Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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24 SEPT. 23, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED TURNING POINT New Mexico trailed 14-0 midway through the second quarter and had just driven to a first down at Notre Dame's 41-yard line. A three-yard tackle for loss by senior drop end Daelin Hayes was followed by an interception by senior safety Jalen Elliott on excellent coverage. On the first Irish play afterwards, junior run- ning back Avery Davis' 59-yard catch-and-run off a shovel pass from senior quarterback Ian Book opened the floodgates that saw Notre Dame tally three touchdowns in a span of 4:44. The score went from 14-0 with 6:44 remaining in the first half to 35-0 with 1:50 left. The Irish offense was stagnant in the first quarter (the lone score came on an intercep- tion return by freshman safety Kyle Hamilton), but Elliott's interception swung the momentum with three straight touchdowns in rapid fashion: one play, 59 yards; two plays, 80 yards; and two plays, 54 yards. STAT OF THE GAME The 434 passing yards by Notre Dame via 17-of- 27 passing by three different quarterbacks were the third most in the 10-year Brian Kelly era, and the most since a 471-yard output by quarterback DeShone Kizer (23 of 35) during a 50-33 victory against Syracuse on Oct. 1, 2016. On junior quarterback Ian Book's 59-, 65- and 54-yard touchdown passes to junior running back Avery Davis, senior wide receiver Javon McKinley and fifth-year senior wide receiver Finke, respec- tively, the ball traveled only about 10 yards from the line of scrimmage. The scores by Davis and Finke were basically jet sweeps but counted as forward laterals. It tremendously aided Book's passing efficiency numbers and was also a way to compensate for a relatively inexperienced running back corps that was without junior Jafar Armstrong (abdominal surgery) and sophomore Jahmir Smith (sprained toe). RUN TO GLORY It is the oldest formula of dominant football that head coach Brian Kelly repeated in the preseason to dictate what would make Notre Dame a bona fide College Football Playoff contender again in 2019: run the football effectively, and stop the run. Both Louisville and New Mexico were able to put up quality rushing numbers against Notre Dame with 249 and 212 yards, respectively. In No. 3-ranked Georgia, the Fighting Irish run de- fense will be confronting one of the most physical and deepest running attacks in the nation. On the other side of the ball, Notre Dame has had to be resourceful with its ground game with- out some vital pieces. The forward lateral 59- and 54-yard catch-and-run touchdowns by junior running back Avery Davis and fifth-year senior receiver Chris Finke against New Mexico could be counted as "running plays" just as easily, but attacking the flanks might be tougher against Georgia's personnel. THREE OBSERVATIONS BY LOU SOMOGYI OFFENSE: QB IAN BOOK It didn't start well for the senior quarterback, but when you pass for 360 yards, lead the offense in rushing (46 yards) and account for six touchdowns, it is hard to give the player of the game to anyone else. Book completed 11 of 19 passes for 251 yards with three touchdowns in the first half, but only three of his comple- tions traveled more than five yards past the line of scrim- mage, with two of those throws coming late in the first half. He got over his shaky start and made better decisions, stayed poised in the pocket and distributed the ball where it needed to go. DEFENSE: DE DAELIN HAYES There were a number of standouts on the defense, which racked up eight tackles for loss, five passes broken up and three interceptions, but the senior defensive end got things started off well for the Irish. He tipped a third-down pass on New Mexico's second drive of the game, and the fluttering pass ended up in the hands of freshman safety Kyle Hamil- ton, who returned it 34 yards for a touchdown. Later in the game, Hayes chased down a New Mexico run- ner behind the line of scrimmage despite the fact the Lobos were trying to run away from him. On Notre Dame's next series, he had a huge second-down tackle for loss that forced a third-and-13 pass that ended with another interception. SPECIAL TEAMS: KICKOFF COVERAGE UNIT Notre Dame kicker Jonathan Doerer booted his fourth kickoff of the game out of bounds, giving New Mexico the ball at its own 35-yard line. Other than that, Doerer, fresh- man Harrison Leonard and the Irish coverage units were outstanding. Seven of Notre Dame's 10 kickoffs were fair caught or went for touchbacks, and the two that were returned re- sulted in New Mexico starting at its own 17- and 16-yard lines. TOP PLAYERS OF THE GAME BY BRYAN DRISKELL Senior defensive end Daelin Hayes recorded two tackles for loss among four stops and deflected a pass that resulted in an interception the Fighting Irish returned for touchdown. PHOTO BY ANDRIS VISOCKIS