Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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28 SEPT. 16, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED on a three-yard run in the first quar- ter, and the second was a one-yard run in the fourth. Smith's carries and yardage were single-game highs, and the touch- downs were the first of his career. SEVERAL SEE FIRST GAME ACTION A handful of Notre Dame players made their first career appearance against the Cardinals. In his first game, sophomore tight end Tommy Tremble caught three passes for 49 yards. His first career reception resulted in a 26-yard touch- down that gave the Irish a 28-14 ad- vantage in the third quarter, and his other two catches resulted in pivotal third-down conversions. "It showed tonight that he's ath- letic, he can make plays, and he can block for us on the edge. I'm really happy for him that he was able to get a touchdown tonight," senior quar- terback Ian Book said. "We're going to need him the rest of the season. He'll keep it up." Sophomore Jack Lamb saw action as both the passing-down Buck line- backer and on kick returns. He re- corded his first career tackle. Several freshmen also saw action: safety Kyle Hamilton, punter Jay Bramblett, cornerback KJ Wallace, linebacker Jack Kiser, running back Kyren Williams and defensive tackle Jacob Lacey. Hamilton got on to the field early in the game at safety, registered four solo tackles and led the team in passes broken up with two. He was also on the kickoff coverage unit. Bramblett averaged 39.3 yards on his six punts with a long of 46, and was also the holder on extra points. Lacey rotated in at nose tackle be- hind junior Kurt Hinish and had one solo tackle. Williams saw action at running back early in the game, but after dropping a pass he didn't receive any more backfield opportunities. He also returned one kickoff for 16 yards. Wallace and Kiser both saw action on special teams, with Kiser partici- pating in both kickoff coverage and kick return, and Wallace appearing on punt return. ✦ LOUISVILLE VS. NOTRE DAME QUARTER-BY-QUARTER COMPARISON Louisville 1st Qtr. 2nd Qtr. 3rd Qtr. 4th Qtr. 1st Half 2nd Half Total Time of Possession 7:55 6:07 10:36 7:22 14:02 17:58 32:00 Third-Down Conversions 3-3 0-4 3-5 0-3 3-7 3-8 6-15 Fourth-Down Conversions 0-0 0-0 0-0 1-2 0-0 1-2 1-2 Average Field Position UL-21 UL-24 UL-22 UL-16 UL-23 UL-20 UL-22 Notre Dame 1st Qtr. 2nd Qtr. 3rd Qtr. 4th Qtr. 1st Half 2nd Half Final Time of Possession 7:05 8:53 4:24 7:38 15:58 12:02 28:00 Third-Down Conversions 1-2 1-4 0-2 3-4 2-6 3-6 5-12 Fourth-Down Conversions 0-0 0-1 0-0 0-0 0-1 0-0 0-1 Average Field Position ND-23 ND-43 ND-29 ND-39 ND-35 ND-33 ND-34 PLAY CHART (NO. OF PLAYS) Yards UL ND Nega ve 11 5 0-5 34 34 6-9 11 8 10-19 16 13 20-29 1 1 30-39 1 4 40-49 1 0 50 or more 0 0 RED ZONE EFFICIENCY (INSIDE 20-YARD LINE) No Poss. TD FG Score Louisville 2 2 0 0 Notre Dame 4 4 0 0 BIG PLAYS (25 YARDS OR MORE) Louisville • 3-5 UL30 Hawkins rush for 44 yards to the ND26 • 3-5 UL37 Pass throw complete to Ford for 37 yards to the ND26 Notre Dame • 1-10 ND25 Book rush for 37 yards to the UL38 • 3-13 UL45 T. Jones rush for 35 yards to the UL10 • 1-10 ND43 Book pass complete to Claypool for 31 yards to the UL26 • 1-10 UL26 Book pass complete to Tremble for 26 yards and a touchdown • 1-10 UL36 Book pass complete to Claypool for 34 yards to the UL2 In his Fighting Irish debut, freshman safety Kyle Hamilton recorded four solo tackles and led the team with two passes broken up. PHOTO BY MIKE MILLER MISCELLANEOUS NOTES • Junior running back Jafar Armstrong finished the game with two carries for 10 yards and a 16-yard reception. He left in the first quarter with reportedly a groin injury and did not return. • Since 1958, the Irish are now 38-4 when scoring first in the season opener. • Senior wide receiver Javon McKinley recorded his first career catch with an 11-yard reception. • Notre Dame forced five Louisville fumbles and recorded three. The only other time in the Brian Kelly era when the Irish recovered three fumbles was during the 2012 game versus Navy in Dublin, Ireland (Notre Dame won 50-10). That also was a season opener.