Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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18 MAY 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED scored the game's first points on a 36- yard field goal. SCORE: Blue 3, Gold 0. Gold Offense From Own 25, 12:08: Price gained four yards on a rush and then 19 more on a swing pass. John- son was flagged for a false start for the second time. Three straight Pyne in- completions stalled the drive. The Gold team got the ball right back, though, on a muffed punt. Gold Offense From Blue 37, 9:55: Early enrollee freshman linebacker Ju- nior Tuihalamaka stopped Price for no gain. Thomas sprinted for a 22-yard scamper on an end-around. Pyne was picked off by senior linebacker Marist Liufau. Blue Offense From Own 35, 8:14: Estime netted five yards on two rushing plays, and Blue went three-and-out af- ter Angeli couldn't connect with gradu- ate student wide receiver Matt Salerno in tight coverage on a stopping route. Gold Offense From Own 30, 6:37: Price moved the chains on two runs net- ting 10 yards. He lost a yard on a recep- tion but gained seven more on another catch on the next play. Pyne couldn't find Mayer on third-and-4, and Gold was forced to punt. Blue Offense From Own 25, 3:25: Pyne finally got some momentum going on this possession. He started the drive with completed passes to Salerno and Colzie. He earned a first down with a 4-yard rush of his own on a zone-read. With plenty of time to sit in the pocket, he riled a 20-yard gain to Salerno. A face mask penalty on early enrollee fresh- man corner Jaden Mickey gave Blue even more yardage. Pyne completed his next three passes to Diggs, sopho- more tight end Mitchell Evans and Diggs again for a net of 22 yards. A Diggs gain of three and an offsides penalty put Blue on the 2-yard line. The first touchdown of the day came on a play-action pass to walk-on tight end Andrew Yanoshak. SCORE: Blue 10, Gold 0. Gold Offense From Own 25, 0:50: Pyne continued his positive play from the previous series in completing four of his first five throws on this drive. The completions gained 45 yards and put Gold on the Blue 30. Sophomore Josh Bryan attempted a field goal from 48 yards out as time expired. He missed wide right. THIRD QUARTER BLUE 10, GOLD 7 Blue Offense From Own 25, 15:00: Making his first appearance in the game, sophomore quarterback Ron Powlus III and the Blue offense went three-and- out. Kollie and senior defensive end Nana Osafo-Mensah had tackles for loss re- sulting in a loss of 13 total yards. Gold Offense From Blue 48, 11:45: Price lost three yards on a carry, but he took a screen pass 51 yards to the house for Gold's first touchdown on the next Price led all skill players with 116 yards from scrimmage, and he had a 51-yard touchdown reception that started the Gold team's comeback from a 10-point halftime deficit. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER From The Locker Room HEAD COACH MARCUS FREEMAN … On the end of spring practices: "I couldn't be prouder of the collective 15 practices. To end it like that, you couldn't have scripted it a better way, to end it on the last play. This group has a lot of mo- mentum right now. "We continue to form our identity, but it's really good to end it that way. No injuries for the most part. We stayed pretty healthy. I was pretty pleased with today and the entirety of spring." On what his next three months look like: "Recruiting never stops. Recruiting, recruiting, recruiting. Every day. Recruiting. That is an everyday responsibility and our entire staff's focus. "How do I become a better coach? You have to talk to people that are currently or former coaches. You look at situational football. You look at the spring. You find areas for improvement and address them in June and July. You have to maximize our time with the players." On alumni returning for the Blue-Gold Game: "Our current players have to understand playing here is a privilege. That starts with inviting the former guys back. They come back because they love this place. That is powerful. I want them back at their home. They built this place. "Our current players can now connect with them. Jerome Bettis, first-round pick, Hall of Famer, it doesn't matter, you're Notre Dame football. They love this place. That is a reflection of how they feel about this place."