Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1037156
20 OCT. 15, 2018 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI " E nter Sandman" is the rau- cous rock-and-roll theme at Virginia Tech when it takes the field at Lane Stadium, but it was Notre Dame that put the No. 24-ranked Hokies to sleep with a convincing 45-23 victory to exit with a 6-0 record and a possible top-four ranking in this week's poll. After a competitive first half that saw Notre Dame hold a precarious 17-16 lead at the intermission, a four- touchdown outburst by the Irish in the final 30 minutes — highlighted by a 97-yard touchdown romp by senior running back Dexter William to begin the onslaught — ignited the triumph. Coming off a career-high 161-yard rushing effort versus Stanford, Wil- liams responded with 178 yards on 17 carries and three touchdowns in Blacksburg. Junior quarterback Ian Book com- plemented the ground attack with a controlled passing attack, completing 25 of 35 throws for 271 yards with a couple of touchdown passes to senior wide receiver Miles Boykin. Prior to Williams' long scamper, the Irish were at minus-five rushing yards and saw their offense bog down while going more vertical (mostly un- successfully) in the passing game. "We were more efficient," head coach Brian Kelly said of the domi- nant second half in which the Irish outscored the Hokies 28-7. "We were a little sloppy at times in the first half. We just said, 'Listen, stop going outside of what you can do.' We were trying to do too many things. "We just got back to doing what we're good at, and I think we settled down a lot better." Defensively, the Irish were led by another strong pass rush, spearheaded by junior end Khalid Kareem, while junior cornerback Julian Love re- turned a fumble forced by Kareem for a score, and later intercepted a pass. "I thought they handled the envi- ronment quite well," Kelly said of the electric atmosphere for the prime- time contest. "I don't think that was the issue at all in the first half. "We got off to a great start … When you make plays you quiet the crowd down, and I thought we did a great job with that." FIRST QUARTER: NOTRE DAME 10, VIRGINIA TECH 3 Top Moment: Following the opening kickoff, Notre Dame drove 75 yards in 12 plays, with Book completing all seven pass attempts for 58 yards. The march was capped by Williams' one- yard touchdown run at the 9:24 mark. Book snuck for a first down on fourth- and-inches the play before the score. Standout Performer: Book was 8-of-11 passing for 114 yards, but on his final attempt in the quarter he overthrew wide open senior receiver Chris Finke on what would have been a 62-yard touchdown. Stats: Notre Dame had 138 to- tal yards, while the Hokies had 74 (7-of-10 passing for 48 yards, and five carries for 26 yards). Items: On Notre Dame's second possession, a 56-yard deep ball from Book to Finke set up senior Justin Yoon's 31-yard field goal with 6:58 left … On its second series, Virginia Tech was undone by three penalties, including an ineligible man down field on a long touchdown pass from receiver Hezekiah Grimsley to fellow receiver Sean Savoy on a trick play … The Hokies settled for a 40-yard field goal by Brian Johnson with 53 seconds remaining to conclude a 53-yard drive. SECOND QUARTER: NOTRE DAME 17, VIRGINIA TECH 16 Top Moment: Trailing 10-9, Virginia Tech had first-down at Notre Dame's 48-yard line when pass pressure by Kareem forced a fumble by quarter- back Ryan Willis that Love picked up and returned for a 42-yard touch- down and a 17-9 lead with 1:08 left until halftime. Standout Performers: Virginia Tech's passing combination of Willis to Da- mon Hazelton connected four times for 53 yards, highlighted by a three-yard score with 12 seconds remaining to cut Notre Dame's halftime lead to 17-16. During the drive, Irish junior drop end Julian Okwara was ejected from the game for a targeting call when the crown of his helmet hit Willis on a rush. That left the Irish without their top two drop ends because junior Dae- lin Hayes had a shoulder injury that prevented him from making the trip. Stats: Virginia Tech outgained Notre Dame 141-22 in total yards during these 15 minutes and held a 215-160 advantage at the half. Notre Dame had minus-three rushing yards the first 30 minutes. Items: A poor long snap on an Irish punt set up Virginia Tech at the Irish 43, but an Okwara sack helped limit the Hokies to a 43-yard field goal at the 10:06 mark that narrowed the deficit to 10-6 … After an interception by Vir- ginia Tech linebacker Reggie Floyd and a 41-yard run by running back Steven Peoples to Notre Dame's 1-yard line, a goal-line stand by the Irish defense forced a 22-yard field by Johnson with 3:21 left to pull the Hokies within 10-9. THIRD QUARTER: NOTRE DAME 31, VIRGINIA TECH 16 Top Moment: With the Irish pinned back on their 5-yard line on their initial possession in the second half, Williams on second-and-12 followed pulling ju- nior guard Tommy Kraemer on a 97- yard touchdown run for a 24-16 Irish advantage with 11:38 left. Standout Performer: Notre Dame's third-down offense converted third- and-six with a 10-yard Book-to-Finke completion, and then on third-and- eight a scrambling Book found Boykin on a 40-yard touchdown for a 31-16 advantage with 4:59 remaining. Stats: Through three quarters Notre Dame had run 50 plays for 322 yards (228 passing and 94 rushing) and Vir- ginia Tech 49 plays for 337 yards (219 passing and 118 rushing). Pleasant Dreams Notre Dame handles raucous Virginia Tech atmosphere with a strong second half in 45-23 victory Senior running back Dexter Williams ignited Notre Dame's 28-point second half with a 97-yard touchdown run. He finished the game with 178 yards and three scores on 17 carries. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA