Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1511802
24 NOV. 25, 2023 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED practice by practice, and keep going at it every week." SAM HARTMAN GETS IT DONE IN EMOTIONAL GAME Notre Dame graduate student quar- terback Sam Hartman was walking on the sideline during the fourth quarter of a blowout win over Wake Forest. He was done playing, with the game out of hand, so he grabbed a cup of hot choco- late. The rest is history. "Some girl — and if I saw her right now, I would know who she is, but I don't know her name — threw a marsh- mallow from the student section," Hartman said. "It was like a 30-yard shot, landing in my hot chocolate. I'm like, 'One of my teammates just did it, really funny, guys,' and I look up and this girl is going nuts." Hartman chugged it, because of course he did. The marshmallow toss heard 'round the world was, if true, in- credible. And it was a moment of levity at the end of an emotional afternoon and evening, for a few reasons. On Senior Day, his final home game at Notre Dame Stadium, Hartman had to face his former team. He spent a good amount of time before warm- ups ramped up on the Wake Forest side of the field, chatting with his former teammates. The sixth-year signal- caller had a long conversation with his former head coach, Dave Clawson. To say that it was just another game for him, Hartman said, would be a lie. Even his biggest personal accomplish- ment, moving to fourth on the all-time Football Bowl Subdivision passing touchdown leaderboard with 132, was strange. "Shoot, it's a credit to a lot of the guys on the other team we just played, which is a weird thing to say," Hartman said. Notre Dame head coach Marcus Free- man went through a similar experience two years ago as the Irish de- fensive coordinator when he faced his former team, Cin- cinnati. "It's different," Freeman sa i d . " He wa s w i t h t h ose guys for five years, with that coaching staff. So for him to be able to put that distraction away and perform the way he did is a testament to who he is and the confidence and con- sistency that he provides." After a rocky start — which H a r t m a n sa i d wa s d u e to the "ebbs and flows" of the matchup more than anything else — he played one of his best games in a Notre Dame uniform. He exited the game after tossing 21 completions on 29 attempts for 277 yards NOTRE DAME VS. WAKE FOREST QUARTER-BY-QUARTER COMPARISON Notre Dame 1st Qtr. 2nd Qtr. 3rd Qtr. 4th Qtr. 1st Half 2nd Half Total Time of Possession 10:16 5:56 4:48 7:34 16:12 12:22 28:34 Third-Down Conversions 3-5 1-3 0-1 1-1 4-8 1-2 5-10 Fourth-Down Conversions 0-0 1-1 0-0 0-0 1-1 0-0 1-1 Average Field Position ND-25 ND-32 ND-49 ND-24 ND-28 ND-40 ND-34 Wake Forest 1st Qtr. 2nd Qtr. 3rd Qtr. 4th Qtr. 1st Half 2nd Half Final Time of Possession 4:44 9:04 10:12 7:26 13:48 17:38 31:26 Third-Down Conversions 0-2 2-3 2-4 1-4 2-5 3-8 5-13 Fourth-Down Conversions 0-0 0-0 0-1 0-1 0-0 0-2 0-2 Average Field Position WF-34 WF-25 WF-23 WF-40 WF-32 WF-32 WF-32 PLAY CHART (NO. OF PLAYS) Yards ND WF Nega ve 4 6 0-5 28 32 6-9 12 9 10-19 13 9 20-29 2 1 30-39 1 0 40-49 1 0 50 or more 0 0 RED ZONE EFFICIENCY (INSIDE 20-YARD LINE) No Poss. TD FG Score Notre Dame 5 4 1 0 Wake Forest 2 1 0 1 BIG PLAYS (25 YARDS OR MORE) Notre Dame • 2-18 WF35 Hartman pass to Merriweather for 35 yards and a touchdown • 1-10 WF48 Hartman pass to Greathouse for 48 yards and a touchdown Wake Forest • None Head coach Marcus Freeman said of Hartman having to face Wake Forest, "He was with those guys for five years, with that coaching staff. So for him to be able to put that distraction away and perform the way he did is a testament to who he is and the confidence and consistency that he provides." PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER MISCELLANEOUS NOTES • Notre Dame director of athletics Jack Swarbrick served as an honorary captain against Wake Forest. Swarbrick, who an- nounced his retirement earlier this season, took part in his final home game at the Irish athletics director. Swarbrick and his family also were presented the national colors for the game. • The Fighting Irish improved to 6-0 against the Demon Deacons, with four of those contests having taken place at Notre Dame Stadium. • Sophomore Ashton Craig made his first career start in place of injured graduate stu- dent center Zeke Correll. It marked the first game missed for Correll in 23 outings (dating back to the start of the 2022 season). In addi- tion, sophomore Billy Schrauth started at right guard in place of the injured Rocco Spindler. • Sophomore tight end Eli Raridon also made his first career start. He made his first career reception for 9 yards on Notre Dame's second drive of the game and later caught his first career touchdown pass. He finished with 3 receptions for 39 yards and the TD. • Freshman kicker Marcello Diomede scored his first career point in an Irish uniform, con- verting Notre Dame's final point after try.