Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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fighting words Wes morgan ual player or team is headed once the snaps actually matter, but folks were hoping for more than what they saw. "He had a good spring overall," Kelly said of Golson. "Really liked his development in the spring. And you know, one practice or one-game format is not going to take away from the kind of spring he had, but I think it's a good reminder for him. He's still learning and he'll get better because of it." Notre Dame has to get better offensively, particularly in the red zone, if it wants to avoid a slate of Saturdays where a single misstep could cost it another crack at a BCS bowl bid. The last 10 BCS title winners averaged no fewer than 396 yards of total offense per game, with the last three (Alabama 2011-12 and Auburn 2010) cranking out a combined average of 458.1. The Crimson Tide and Tigers put up an average of 38.23 points per outing over the last three championship seasons. The Fighting Irish were 54th in total offense (412.15) and tied for 78th in scoring (25.77) in 2012. It was just the fourth time in the last decade the program finished with more than 400 yards per game. Only the 2005, 2006 and 2009 squads scored at least 30 points per contest in that same span. Tied for 70th in red zone efficiency last fall (80 percent), the Irish settled for 29 touchdowns and 19 field goals, tied for the most in the nation. Alabama's 62 trips to the red zone — just two more than Notre Dame posted — resulted in 46 touchdowns and just 10 field goals. It's a near certainty that Kelly's of- fense will operate far more efficiently five months from now than the snippet viewed in April. But the way this year's team handled its first taste of pressure in front of more than 30,000 spectators at Notre Dame Stadium and a national television audience came up lacking for everyone not wishing to take an afternoon snooze. Toss in an error-filled collection of punts and punt returns (junior Kyle Brindza averaged just 30.1 yards on seven attempts) and there was legitimate reason for some concern. "It was a little frustrating because of the execution that we had all spring," said senior receiver TJ Jones, who dropped a punt in the scrimmage. "It didn't show on the field. All the progress we made, all the hard work we put in on the field, those early mornings, I don't think, in my opinion, we showcased it in this game. We definitely showed we have a lot to work on to be better than last year." Notre Dame defensive coordinator Bob Diaco had the most fun in the spring finale, even running out onto the field to chest bump players. Fortunately, the Irish offense probably won't see as tough a defense in 2013. Junior safety Matthias Farley said the performance was the "fruit of the labor of all you've put in through the spring." The offense clearly isn't quite ripe. ✦ Assitant Editor Wes Morgan has been with Blue & Gold Illustrated since February 2011. He can be reached at wmorgan@blueandgold.com