Notre Dame at Michigan Review

           Notre Dame lost in the final seconds to Michigan last Saturday night, 35-31. The first night game at Michigan Stadium was a thriller as it went back and forth in the 4^th quarter. The first three quarters were dominated by the Notre Dame Fighting Irish as they led 24-7 going into the final quarter. Then Michigan Wolverine quarterback, Denard Robinson, caught on fire (figuratively of course) and decimated the Irish secondary. Robinson finished the night with 338 passing yards and four touchdowns; two of those touchdowns came in the final 1:30 of the game

What I liked about the game

Defensive front- The front seven, meaning the linebackers and defensive line, of Notre Dame played with a lot of strength and skill throughout the game. They held Denard Robinson to a lot of short yard runs and got a couple of sacks. In the first half of the game Michigan had nothing going on offense. I’m not sure what happened after halftime but the defensive front lost their edge over Michigan’s offensive line, but still made some good plays.

Receivers- This unit made a complete turnaround of what they did last week. The Notre Dame receivers all made great plays and were the key to the Irish offense. Michael Floyd had another spectacular game with more than 100 receiving yards. Theo Riddick had six catches and two touchdowns and took a lot of pressure off Floyd. T.J. Jones and tight end Tyler Eifert also had catches that showed just how much talent there is on the offense.

Balance on offense- This was one of my keys to winning the game. At halftime Notre Dame had run 41 plays, 22 of those were passes, 18 were runs. That’s a little pass heavy but that’s where the strength is at on offense. In the 2^nd half Notre Dame called 16 runs and 14 passes (before the final Irish drive that was all passes and led to a touchdown).  There was balance on offense, but there didn’t need to be. The Irish needed to continue passing throughout the third and fourth quarters. Sure they had the lead, but it’s not like they were up by 21 or more points. Until you have a huge lead like that there is no reason to play conservatively, which is what it felt like the Irish were doing.

            Again, a round of applause goes to Irish running back, Cierre Wood, who had another fantastic game. There were just too many fumbles and lack of consistent runs in the fourth quarter to make me like all of the Irish running game.

What I didn’t like about the game

Defensive secondary- This would be the cornerbacks and safeties, although there wasn’t anything safe last night. These guys were decimated the entire night. On the Wolverines last two drives in the closing minutes of the game, Robinson led their offense down the field twice, passing to whomever he wanted whenever he wanted. Everybody knew that the Wolverines were gonna pass; there wasn’t enough time to call any run plays. There were also numerous long passes in the first half that could have resulted in Michigan touchdowns had the ball not been overthrown or dropped by receivers. Something has to change, whether it’s with the defensive coordinator or defensive backs coach. 

            On the plus side, this unit did get three interceptions.

Turnovers- Five, there were five turnovers last night. That’s TEN turnovers in two games. Seriously, how hard is it to keep control of the ball? Notre Dame is losing these games on their own. Could you imagine if they dropped that number down to three turnovers a game? They would have won both of their games. There were two interceptions by Rees, a fumble by Rees, a fumble by Cierre Wood, and another one that I don’t recall.

Play calling in the second half- As I mentioned, Notre Dame actually passed the ball more than they ran the ball in the second half, which is a good thing. The runs though came on crucial third downs when a pass would have been a better call. On every third and short the Irish ran the ball and got stuffed. It was so obvious that they were gonna run that the Wolverines blitzed just about everyone on their defense. Irish quarterback Tommy Rees has to see this and call an audible, or as he did earlier in the game, fake the audible call and still run it.

            In the second half they also used a two tight-end set. I am completely confused and shocked on why anybody thought that would be a good idea. Bring in one tight-end and make the other defense think you’re gonna pass. Two tight-ends on the field is the biggest indication that you’re going to run than anything else.

            

            My patience with Notre Dame Football is growing shorter and shorter with every disappointing loss and disappointing season. I am sick of going through “rebuilding years” and “motivational losses”.  I want to experience the same joy and happiness that other fans enjoy when their teams win big games. Notre Dame has not beaten a Top #25 team in years and that’s a shame. How long can you continue to say “This is Notre Dame. We can’t lose forever; we have a rich tradition; etc.” This is the 21^st Century, and Notre Dame Football is losing relevance every year.

           The Fighting Irish take on the Michigan State Spartans next Saturday.

Notre Dame at Michigan Preview

            
            The rivalry between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and University of Michigan Wolverines dates back all the way to 1887. In autumn of that year the Wolverines football team visited South Bend to teach the newly formed Notre Dame football team the basics of the game. Little did anybody know that that would result in one of college football’s best rivalries with two of college football most storied programs.

            
            Michigan has won the past five games against Notre Dame, but in the past two they have only won by a combined eight points. Last year Notre Dame could have easily won (I seem to say that a lot with the Irish), but nobody on the Irish defense could even slow down Michigan quarterback, Denard Robinson, as he racked up 500 total yards just by himself.

            
            This year the game is being blitzed by the media for several reasons. First off, it’s Notre Dame and Michigan. No matter how bad the two teams are they are two teams that are the foundation of college football. This year’s game will also be the first night game at Michigan Stadium. The two teams will also wear “retro” uniforms.

Michgan's uniform features stripes on the shoulders. Notre Dame has green numbers and striped socks.

Keys to an Irish Victory

No Turnovers- Last week’s 5-tunrover cannot be duplicated if the Fighting Irish expect to leave Ann Arbor with a victory. There can’t be any bonehead moves by players. Everybody needs to be focused on moving the ball down the field and getting into the end zone. That means you Jonas Gray, Theo Riddick, and T.J. Jones.

Stop Denard Robinson- Hopefully some of the returning Irish defense remembers Robinson’s thrashing of them last year. Robinson is the key to Michigan’s offense. If he is stopped, they will not score. The Irish defense held the USF offense to just one touchdown last game and their quarterback likes to run all over field similar to Robinson.

Balance on offense- It seems like when Tommy Rees, who was named the starting quarterback over Dayne Crist thankfully, is in the game the Irish throw the ball a lot. This isn’t a bad thing necessarily, but it can lead to interceptions and sacks. Notre Dame running back, Cierre Wood, needs to continue the good job he had last week and rip off some good runs to keep the Wolverines secondary honest. Michigan’s defense is supposed to be improved from last year, but they gave up 183 passing yards and 70 rushing yards in three quarters to Western Michigan.

            Michigan is not that great of a team, although the same could be said for Notre Dame. If Notre Dame can play solid and not do anything stupid this game should be theirs to lose. The key to a Michigan victory may not even be on the field. You just know that the 109,000 fans at Michigan Stadium will be rocking tomorrow night. There is a lot of lead up to this game and they will be dying to see their Michigan Wolverines win.

            My predicted score: 31-21, Notre Dame.

Tune into "College Gameday" on ESPN Saturday morning at 10 a.m. The show is broadcasting from right outside Michigan Stadium.


GO IRISH!

The newly renovated Michigan Stadium. Suites and press boxes have been added (the giant brick structures along the side). This is thought to keep more of the crowd noise inside the stadium. We'll find out tomorrow night if that's true.