Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/176703
Taking A Closer Look What Worked • Drawing penalties. Notre Dame consistently tested Michigan State's man-to-man coverage with long passes, a strategy that helped produce four pass interference calls and a holding penalty that kept drives alive. The holding call on MSU prolonged a march that ended with Kyle Brindza's 41yard field goal. The Irish scored their first touchdown at the end of the first half after drawing a pass interference call on a deep throw to senior wide receiver TJ Jones on four-and-one from the MSU 41-yard line. The go-ahead score came a play after the Spartans committed their fourth pass interference penalty of the game, and second of the drive, on a third-and-10 jump ball to freshman wideout Corey Robinson in the end zone. • Prince Shembo. The senior outside linebacker played outstanding for the Irish, and defensive coordinator Bob Diaco put him in position to succeed much of the night. Whether he was rushing off the edge, blitzing from the middle of the field or dropping into coverage, Shembo was making plays and being disruptive. There wasn't an MSU offensive lineman that could slow down the talented linebacker, and Shembo used his hands tremendously well to shed blocks and get after the quarterback. During an interview a few days prior to the Michigan State game, Shembo talked about playing with more intensity and wanting to rush the passer more, and that's exactly what he did against the Spartans. What Didn't Work • The passing game. Senior quarterback Tommy Rees had three strong performances to start the season, but he'll likely want to forget about his play against Michigan State. During the win, Rees completed just 14 of 34 passes (41.2 percent) for 142 yards with one touchdown. A few of those completions came on shovel passes to the running backs and wide receivers in motion. Part of his troubling night came from his inaccurate throws down field. The Spartans defense played close to the line of scrimmage and dared Notre Dame to beat them through the air, but the Irish couldn't. Rees had nearly 10 overthrows in the game and couldn't connect on the opportunities that were there. • Playing clean football. Eight penalties for 86 yards is not going to go over well with the Notre Dame coaching staff. The Irish pulled it out in the end and got the win, but if there is something that grinds on head coach Brian Kelly, it's penalties. He is adamant about limiting turnovers and playing clean football. Although there weren't any turnovers by the Notre Dame offense, the penalties need to be cleaned up heading into next week's matchup with Oklahoma. — Tom Loy