Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com DECEMBER 2021 7 UNDER THE DOME there. That has been the difference so far this year." On cue, Notre Dame had a 29.9 per- cent run stuff rate in the red zone, which ranked 27th nationally. The Irish had also recorded seven red zone sacks since allowing their last touchdown in that area. As Kelly hinted, taking away the run in the red zone leads to a one-dimen- sional opposing offense that's easier to defend. Notre Dame is allowing a 36.6 completion percentage and 2.3 yards per pass attempt inside the 20, both of which ranked third best in the Football Bowl Subdivision. The Irish had two red zone interceptions and two forced fumbles through 11 games. "You have to be a little more aggres- sive down there, and we are," Kelly said. "But you can't be so predictable that when you get down there, you know what you're getting. I think there's been a fine balance." On offense, Notre Dame has tried to balance aggression and getting the ball to its best players in recent weeks. Since Oct. 9, junior running back Kyren Wil- liams has 36 carries for 113 yards and eight touchdowns, along with seven receptions (two of them for receiving scores). Sophomore tight end Michael Mayer had six red zone catches in the first seven games and a six-game streak without a touchdown, but caught two red zone passes and a touchdown Nov. 13 at Virginia. Sometimes, red zone offense is as simple as feeding the best players the ball. On its second drive at Virginia, Notre Dame faced a fourth-and-one at the Cavaliers' 20-yard line. The Irish's fourth-and-one quarterback sneak on the prior drive was stuffed. This time, they called one of their most reliable run plays and handed it to Williams. He gained 14 yards. Graduate student quarterback Jack Coan hit Mayer in the end zone one play later. Later in the game, Coan connected with senior wide receiver Kevin Aus- tin Jr. for a 15-yard touchdown on a fade route in the end zone. It was just Aus- tin's third red zone catch of the sea- son, on seven targets. Finding a way to involve Notre Dame's best jump-ball, contested-catch weapon more often down there would benefit the entire offense. "There are so many moving fac- tors there," Kelly said. "Some of it is play calling. Some of it is awareness of matchups and getting the ball to those guys who can make plays for you down there. I think we were searching for those guys. Then some of it is the quarterback." Extrapolate that 70 percent touch- down rate the Irish have displayed in their last 10 trips inside their oppo- nents' 20-yard line across 11 games and it would rank 21st in the FBS. Even the best offenses have to kick field goals sometimes. What they don't do, though, is go backward. And the Irish backslid on two of those three non-touchdown posses- sions against Virginia and Georgia Tech. Freshman quarterback Tyler Buchner lost a fumble at the mesh point with freshman running back Logan Diggs on first-and-goal at Virginia. Notre Dame had first-and-goal at Georgia Tech's 10-yard line on the game's second play, but allowed sacks on two of the next three snaps. There will be incompletions, run stuffs and defenses that take away Mayer or Williams on certain plays, but mistakes are more controllable. "We're aware we have to be a little more open in formations down there in the last month or so, and I think we have," Kelly said. "We can't just roll up our sleeves and say, 'Hey, we're going to be in three tight ends and stop our run.' I think we've realized who we need to be down there." ✦ Sophomore tight end Michael Mayer led Notre Dame with eight red zone catches through 11 games. The Irish ranked 62nd nationally in red zone touchdown rate (61.9 percent, 26 of 42) heading into their last game, but had scored seven touchdowns in their last 10 trips inside their opponents' 20-yard line. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER "We're aware we have to be a little more open in formations down there in the last month or so, and I think we have." HEAD COACH BRIAN KELLY ON NOTRE DAME'S RED ZONE OFFENSE APPROACH