Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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on paper revisited By lou somogyi them. McDaniel, George Atkinson III and freshman Tarean Folston all had carries on third-and-one, and each was unable to pick up the first down. On a fourth third-and-one attempt, a Tommy Rees pass to DaVaris Daniels fell incomplete. For the third straight game, Notre Dame was held to less than 100 yards rushing (a season-low 82). It also averaged only 2.6 yards per carry despite no quarterback sacks. Advantage: Michigan State Brindza's punting in the fourth quarter earned him the game ball when he flipped the field position with 45-, 51- and 51-yard kicks after the Irish were backed up deep in their own territory. A shank on any of those three could have been costly, and he also went well beyond his average. Had TJ Jones not recovered his fumbled punt in the fourth quarter at the Irish 20, this could have gone the other way. Advantage: Notre Dame This was the antithesis of the first three quarters against Purdue, when Notre Dame was almost exclusively horizontal with its passing game before breaking the game open with the 82-yard touchdown pass to DaVaris Daniels in the fourth quarter. Because Michigan State is a man-to-man coverage team, the Irish went deep an inordinate amount of times, with minimal hitches or bubble screens. Some opportunities presented themselves, but Rees' timing (14 of 34 for 142 yards) was a little off. Only a 37-yard completion to freshman William Fuller and a 24-yarder to another freshman, Corey Robinson, connected. The pass protection remained exceptional, but at the cost of usually keeping junior tight end Troy Niklas in for maximum protection. Notre Dame's main salvation was four pass interference calls on Michigan State. Seven of Notre Dame's 14 first downs resulted from Spartans penalties. Advantage: Michigan State 6 of 17 (35.3 percent), especially because the Irish were so poor on the aforementioned third-and-short situations. However, two of Notre Dame's three scores were set up because of defensive pass interference on MSU when it was third-and-nine and third-and-10. The third occurred on a pass interference by the Spartans on fourth-and-one. Advantage: Michigan State Third-Down Conversions Notre Dame Passing Game Vs. MSU Percentage-wise the edge goes to the Spartans, Pass Defense who were 8 of 18 (44.4 percent) to Notre Dame's Special Teams After an inauspicious beginning for Notre Dame when its first punt was deflected and set up Michigan State at the Irish 30, the Spartans missed a 30‑yard field goal to negate the Irish snafu. A 41-yard field goal by Notre Dame's Kyle Brindza was followed by a fumbled MSU kickoff that forced the Spartans to start at their 8-yard line. That was nullified when Brindza missed a 37-yard field goal attempt. Turnovers An interception toss by Rees into the end zone was rubbed out by a holding call on the Spartans. Jones' recovery of his fumbled punt also was crucial. The lone turnover, the 29-yard interception return by Farley when the score was deadlocked at 10, set up seven points and proved to be the difference. Advantage: Notre Dame Summary Other than both teams passing more than 30 times, this was a vintage 1970s Big Ten-like battle between coaches named Bo and Woody. The game was all about stout, hard-hitting defense, field position and special teams, while not committing a costly turnover on offense. The lone one in the game swung the momentum and set up the winning score. Equally crucial were Michigan State's four pass interference calls. Style points didn't apply to this game. ✦