Descending?
When Brian Kelly called a time-out with a chance for another touchdown from the 15-yard line in the waning seconds (and down by 23 points), most Irish fans knew it was bush league, but what the hell 37-21 feels a lot better than 37-14 (memory can play tricks with embarrassment). But, it was not to be.
It was plain to see that Stanford is a very good team on both sides of the ball. Their defense is made up of a bunch of bullies, or so it seemed time and again as they out-muscled Notre Dame's OLine and the offense romped through and over the Irish defense---which for some reason was given good grades from some watchers. They were better than the anemic, awful offense, but they gave up 37 points and more than 400 yards. That's good?
Notes From The Edge Of The Bleachers:
* Former ND players, Nate Whittaker and Konrad Rueland, had a good last laugh. They were excellent for Stanford and showed it with big smiles after the game.. So did that little piss-ant Brian Polian darting about the Cardinal sidelines.
* Kyle Rudolph caught one pass for one yard. How does something like that happen?
* Lewis-Moore, Williams, and Johnson made a total of 4 solo tackles among them (none were sacks).
* "I only have eyes for you," should be Crist's theme song. After four games he never scans the field, looks for one receiver after the snap and lets it fly. TJ Jones was all by himself on three errant Crisp passes to a well-covered Riddick or Floyd.
* Theo is looking mighty good. Te'o is making a ton of tackles, but rarely for sacks or no gains.
* Robert Hughes was given a chance, and he looked damn good; Allen and, especially Wood, did not.
* It's too bad that a leader has not surfaced as yet on offense or defense. Dayne is too timid and forgiving with his team-mates and there is no Ray Lewis-type on defense, kicking ass and taking names.
* The kick-off and punt returns remain mediocre. The Irish need someone else back there (how about
Bennett Jackson?). The boomers by Turk were high, but painfully short for the most part.
* Over-all, the promised high-octane offense of Notre Dame gasses out early and often: play-calling is ordinary, pass blocking is erratic, and the running game is a failure. A total of 44 yards gained against the Cardinal.
* Speaking of the Cardinal, Andrew Luck was shown to be a good quarterback, but not a great passer; give the Irish secondary some pats on the back.
* John Goodman, as expected, came in and played well as a receiver. It still puzzles us that Jones, who made a splash against Purdue has become a lonely wideout--waiting, watching, wondering why not me?
* Well, here we are: 1-3. The next five games are very winnable; there can be no excuses for a loss to any of these teams. Army is a given down the stretch, but what about Utah and USC, both rated?
--If the Irish win the next five in a row, knock-off the Cadets, and split one with the Utes or Trojans, then we are looking at a passing 8-4, but knowing what the Irish have and what some of the opponents will have for an ND game, a very disappointing 7-5 or 6-6 also is realistic.
--Now, if the lads from South Bend run the table, end up 9-3 and a solid bowl game, well-well-well!
--ScottB
It was plain to see that Stanford is a very good team on both sides of the ball. Their defense is made up of a bunch of bullies, or so it seemed time and again as they out-muscled Notre Dame's OLine and the offense romped through and over the Irish defense---which for some reason was given good grades from some watchers. They were better than the anemic, awful offense, but they gave up 37 points and more than 400 yards. That's good?
Notes From The Edge Of The Bleachers:
* Former ND players, Nate Whittaker and Konrad Rueland, had a good last laugh. They were excellent for Stanford and showed it with big smiles after the game.. So did that little piss-ant Brian Polian darting about the Cardinal sidelines.
* Kyle Rudolph caught one pass for one yard. How does something like that happen?
* Lewis-Moore, Williams, and Johnson made a total of 4 solo tackles among them (none were sacks).
* "I only have eyes for you," should be Crist's theme song. After four games he never scans the field, looks for one receiver after the snap and lets it fly. TJ Jones was all by himself on three errant Crisp passes to a well-covered Riddick or Floyd.
* Theo is looking mighty good. Te'o is making a ton of tackles, but rarely for sacks or no gains.
* Robert Hughes was given a chance, and he looked damn good; Allen and, especially Wood, did not.
* It's too bad that a leader has not surfaced as yet on offense or defense. Dayne is too timid and forgiving with his team-mates and there is no Ray Lewis-type on defense, kicking ass and taking names.
* The kick-off and punt returns remain mediocre. The Irish need someone else back there (how about
Bennett Jackson?). The boomers by Turk were high, but painfully short for the most part.
* Over-all, the promised high-octane offense of Notre Dame gasses out early and often: play-calling is ordinary, pass blocking is erratic, and the running game is a failure. A total of 44 yards gained against the Cardinal.
* Speaking of the Cardinal, Andrew Luck was shown to be a good quarterback, but not a great passer; give the Irish secondary some pats on the back.
* John Goodman, as expected, came in and played well as a receiver. It still puzzles us that Jones, who made a splash against Purdue has become a lonely wideout--waiting, watching, wondering why not me?
* Well, here we are: 1-3. The next five games are very winnable; there can be no excuses for a loss to any of these teams. Army is a given down the stretch, but what about Utah and USC, both rated?
--If the Irish win the next five in a row, knock-off the Cadets, and split one with the Utes or Trojans, then we are looking at a passing 8-4, but knowing what the Irish have and what some of the opponents will have for an ND game, a very disappointing 7-5 or 6-6 also is realistic.
--Now, if the lads from South Bend run the table, end up 9-3 and a solid bowl game, well-well-well!
--ScottB
posted by OLD SHILLELAGH at 10:32 AM
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