Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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30 OCT. 15, 2018 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED What Worked Defense Responds To Adversity: The Notre Dame defense was put to the test against Virginia Tech. Not only did the Irish defenders have to handle keeping the Hokies' athletic skill players in check, it had to over- come setbacks all night. • Holding a 10-3 lead early in the second quarter, a muffed Irish snap on a fourth-down punt allowed Virginia Tech to take over at the Irish 43-yard line. The Hokies moved into the red zone, but a sack by junior ends Julian Okwara and Khalid Kareem stalled the drive and forced a field goal. • Later in the second quarter, Notre Dame junior quarterback Ian Book threw a pick that gave the Hok- ies the football at the Irish 42-yard line. Two plays later, Virginia Tech running back Steven Peoples ripped off a 41-yard run to get the ball down to the Notre Dame 1-yard line. Af- ter two run stuffs, freshman rover Shayne Simon made a crucial third- down sack, again forcing a field goal. • The defense allowed a late first- half touchdown, but it responded by forcing a punt on the opening drive of the third quarter that had crossed midfield, and then forced two missed long field goals and another punt while the offense eventually broke open the game. Defensive Line Depth Shows Up: There was even more distress for the Irish defense. Junior drop end Daelin Hayes didn't travel due to a shoulder injury, and starting drop end Julian Okwara was ejected for targeting late in the second quarter. Notre Dame spent much of the sec- ond half rotating in defensive line- men that had received little playing time through the first five games. Freshmen defensive linemen Jay- son and Justin Ademilola both re- ceived significant second-half action, and the duo held their own. Junior Jamir Jones was forced to move to the drop spot with Hayes and Okwara out, and he also played well. With the two drop ends out, Ka- reem had to raise his game, and he did, finishing with 2.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, a forced fumble, a pass broken up and a quarterback hurry. Playmakers Explode On Offense: Notre Dame had plenty of chances to break the game open early on of- fense, but it couldn't execute. How- ever, the skill players, particularly in the second half, emerged when most needed to help seal the verdict. Senior wideout Miles Boykin took over in the second half, hauling in five passes for 83 yards after the in- termission, notably both of his touch- downs. Virginia Tech simply could not match up against Boykin, who used his size to out-physical and out- play the Hokies' defenders. Senior running back Dexter Wil- liams found the going tough for much of the game, and Notre Dame actually had minus-three rushing yards in the first half, but he gave the offense a much-needed boost with a 97-yard touchdown scamper on the opening drive of the third quarter. The Irish ran a basic sweep and Williams perfectly read the perimeter blocks, cutting inside of a kick-out block by right guard Tommy Kraemer and then out-running the defense for the game-changing moment. What Didn't Work Book Struggles Downfield: Offen- sive coordinator Chip Long had the number of Virginia Tech defensive co- ordinator Bud Foster, one of the best in the business. The Hokies spent much of the night getting their safeties down close to the line of scrimmage in an attempt to take away the quick passes and to shut down the run game. Long countered with a number of calls that saw wide receivers get open all night long. His first downfield shot went for 56 yards on the second possession of the game, setting up a field goal that put the Irish up 10-0. However, junior quarterback Ian Book struggled to connect on those open throws the rest of the night. He missed a wide open Finke for a 62-yard touchdown that would have put Notre Dame up 17-3. Book also missed Boykin on a slant-and-go for a possible long touchdown in the third quarter, over- shot junior receiver Chase Claypool on a possible long post route in the second quarter, and he again missed Claypool for a potential big play on a wide open wheel route that fell yards short of the target. ✦ Virginia Tech Game: What Worked And What Didn't CLOSER LOOK BRYAN DRISKELL Bryan Driskell has been a football analyst for Blue & Gold Illustrated since April 2015. He can be reached at bdriskell@blueandgold.com. Notre Dame's defensive line depth was on full display versus Virginia Tech, with junior end Jamir Jones among the reserves that stepped in and performed well. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA