Blue and Gold Illustrated

Nov. 27, 2020

Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football

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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com NOV. 27, 2020 7 UNDER THE DOME 4 Head coaches in history who have won their first three games against Notre Dame: Chicago's Amos Alonzo Stagg (4-0 from 1893- 99), Northwestern's Ara Parseghian (4-0 from 1959-62), Miami's Jimmy Johnson (1984, 1985 and 1987) and Michigan State/Alabama's Nick Saban (3-0 at Michigan State from 1997-99 and 1-0 at Alabama). Clemson's Dabo Swinney was denied from becoming the fifth when Notre Dame defeated the Tigers 47-40 in double overtime on Nov. 7. Swinney had won his first two meetings versus the Irish in 2015 (24-22) and the 2018 College Football Playoff (30-3). 7 Team or individual honors earned in the days after the 47-40 double- overtime victory versus No. 1 Clemson on Nov. 7. • Notre Dame was named the Reveal Suits Football Writers As- sociation of America National Team of the Week for snapping the Tigers' 36-game regular- season win streak, plus con- tinuing their own longest ac- tive win streak (13). • Fifth-year senior quar- terback Ian Book made the Davey O'Brien Award Great 8 List while passing for 310 yards and rushing for 67. • Sophomore running back Kyren Williams was feted as the ACC's Run- ning Back of the Week for his 140-yard, three-touchdown game — plus superb pass blocking and blitz pickup. • Senior left guard Aaron Banks was honored as the ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week while helping Notre Dame average 5.1 yards per carry for the 208 yards on the ground. • Senior rover JEREMIAH OWUSU-KORAMOAH was the ACC's Linebacker of the Week with nine tackles, two stops for loss and half a sack. He forced a fumble and had a recovery of another for a 23-yard touchdown, the first of his career. His half a sack came at a crucial moment in the second overtime. • Senior kicker Jonathan Doerer was named a Lou Groza Award "Star of the Week" after con- verting field goals from 24, 27, 44 and 45 yards and all five point-after tries. His 17 points tied for the most by a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) kicker this year and tied the Notre Dame single- game record by a kicker. • Brian Kelly was named the Dodd Trophy Coach of the Week, which goes to a coach "who led his team to a significant victory during the previous week, while also embodying the award's three pillars of scholarship, lead- ership and integrity." 10.17 Million viewers on NBC for the Clemson-Notre Dame game on Nov. 7. Based on Nielson official national data and digital data from Adobe Analytics, it was the most-watched college football game of 2020 and the second-most watched Notre Dame game in NBC's 30-year history of broadcasting the home games. The figure eclipsed the previous 2020 high of 9.669 for Alabama-Georgia on Oct. 17. On NBC, only the 1993 No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup with Florida State was higher (22.02). In third was Michigan in 1994 (10.10), No. 1 USC in 2005 (10.07) and 1993 Boston College (9.93). 90.7 Passing grade given by Pro Football Focus to Ian Book for his Nov. 7 performance against Clemson. It was the best against the Tigers since 2014. With a victory against Syracuse on Dec. 5, Book also would join John Lujack and Tony Rice as the lone Notre Dame quarterbacks to have at least two years of starting experience at quarterback and never lose a game at home. Rice was 15-0 from 1987-89 in Notre Dame Stadium, Book is 14-0 and Lujack was 9-0 in 1943 and 1946-47. 1981 The most recent year until this one that Notre Dame played a game on the Friday after Thanksgiving. In head coach Gerry Faust's debut season with the Fight- ing Irish, Notre Dame ended with a 37-15 loss at rising power Miami for the team's first finish under .500 in 18 years. That game was played Nov. 27 — same as this year's at North Carolina. ✦ BY THE NUMBERS PHOTO BY MIKE MILLER

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