Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com JAN. 1, 2021 31 NOTRE DAME HEAD COACH BRIAN KELLY … On why he didn't expand his wide receiver rotation much beyond the starters: "We didn't feel like our receiv- ers were having a hard time getting open. This was much more about down and distance and coverage. We were in so many third-and-long situations. "When you drop more into coverage than you have out there, you could have five Jerry Rices out there and they're not getting open as readily." On how he reacted to Notre Dame's inability to con- vert in the red zone early in the game: "Consistency and performance is going to be what's going to judge how this game finishes and, quite frankly, I told them we've got to finish. We can't keep leaving points out here, and there's only so much you can do at that point. You've got to con- tinue to stay positive with the guys and continue to look at ways to get the ball into the end zone. "It really doesn't do much good to be over there yelling and screaming. They know what they need to do. They needed to finish off some drives we didn't do, but you know we're all in this together. We've got to coach better, and our players have got to make plays. "When you have a great football team, which we do, it's about consistency and performance and we were inconsis- tent today for the first time all year. We'll work hard in our preparation and we'll get back to being more consistent." On why freshman running back Chris Tyree wasn't utilized more often: "Chris Tyree's our back that we bring in when we feel like Kyren [Williams] needs a breather. He got in there and bounced the [touchdown] out there, but he's in the rotation. "Just like he did the last game we played, [when] he broke off a 94- or 96-yard run, but he's not the complete back that Kyren is yet, but he will be. He's a good back." FIFTH-YEAR QUARTERBACK IAN BOOK … On why he struggled to scramble in the rematch against Clemson: "I need to watch the film. I don't want to say anything that's not 100 percent true. I played my plays. I haven't been able to watch everything from a bird's-eye view. "That's what I want to do. I want to watch the film. Take a look at it with Coach [Tommy] Rees, and I'll have more answers for you. I don't really know. I've got to take a look at it." On if one of Clemson's objective was to keep him in the pocket: "I believe that was probably one of their goals. It makes sense. They've got some fast guys and an athletic defense. I definitely felt that from the first time we played them till now, and I think that was a big adjustment for them. "It felt that way and it's on me to see that, adjust from that, talk to Coach Rees on the phone ... Tried to do that more in the second half." SENIOR ROVER JEREMIAH OWUSU-KORAMOAH … On how the Notre Dame defense moves on from such a lopsided loss: "We'll go back and look at the film, of course. Look at where we erred. We'll fix those mistakes because whatever team you play next will be looking at those plays that we didn't execute on. We'll be looking forward to seeing those exact plays again. "We'll go back and focus on what we've been focusing on — and that's us. We'll go back a little to fundamentals and make sure we have everything right as far as our fits, as far as how we beat blocks and our scheme. We'll just focus on us and just try to put this game behind us as much as we can." On if being down by more than a touchdown for the first time this season impacted how the defense played: "Most of the guys on defense have played before, so it wasn't a new thing as far as us being down. We were just trying to keep a positive attitude and just make sure our young guys knew this game is not over and that we can compete. "We can still put good stuff on the film. I don't think it was a big difficulty for us. It was just a thing where we had to regroup, and make sure we corrected things we failed on." — Andrew Mentock FROM THE LOCKER ROOM Head coach Brian Kelly lamented Notre Dame's missed opportunities in the first quarter, when the Irish produced just three points on three trips inside the Clemson 30-yard line. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS