Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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54 OCT. 14, 2023 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED H ow good is the 2017 Notre Dame football team? T h ro u g h t h e f i rs t h a l f of the season, the Fighting Irish roster replete with mostly four- star starters (and a couple of five- stars) out-talented the mainly two- and three-star opposition it encountered. That's not a backhanded com- pliment. If anything, it's a plus be- cause far too often there has been a tendency to play to the level of the competition. The 2017 unit has at- tacked with a consistent vision and attitude that transcends wins and puts a greater premium on achiev- ing optimal performance. It also excelled in the most vital areas — red zone, running game, turnover margin, pass rush, etc. — with the offense, defense and special teams complementing each other. Nevertheless, Notre Dame's 2017 out- come was going to be judged primarily on how it fared versus Georgia and USC at home, and at Miami and Stanford in November — a month where the Irish are 7-10 since 2013. There were/are five tiers for head coach Brian Kelly's team to help erase the 4-8 fiasco from 2016: Step 1: Beat the opponents where you have flat-out more talent. Upsets happen, but the frequency is what has been alarming over the past decade. Enough of the "Notre Dame is the Super Bowl for every team." With all due respect to schools such as Connecticut, Tulsa, South Florida, Navy, Northwestern, Louisville and Duke that all have won at Notre Dame since 2009 … this absolutely needed to end. Check, so far in 2017. Step 2: Not only win the games but display some "style points" and domi- nance along the way. That has been occurring, too, most notably on the trips to Boston College and a decent Michigan State team. Letdowns are an inevitable part of sports. Even one of the greatest moti- vators I've ever met, Lou Holtz, con- ceded that about three times per season a team will not be in the sharpest frame of mind. What was essential was on those days just being able to out-talent your foes. Check, so far in 2017. Step 3: Beat someone of at least equal ability, if not slightly better. This is where the quartet of Georgia, USC, Miami and Stanford come in, al- though North Carolina State also could present a challenge. Defeating USC — a good team this year but not elite and more on par with the Irish — would help fulfill a void. Notre Dame has not defeated a ranked Trojans team since 1995, one of many dubious Irish football droughts since 1994 that need to end to start regaining credibility. This box has to be checked Oct. 21. Lose to USC at home and the mantra becomes "same ol' ND." Step 4: End the "we came so close" conversation against the upper-tier teams, which is not defined by one game but a yearly consistency. Florida State in 2014 (31-27), Clemson (24-22) and Stanford (38-36) in 2015, Georgia (20-19) in 2017 … Notre Dame has become the con- summate "almost" team, where moral victories are signs of progress or encouragement. I have immense respect for Irish director of athletics Jack Swarbrick, but even he stated that the 44-28 loss to Ohio State in the 2016 Fiesta Bowl was "our best game of the season," all things considered. Three years in at Notre Dame in 1988, Holtz suspended both his top rusher and top receiver prior to the No. 1 vs. No. 2 showdown at USC — and still won 27-10. Ara Parseghian vanquished three No. 1-ranked bowl teams in five years against whom the Irish were underdogs, sometimes heavily. "Programs" don't talk about coming close or personnel set- backs. One such win doesn't put you over this hump, but it has to start somewhere this year. Step 5: Slaying the ultimate dragon. These are epic, watershed events. To- day, it would be like defeating Alabama — sort of like Parseghian's 1973 Irish finally toppling USC after going 0-4-2 the previous six years, en route to the national title, or Holtz's 1988 Irish slay- ing the Miami dragon when the Hurri- canes had won 36 straight in the regular season and had terrorized Notre Dame in the 1980s. They are immense catalysts, à la Dan Devine's "Green Jersey Game" versus USC in 1977 that propelled the crushing of No. 1 Texas later for the national title. That's down the road for now … but Steps 3 and 4 are achievable in 2017. Kelly said this team has come full circle in buying in with the new staff and eradicating skepticism. There is a combined joy with intent concentra- tion and highly improved leadership/ coaching, all of which makes for a po- tent combination. Steps 3 and 4, come on down! ✦ Notre Dame's 49-14 victory over No. 11 USC in 2017 — in which Josh Adams racked up 191 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns — is the program's only win over a ranked Trojans squad since 1995. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA BEST OF THE FIFTH QUARTER ✦ LOU SOMOGYI ✦ OCT. 23, 2017 Next Steps Must Begin With Win Versus USC EDITOR'S NOTE: The late, great Lou Somogyi possessed an unmatched knowledge of Notre Dame football, and it was his mission in life to share it with others. Those of us at Blue & Gold Illustrated would like to continue to provide his wis- dom and unique perspective from his more than 37 years covering the Fighting Irish for this publication.