IN THE TRENCHES ANDREW OWENS
"W
hy aren't they all on Gol-
son?" Notre Dame head
coach Brian Kelly asked a
reporter after the 55-31 loss at Arizona
State Nov. 8, implying that all five
Irish turnovers fell on the shoulders
of senior quarterback Everett Golson.
Fast forward one week and it is not
unfair for Irish fans to ask, "Why is it
not all on Kelly?"
Just as Kelly backtracked some a few
days later and spread the blame to
other players as well for the Arizona
State loss, there clearly were other is-
sues at hand in Notre Dame's 43-40
loss to Northwestern as well.
However, a pair of decisions cost the
Irish and turned an ugly win into a de-
flating loss — the third in four games
for the program that began the month
in playoff conversation.
With 10:34 remaining in the fourth
quarter and the Irish leading 40-29,
Kelly opted to go for a two-point
conversion rather than kick the extra
point. A 41-29 advantage would have
required the Wildcats to score two
touchdowns, rather than settling for
one (with a successful two-point con-
version of their own) and a field goal.
There's a world of difference be-
tween margins of 11 and 12 points,
but little between 12 and 13 as Notre
Dame later learned.
Coaching Decisions Hurt Irish
Head coach Brian Kelly made a pair of calls that came back to haunt the Irish in their unsettling defeat at
the hands of Northwestern.
PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA
