Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BY DOUGLAS FARMER D uring a four-minute span in the first half, senior quarter- back Everett Golson could not hold onto the football, and in the process Notre Dame lost its grasp on a potential berth in the inaugural College Football Playoff. Arizona State took advantage of three Golson turnovers (a fumble and two picks) to race out to a 24-3 lead just 15 minutes and 40 seconds into the contest. The Sun Devils went on to build a 34-3 advantage, but had to withstand a furious Irish rally before another three-touchdown burst gave them a 55-31 victory. "Five turnovers and a mishandled [snap on a short field goal attempt] is the story," Irish head coach Brian Kelly said. "You can't expect to win football games against good teams and turn the ball over five times." Golson threw two more intercep- tions in the second half, one when the Irish (7-2) stood only seven yards from the end zone and another that Arizona State redshirt sophomore cornerback Lloyd Carrington returned, off a drop by sophomore receiver Corey Robin- son, 58 yards to seal the win in the fourth quarter. All told, the Sun Devils (8-1) scored 28 points off the senior quarterback's turnovers. Those giveaways crippled Notre Dame's otherwise effective of- fense, which outgained ASU 487-412 in total yards and averaged 6.2 yards per play. "It's all on me," Golson, who has now committed 17 turnovers in his last six games after not giving up one in the first three outings, told the As- sociated Press. "You play with fire as much as I did today, you are going to get burned eventually." The Sun Devils' pass rush tormented Golson all afternoon, with the third of their seven sacks causing the most damage. After a pair of sacks ended Notre Dame's opening drive and forced the Irish to settle for a field goal, the third ended its second drive after only two plays. Freshman defen- sive lineman Tashon Smallwood sepa- rated Golson from the football, and the Sun Devils recovered the fumble at the Irish 13-yard line. On the next play, Arizona State fifth-year senior quar- terback Taylor Kelly found redshirt junior wide receiver Jaelen Strong for a touchdown and a 10-3 lead. Notre Dame's next drive ended as quickly as it started when Arizona State redshirt junior defensive lineman Demetrius Cherry knocked Golson's first-and-10 pass straight into the air. DESERT DUD Five turnovers doom Irish in 55-31 defeat at Arizona State