Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1539887
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 4, 2025 11 UNDER THE DOME UNDER THE DOME SPREAD THE WORD! When You Help Us Grow, You'll Get FREE Issues! For details, visit BlueGoldOnline.com/referrals NEW! SUBSCRIBER REFERRAL PROGRAM The most surprising development in Notre Dame offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock's 11-minute confab with the media after Tuesday's practice prior to the Arkansas game was that it happened at all. His turn in the Irish assistant coach Tuesday in- terview rotation wasn't due to come up again until December. When it was pointed out to the architect of the Irish offense how unexpected the opportunity was for both sides, it was suggested to Denbrock that Notre Dame officials did it because the coach missed the media. "That's very true," he said. "I'm just glad some- body's finally listening around here." Denbrock's offense started to step into its iden- tity after three weeks. Perhaps not in the same proportions that it showed in Notre Dame's 56-30 scorefest against Purdue with 43 runs to 20 pass attempts, but how those parts fit together and enhance each other. "We need to be built around the run game," Den- brock said. "That needs to be our No. 1 identity. I believe we can throw the ball over people's heads. I believe we're really good in the intermediate passing game as well. And I think, at some point, you're going to need a little bit of all of it, depend- ing on who you're playing and what you're playing against from a scheme standpoint. "Last week was a little more skewed toward, 'Let's really lean heavy into the run game.' And then when we draw those guys close, we'll be able to [pass more effectively]. But some people never really draw close. They use stunts or blitzes with their front or whatever to try to slow your run game down. "That's kind of a different hit list. Hopefully, we get to the point where we're pretty good at all of it. And then you've really got yourself something." Denbrock's belief that Notre Dame's offensive line improvement is real helps solidify that identity. Miami, which the Irish opened the season with Aug. 31, has far and away the best defense Notre Dame has faced or will face this season, based on the weekly snapshot of NCAA statistics. But there's a stretch of four teams from mid-October through mid-November that will test the Irish offensive line play that struggled mightily in the Miami game. Denbrock likes the way that the Irish O-line unit is trending. "I think there's been really good progress across the board," he said. "We're really strong up the middle. Those guys continue to jell and get better together. But beyond the right-before-halftime sack that we gave up [by left tackle Anthonie Knapp], the last two weeks, we have had clean pockets and what I call 'a clear killing field' for the quarterback to survey and make decisions and do what he needed to do. "There were a couple drop-eight [coverage] sce- narios early in the game, where [Carr] had to get out of the pocket late. Sometimes against drop- eight running for five yards is a pretty good play. "I like the direction that those guys are headed. Notre Dame's Offense Finds Its Identity After the Purdue game, offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock emphasized that the Fighting Irish offen- sive attack needed "to be built around the run game." PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER