some blitzes and different coverage schemes to try to confuse the young quarterback. As much as Notre Dame’s offense has struggled to hold onto the football, the Irish defense has been opportunistic and I look for them to create a few turnovers tomorrow.

Both teams will likely turn the football over multiple times, but I think the Irish will come out with something to prove and make enough plays to win the game.

Prediction: Notre Dame 31, Louisville 27

Twitter: @etichel07

Week 10 Recap: Northwestern 43, Notre Dame 40

The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame followed up their disappointing loss with another lousy performance that led to a 43-40 loss to the Northwestern Wildcats. With all due respect to Northwestern, this is a game that Notre Dame should have won, but they once again gave it away with too many costly errors and turnovers. The Irish had a 40-29 lead in the fourth quarter before the Wildcats scored a touchdown and a two-point conversion to trim their deficit to 40-37. With the Irish trying to secure the game on their final drive, senior running back and team captain Cam McDaniel coughed up the football to give Northwestern a chance to kick a game tying 45-yard field goal with 19 seconds remaining. After the Irish failed to get a first down on their first possession of overtime, Kyle Brindza missed a 42-yard field goal. That miss allowed Northwestern to kick a game winning 41-yard field goal to stun the Irish in South Bend.

Like last week, the offense had success moving the football and scoring points, but the turnovers ultimately sealed Notre Dame’s fate.  The Irish committed four turnovers on the afternoon, with Everett Golson being responsible for two of them with an interception and a fumble. Along with the aforementioned McDaniel fumble, Chris Brown also put the ball on the ground when the Irish were knocking on the door for another touchdown. Considering that Golson’s fumble also happened deep inside the red zone, the Irish literally took 14 points off the board. Couple that with Golson’s interception that was returned to the Notre Dame 5-yard line that set up an easy Northwestern touchdown, those three turnovers were at least a 21-point swing. Add the two missed field goals and a botch PAT attempt that resulted in two points for Northwestern, and that is another 9-point swing. Despite the mistakes, you have to give the Wildcats credit for capitalizing on all of the miscues, but this routine is getting really old, really fast. Notre Dame needs to clean up their mistakes right now before they find themselves sitting at 7-5 at the end of the season. Although it is hard to point out the positives from yesterday, it should be noted that wide receiver Will Fuller had another monster game with 159 yards and three touchdowns on nine receptions. Fuller now has 13 touchdowns on the season to tie him for the best in the country. Quite frankly, it is becoming a farce that he has yet to be listed among the 80-plus wide receivers on the Biletnikoff Award watch list.

While the offense is not doing the defense any favors with all the turnovers, Brian VanGorder’s unit has been playing extremely poorly the past five weeks. In fact, the Irish have surrendered 42.2 points per game over their last five contests. While injuries have forced several freshmen and inexperienced players into the lineup, the defense still needs to be better. The most worrisome aspect of the defense has been the inability to stop the opponent from running the football right down their throats. Especially in the past two weeks, the loss of defensive leader Joe Schmidt has proved to be even a bigger than anyone could have ever imagined. Notre Dame’s defense looks lost out there right now, and that was evident more than ever yesterday when they allowed a Northwestern offense to gain 547 yards of total offense and score 43 points. As a quick reminder, these are the same Wildcats that managed to score just nine points last week against a miserable Michigan team. With a pair of 7-3 teams remaining on Notre Dame’s schedule, this defense will have to grow up and improve very quickly if they want to finish the season with a couple of impressive wins.

-Eric Tichelbaut

Twitter: @etichel07

Week 10 Preview: Notre Dame vs Northwestern

Notre Dame (7-2) will try to get back on track tomorrow afternoon when they host the Northwestern Wildcats (3-6). While last week’s disappointing defeat eliminated the Fighting Irish from postseason contention, they still have plenty to play for down the stretch. Sitting at 18^th ranked, Notre Dame will need to win their final three games to improve their resume in order to reach a more prestigious bowl game. How will the Irish respond?

Notre Dame’s offense can be summed up in one word, turnovers. When the Irish can avoid multiple turnovers, they can probably play with every team in the country. The problem is that they are averaging about three turnovers a game over the last six weeks, and it finally came back to haunt them against Arizona State. Tomorrow’s matchup will be the first chance for Everett Golson and company to improve on the discouraging trend. Northwestern has had rough season, but their defense has been a respectable unit for most of their games. The Wildcats rank 48^th in country by allowing 373.7 yards per game (209.7 passing yards and 164 rushing yards); leading to an impressive 30^th ranked scoring defense at just 22.3 points per game. As you can see, Northwestern’s defense is more susceptible to the run than the pass, so this should be a great opportunity for Notre Dame to get the running game going again. Tarean Folston was a disappointment last week mainly because the Irish fell behind so big and that he isn’t a great pass blocker, but he should rebound nicely this week. Look for Brian Kelly to try to establish the running game early and make a statement to play physical football against a Big Ten team. Kelly also hinted during his press conference that the Irish will have to take what Northwestern’s defense gives them, meaning that I expect to see plenty of screens, slants, and quick outs on the afternoon. While Northwestern has been good on defense, Notre Dame should have a big advantage talent wise, so hopefully they will be able to move the ball methodically down the field.

The Irish defense has fallen on hard times after starting the season strong, but this week presents a great chance to improve. Northwestern has had a difficult time moving the ball all season by averaging a mere 322.7 yards of total offense which places them 114^th in the nation. The Wildcats’ struggles on offense have been both on the ground (109.9 yards per game) and through the air (212.8 yards per game), so there is no reason why the Irish can’t have success on defense. Quarterback Trevor Siemian leads the Northwestern offense, but he has had trouble this season by throwing eight interceptions and only five touchdowns. If Northwestern is going to attack the Notre Dame defense, then running back Justin Jackson would be their best option. Jackson has 761 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 175 carries, so he could find so running lanes against the banged up Irish defense. Freshman linebacker Nyles Morgan didn’t play well last week against Arizona State’s up-tempo attack, but I expect the youngster to play much better tomorrow with less pressure surrounding him. Along with Morgan, the Irish also have five other freshmen playing significant snaps, so now is perfect time for them to get some much needed experience against a less-powered offense.

I think the Irish will come out strong and fast to prove that last week’s performance was a fluke by jumping out to an early lead and never look back.

Prediction: Notre Dame 38, Northwestern 13

Twitter: @etichel07

Week 9 Recap: Arizona State 55, Notre Dame 31

In a must win game to stay alive for playoff consideration, the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame laid an egg against the Arizona State Sun Devils. The afternoon started off nicely with Kyle Brindza converting on a 46-yard field goal attempt after a 14-play, 59 yard opening drive. From there, a series of mistakes and unfortunate bounces led to five turnovers that would be too much for the Irish to overcome. Three of the five turnovers fueled the Sun Devils to a 34-3 lead late in the first half, but Notre Dame would score four unanswered touchdowns to cut the lead to 34-31 with 6:37 remaining in the game. However, the furious comeback would prove to be false hope as the Sun Devils responded with a quick 5-play, 75 yard touchdown drive to extend the lead to 41-31. Arizona State would add two more scores on a pick-six that bounced off of Corey Robinson’s chest, and a Taylor Kelly touchdown run in the final minute. Overall, it was a disappointing performance for the Irish because the turnovers were what ultimately proved to be the difference. Don’t get me wrong, Arizona State deserves all the credit in the world for capitalizing on those mistakes, but the final score was not indicative to how closely matched these two teams should have been.

Obviously, the big story on offense was the turnovers. Everett Golson has flirted with disaster several times this season, but this time it finally came back to end Notre Dame’s playoffs. Golson committed five turnovers on the afternoon, and those mistakes proved to be the difference in the game. Even though all five turnovers were not entirely Golson’s fault, the bottom line is that these mistakes need to stop. Golson has committed 17 turnovers in the last 6 games, and Notre Dame will not be a playoff contender next season if the trend continues. With three games remaining, I’d like to see if Golson can limit the mistakes and prove that he actually understands that he can’t be careless with the football. The two batted balls and the Robinson bobble were mostly fluky plays, but the fumble and the interception in the end zone were inexcusable. Those are “freshman mistakes” and ones that can’t continue to happen. It seems foolish to consider making a switch at the quarterback position considering how many touchdowns Golson has been responsible for, but there needs to be some accountability for his actions. Personally, I’d love to see Brian Kelly bench Golson next Saturday for a series if he commits another unacceptable turnover. With the playoffs no longer a possibility, Golson needs to learn that he can’t continue to play sloppy and careless football.

When the other team scores 55 points, it is hard to make a case that the defense played well, but I will give them credit for keeping the Irish in the game during the second half. Considering the Sun Devils had touchdown drives of 13 yards, 23 yards, 8 yards, and two pick-sixes, Notre Dame’s offense basically handed the Sun Devils 35 points. Having said that, Arizona State deserves credit for playing up-tempo and forcing Notre Dame to make quick adjustments at the line. I thought that Notre Dame had trouble stopping the run up the middle, demonstrating how important the loss of Joe Schmidt will be moving forward. The Sun Devils rushed for 188 yards on 45 carries and really moved the ball with ease at critical times of the game. Notre Dame’s defense played their best football during the third quarter and for half of the fourth quarter when they forced four punts and an interception during a span of five Arizona State drives. That stretch allowed Notre Dame’s offense to mount a comeback, but in the end they dug themselves too big of a hole to overcome.

-Eric Tichelbaut

Twitter: @etichel07

Week 9 Preview: Notre Dame at Arizona State

When Notre Dame (7-1, 10^th ranked) travels to Tempe to take on the Arizona State Sun Devils (7-1, 9^th), it is essentially an elimination game. Both programs would have to win out and need some help to make the playoffs, but the loser is definitely out of contention for one of the final four spots. Last season, the Fighting Irish defeated the Sun Devils 37-34 in the Shamrock Series, but who will prevail tomorrow afternoon?

Notre Dame’s offense has been one of the better units in the country by averaging 35.4 points per game (30^th ranked) and gaining 458.3 yards per contest (33^rd ranked), and they will look to continue that success against an improving Arizona State defense. The Sun Devils have allowed 24.1 points per game (50^th ranked) and 385.3 yards per contest (58^th ranked), but they have not allowed more than 16 points in their last three games. While the Sun Devils’ defense is trending upwards, they have not faced an offense like Notre Dame’s in recent weeks. Everett Golson has been responsible for the majority of Notre Dame’s scoring this season, accounting for 29 touchdowns (22 passing and 7 rushing) on 2,311 yards passing and 272 yards rushing. If Notre Dame is going to win this game, Golson will have to shine once again while also limiting his turnovers to zero or one. In what figures to be an offensive game, the Irish must score on most of their possessions and they can’t help the Sun Devils out by giving them a short field. Although Golson should play well, the key to this game could be the running game led by Tarean Folston. Arizona State has struggled against the run by allowing 180.9 yards per game, which places them 88^th in the country. In addition, Folston has been on quite a roll lately by rushing for 367 yards in the past three games, so I expect him to have another big game by easily eclipsing the 100-yard rushing plateau for the third consecutive week. If that happens, the Irish have a great chance at winning this game.

The Irish suffered a huge blow by losing their linebacker and defensive leader in Joe Schmidt last week. Schmidt is out for the season after dislocating and fracturing his ankle, so Notre Dame will need to move on quickly. True freshman Nyles Morgan will start and take over the play calling duties on defense, so we’ll find out real quickly how he and the Irish will respond to the loss of Schmidt. There is no doubt that Morgan has the talent considering he was a “blue-chip” recruit, but his discipline, knowledge, and maturity will no doubt be tested tomorrow. I expect Morgan to play well, but the pre-snap alignment for the entire defense might be a step behind if the Sun Devils play up-tempo offensively. Notre Dame’s defense got off to a great start to the season, but they have struggled mightily during the past three weeks by surrendering a combined 113 points.  Despite the recent struggles, Brian VanGorder’s defense still ranks 29^th in scoring defense at 21.6 points per game and 40^th in total defense by allowing 359.1 yards per contest. Arizona State possesses a balanced attack offensively by averaging 291.1 yards passing and 192.5 yards rushing per game which has led to a scoring average of 34.4 points per game. The Sun Devils are led by quarterback Taylor Kelly, running back D.J. Foster, and wide receiver Jaelen Strong. Kelly missed three games due to injury, but the senior has played well this season by passing for 1,010 yards and rushing for 230 yards, while accounting for 11 touchdowns (nine passing and two rushing). I think that VanGorder needs to dial up the blitz early and often to force Kelly to make early throws and to see how well his healing right foot responds to the pressure. Another reason to bring the blitz is to limit the amount of time the Irish secondary needs to cover Jaelen Strong. Strong is one of the top receivers in the country and he poses serious matchup problems with his 6-3, 212 pound frame and explosive speed. Strong has had a fantastic season so far with 821 yards and eight touchdowns on 57 catches, so limiting his big play potential will be another key for the Irish. If worrying about Strong wasn’t enough, Notre Dame also will need to focus on stopping D.J. Foster. The junior running back has 1,153 yards of total offense with 701 yards rushing and 452 yards passing, so shutting him down completely will be a difficult task. Notre Dame’s rushing defense has been great all season, but last week’s contest against the run-heavy Navy Midshipmen has dropped the Irish to 31^st in the nation by allowing an average on 131.9 yards per game. Based on their success the first seven games, I think that the Irish have a great shot of holding Foster to under 100 yards, and they might have to in order to win this game. Arizona State will likely need to match Notre Dame score-for-score, and it appears they have the talent to do so.

This game should be a shootout, but I think Everett Golson will prove to be the difference. Golson has an ability to make plays in the clutch and he has thrived in big-game situations.

Prediction: Notre Dame 38, Arizona State 34

Twitter: @etichel07

Week 8 Recap: Notre Dame 49, Navy 39

Notre Dame started off fast last night versus Navy by jumping out to a 28-7 lead, but the Midshipmen fought their way back to score 24 unanswered points to take a 31-28 lead late in the third quarter. However, the Irish responded with two touchdowns to start the fourth quarter and they added another score late to seal the 49-39 victory. It wasn’t the prettiest game for the Irish, but they got the win. Unfortunately, a close win against a service academy will likely not impress the playoff committee. Regardless of what the committee thinks right now, Notre Dame just needs to keep winning and they will probably be hard to leave out of the final four come December.

Other than the third quarter, Notre Dame was terrific on offense last night by racking up 533 yards of total offense and scoring seven touchdowns. The Irish were led by the impressive performances of Everett Golson and Tarean Folston. Golson threw for 315 yards and three touchdowns while adding 33 yards of rushing and another three scores. Folston enjoyed his third consecutive outstanding game with 149 yards rushing and 38 yards receiving. Folston has totaled 367 yards rushing and 109 yards receiving over the past three weeks to solidify his case as the lead running back. Right now, it is hard to imagine that there are many quarterback-running back duos playing more effectively than Golson and Folston, so the Irish offense should continue to cause problems for the remaining four teams on their schedule. While the offense was successful for most of the night, there was one error that changed the momentum of the game. Whether it was a bad play call, wrong route, or just a bad throw; the interception thrown by Golson right before the half was simply inexcusable. That turnover, followed by an unacceptable cover bust, led to a Navy field goal that cut the Irish lead to 28-17 at halftime. Since Notre Dame was driving and appeared capable of scoring again before the half, the costly miscue resulted in a likely 10-point swing and wiped away the probability of a commanding 35-14 lead at halftime. As a result, Navy was able to continue playing their game offensively and they gave the Irish all they could handle for four quarters. Ultimately, Notre Dame’s talent would prevail, but it was another frustrating game in this historic series.

Notre Dame’s defense had plenty of difficulties stopping Navy’s triple option attack by allowing the Midshipmen to accumulate 454 yards of total offense. Of course, most of the success came on the ground with 336 yard rushing on 60 attempts, but Keenan Reynolds completed a few big passes to help Navy keep up with the Irish offense, including a 42 yard completion and two touchdowns. Reynolds also added 47 yards on the ground, but the big threat in the running game was Noah Copeland. Copeland scampered for 138 yards on 16 carries and gashed the Irish defense for a 54 yard gain on fourth-and-two. That long run set up a Navy touchdown on the next play to give them a 31-28 lead. Everyone knew what Navy was going to do offensively, but the Irish couldn’t stop them. Part of Notre Dame’s struggles on defense was the injuries that forced the Irish to play even more of their younger players. At one point, I believe the Irish had five true freshmen and four sophomores playing together on defense. That combination is not ideal when you need discipline and knowledge to effectively stop Navy’s triple option. With or without the injuries, Navy’s offense just executed better than Notre Dame’s defense and the Midshipmen deserve all the credit for playing such a great game.

-Eric Tichelbaut

Twitter: @etichel07