Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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26 SEPT. 24, 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 1. Lots Of Chris Tyree Notre Dame offensive coordinator Tommy Rees said he needed to find ways to highlight junior run- ning back Chris Tyree's ability. Tyree had 9 rushes and 3 catches in the first two games despite play- ing the most snaps of the Irish's three backs. On that, Rees delivered. Tyree had as many touches in the first half as he did in the first two games. He had 6 on Notre Dame's first scoring drive, including a 10-yard run and a 21-yard touchdown catch. Tyree has enough wiggle and lower-body power to hold up on runs between the tackles. He's a home-run threat on every play. His vision and open-field elusiveness make him a screen pass weapon. Screens are easy throws for a backup quarterback trying to find some rhythm and help the offense stay ahead of schedule. The more of them for Tyree, the better. All told, Tyree had 17 carries for 64 yards and a team-high 5 receptions for 44 yards. The 17 carries tied a career high. The 22 touches were a career best. 2. Run Game Overall Cal's defense had allowed at least 5.0 yards per running back carry in each of its first two games — both of which were against far inferior competi- tion. The Irish needed a get-right outing on the ground after averaging 2.95 yards on running back carries the past two games. They found it against the Golden Bears' front seven, averaging 4.02 yards per non-sack rush. Push was much more consistent. Cal had just 2 non-sack tackles for loss. A nine-play, 60-yard touchdown drive in the third quarter was the best run-game performance for Notre Dame all season. The Irish marched into Cal territory on the ground. They finished the drive with four straight runs, all in 13 personnel and each one the same play call. The Irish drove 46 yards for a tying field goal, with 26 of those on the ground. They converted a third-and-1 run play with no trouble. The go-ahead fourth-quarter touchdown drive began with three runs in the first four plays. Notre Dame's running backs totaled 35 carries for 140 yards. They had 115 yards in their first two games. Remove sophomore Audric Estime's last three bleed-the-clock-obvious-run rushes, and his stat line goes to 72 yards on 15 carries. 3. Disruptive Defense Notre Dame allowed one more run of at least 10 yards and two more passes of at least 15 yards against Cal than it did against Marshall. But it held the Golden Bears to nearly 70 fewer yards than the Thundering Herd. That's the power of havoc plays, pressures and tackles for loss. Notre Dame had 4 sacks and 10 tackles for loss in its first two games combined. The Irish notched 6 sacks and 8 tackles for loss against Cal alone. That's how to successfully bend but not break. Even if big plays and missed tackles continue to be intermittent issues — and in this age of offensive football, they're hard to eradicate — they're easier to mitigate and erase with havoc plays. Notre Dame is still waiting on its first takeaway, though it had an interception stricken due to a tar- geting penalty and a fumble recovery overturned. More pass breakups would help, too, especially against a North Carolina offense that wants to stretch the field. Junior cornerback Clarence Lewis notched Notre Dame's first pass breakup since the opener. The Irish ended the game with three. 4. Drew Pyne's Day Notre Dame junior quarterback Drew Pyne did what the Irish asked him to in his first start: be ef- ficient and manage the offense. He didn't make many wow throws, but Notre Dame's plan didn't put him in position where he had to. Pyne took what the defense gave him and made good decisions. He operated the run/pass option game well and made the right reads. After a shaky start with two poorly placed throws, he completed all but 4 of his passes the rest of the way and hit 74 percent of them overall. One of those last 4 incompletions was a drop. The passing offense wasn't explosive. Pyne av- eraged 8.8 yards per completion. But it worked. It put Notre Dame's skill position players in ad- vantageous situations to run after the catch. The Irish won the perimeter, kept Cal off-balance with run-pass options and stayed ahead of the chains on offense. It might not be an ideal offense, but Notre Dame can't be too picky when it's playing the backup quarterback. 5. Defensive Line Depth Notre Dame's defensive front erupted after two quiet games. Its starters produced 3 sacks. Senior defensive end Isaiah Foskey and graduate student defensive tackle Jayson Ademilola were too much for Cal's offensive line to handle, totaling 8 tackles, 3 sacks and 2 quarterback hurries. Neither had been productive or overly impactful in the first two games. Notre Dame needed that to change to pull the wheel around on its season. The long-touted depth finally showed up, too. Backup tackle Jacob Lacey had 5 tackles and 2 sacks. No. 2 vyper Justin Ademilola, who's more of a 1A to Foskey, notched his first sack and had another slip from his grasp. For Notre Dame to get the most out of its sea- son, the line has to be a weekly strength. This game was a good first step of inspiring confidence it can be the steady disruptor everyone envisioned. FIVE THOUGHTS BY PATRICK ENGEL Junior running back Chris Tyree had a career-high 22 touches against Cal. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER