Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1527865
12 OCT. 19, 2024 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME Blake Biondi — Hockey The graduate student for- ward from Hermantown, Minn., started his Irish ca- reer in grand fashion by scoring 2 goals in a 5-2 ex- hibition win against the U.S. National Team Development Program Oct. 4. In his first career appearance for Notre Dame, Biondi scored the first goal of the game in the first period, then tied the game 2-2 on a power play goal in the third period. Ethan Coleman — Cross Country The junior distance ace from Tumwater, Wash., finished eighth over- all individually while leading the No. 9 Irish to the team title at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational Oct. 4 in South Bend. C o l e m a n co ve re d t h e 8 , 0 0 0 - m e t e r c o u rs e i n 22:49.0 — a personal-best time and the first sub-23-minute finish of his career — to help the Irish hold off runner-up Northern Arizona, which entered the race ranked No. 4 in the country. Lily Joseph — Soccer The freshman midfielder/ fo r wa rd f ro m H a m d e n , Conn., scored 2 goals in a span of 90 seconds during the first half of a 3-0 win at Syracuse Oct. 5, for the first brace of her Notre Dame ca- reer. She scored the first two goals of the game and finished with 6 shots on a day when the Irish recorded a season-high 38 shots, 4 of which hit the crossbar. Joseph had 5 goals through 11 games, which ranked second on the team. Sydney Palazzolo — Volleyball The senior outside hitter from Shelby Town- ship, Mich., recorded a team-high 10 kills — 5 in the first set — in a 3-0 white- wash of Clemson at Notre Dame Oct. 6, marking the fourth sweep of the season for the resurgent Irish. T h ro u g h ga m e s a s o f Oct. 10, Palazzolo led the Fighting Irish with 158 kills and 183.5 points, and was third on the team with 109 digs. TOP TOP OF THE CLASS OF THE CLASS Irish student-athletes excelling on the field and in the classroom ✦ GIMME FIVE As far as ESPN's Football Power Index is concerned, Notre Dame has one significant challenge in the second half of its schedule. That challenge is a road game at USC. The Trojans entered Week 7 at 3-2 with upset losses to Michi- gan and Minnesota, but according to the analytics, third-year head coach Lincoln Riley's group remains dangerous. USC leads Notre Dame's second-half opponents with a 14.6 FPI (No. 13 in the country), and the next best is Georgia Tech at 5.4 (No. 46). FPI, according to ESPN, represents how many points above or below average a team is. Or, in other words, how many points by which they would beat the average college football team. Notre Dame's FPI, entering Week 7, was 18.8 (No. 7). Despite its early loss to Northern Illinois, the analytics still see the Irish as a bona fide College Football Playoff team with a 27.1 percent (third-best nationally) chance to win the rest of their games. Somewhat surprisingly, five of Notre Dame's six remaining opponents have an above-aver- age FPI. The only one who does not is Navy at -0.1 (No. 69). For reference, NIU's FPI is -4.5 (No. 89). While the Irish should win out — in theory, at least until USC — they can't sleepwalk through any of their second-half opponents. If they do, they can expect to be upset again. — Jack Soble CHARTING THE IRISH JEREMIYAH LOVE EXCELS IN KEY ADVANCED STAT According to Pro Football Focus, Notre Dame sophomore running back Jeremiyah Love has been the second-most elusive player in college football (minimum 50 rush- ing attempts). It is unlikely, though, that he'll catch up to No. 1 any time soon. The top player in PFF's elusiveness rating — an advanced stat designed to measure the impact of the ball carrier independent of blocking or scheme — is Boise State's Ashton Jeanty. Through five games, the junior has carried 95 times for 1,031 yards (10.9 yards per carry) and 16 touchdowns. Jeanty's elusiveness rating is 393.4, while Love's is 240.1. There is a greater difference between No. 1 and No. 2 than No. 2 and No. 90, underscoring the insanity of Jeanty's season so far. But as far as humans go — and that sounds like an exaggeration until you watch Jeanty's highlights — Love has been the best of the best. His speed and explosiveness to cut down tackling angles, lateral quickness to cut on a dime and physicality to squeeze out extra yards at the end of plays have all been extraordinary. Love's greatest improvement, though, is his patience in the backfield and willingness to take tough yards up the middle. Even when he's contained between the tackles, he can still hurt opposing defenses. Love is not the only Notre Dame player on the elusiveness rating leader board, though. Coming in at No. 11 is senior quarterback Riley Leonard at 157.2. — Jack Soble TOP FIVE REMAINING NOTRE DAME OPPONENTS BY ESPN FPI Rk. School FPI 1. USC 14.6 2. Georgia Tech 5.4 3. Army 3.4 4. Virginia 1.7 5. Florida State 0.2 TOP-11 PFF ELUSIVENESS RATINGS IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL Minimum 50 rushing attempts, through Week 6 Rk. Player, School ELU 1. Ashton Jeanty, Boise State 393.4 2. Jeremiyah Love, Notre Dame 240.1 3. Jarquez Hunter, Auburn 224.4 4. Corey Kiner, Cincinnati 218.1 5. Jonah Coleman, Washington 216.7 6. Tre Stewart, Jacksonville State 201.1 7. Kaleb Johnson, Iowa 200.9 8. John Mateer, Washington State* 178.2 9. Anthony Tyus III, Ohio 177.0 10. Micah Bernard, Utah 165.0 11. Riley Leonard, Notre Dame* 157.2 * Quarterback Love trailed only Boise State Heisman hopeful Ashton Jeanty in elusiveness rating, per Pro Football Focus. Jeanty ranks No. 1 nationally at 393.4, while Love is No. 2 at 240.1. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER