Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/234294
THREE OBSERVATIONS TURNING POINT On its final two drives of the first half, Rutgers had opportunities to seize the moment but failed. Trailing 13-10, the Scarlet Knights had first-and-goal at Notre Dame's 4-yard line, but on third-and-goal at the 1 quarterback Chas Dodd, under some duress, underthrew wide-open fullback Michael Butler in the flat, forcing Rutgers to settle for an 18-yard field goal. One series later, on first down at the Notre Dame 20 with about three minutes left until halftime, the Scarlet Knights tried a halfback pass (like Michigan State back in September), but sophomore cornerback KeiVarae Russell picked off the throw at the 1-yard line. When you're a prohibitive underdog, opportunities must be maximized. Those two missed ones were costly, and once the second half began Notre Dame asserted control. STAT OF THE GAME Notre Dame ran 35 more plays than Rutgers, 90-55. Consequently it controlled the football 38:16 to 21:44 for the Scarlet Knights. Especially significant is Notre Dame had zero turnovers on its 90 plays from scrimmage. Rutgers' best plays in the second half were 51- and 44-yard kickoff returns that set it up at the Irish 47 and the Irish 45, respectively. How- BY LOU SOMOGYI ever, the Scarlet Knights were able to manufacture only three points combined from those two returns. In the first half, Notre Dame relied mainly on the pass, attempting 29 throws that totaled 172 yards while rushing for only 63 yards. In the second half, the Irish were much more productive with the run with 23 carries for 112 yards. That made the pass more effective off play action, with senior Tommy Rees completing 12 of 18 tosses for 147 yards. RED (ZONE) ALERT If Notre Dame is to become an elite offense in 2014 and average at least 30 points per game for the first time in head coach Brian Kelly's five seasons, it's execution in the red zone will need much more sixpoint tallies than the three-point variety. The game against Rutgers would have been sealed much earlier, but three long Notre Dame sustained drives — 14 plays for 71 yards, 15 plays for 71 yards and 15 plays for 90 yards — ended with short field goals instead of touchdowns. The Irish entered the contest 100th in red-zone offense after finishing 70th last year. Either a power package needs to be implemented to complement the pass, or a legitimate running threat at QB will be needed to keep opposing defenses more on their heels and enhance efficiency.