Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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0 Seconds left in the game when senior kicker Kyle Brindza converted his 32-yard field in the 31-28 Irish victory. It was the first time since D.J. Fitzpatrick's 40-yard field goal versus Navy in 2003 (a 27-24 win) that an Irish kicker booted a game- winning field goal in regulation as time expired. It also was the second time Notre Dame won a bowl game on the final play. The other was the famous 35-34 win over Houston in the 1979 Cotton Bowl, when quarterback Joe Montana connected with wide receiver Kris Haines for a touchdown and kicker Joe Unis converted the extra point. 5 Consecutive seasons Notre Dame reached at least eight victories with its 8-5 finish in 2014. It hasn't had such a streak like that since the seven straight under head coach Lou Holtz from 1987-93 before finishing 6-5-1 in 1994. Until the current streak that began in 2010, the Irish failed to post at least eight victories more than two seasons in a row in the 18 years from 1994-2011. 6 Blocked kicks (punt, field goals or extra points) by Notre Dame this season, with sophomore defensive lineman Isaac Rochell doing the most re- cent honors on LSU's 40-yard field goal attempt with BY THE NUMBERS BY LOU SOMOGYI What Worked • Ground assault options. For Notre Dame to have a chance, it needed to control the line of scrimmage rather than challenge the nation's No. 1-ranked pass efficiency defense. With sophomore quarterback Malik Zaire, a natural physicality appeared to develop with the offen- sive line because the read option, jet sweep and pure power attack between the tackles provided a rhythm with the run and less predictability. Four Notre Dame scoring drives had from 10 to 15 plays, three of them resulting in touchdowns. The game ended with a 14-play, 71-yard Irish game-winning drive that milked the final 5:41. The 263 yards rushing versus a quality SEC de- fense might have been head coach Brian Kelly's finest moment on offense in his five seasons with the Irish. • Key stops. In the final minute of the first half, LSU had first-and-goal at the 5-yard line — but had to resort to a fake field goal attempt on fourth down that fell short of the goal line. Then with the score tied at 28 in the fourth quarter, LSU had a first down at the Irish 31, but on fourth-and-two had a field-goal attempt blocked. Those points left on the field made the difference. • Real estate advantage. LSU's final three pos- sessions began from its 25-, 19- and 20-yard lines, leaving the Tigers with less margin of error while needing to rely primarily on their ground game. The Irish defense was able to tread water to help set up the winning field goal. • QB teamwork. During the game-winning drive, senior Everett Golson came on in relief and completed three passes for 34 yards, high- lighted by a 12-yard toss to senior tight end Ben Koyack on third-and-10. It reminded one of 2012, when the veteran Tommy Rees was a vital relief man for Golson in the fourth quarter. What Didn't Work • Getting burned by explosives. Three of LSU's four touchdowns came on a 100-yard kickoff return by freshman running back Leonard Four- nette, an 89-yard romp by Fournette and a 75- yard pass from quarterback Anthony Jennings to wideout John Diarse. Otherwise, Notre Dame's defense and special teams held its own. — Lou Somogyi TAKING A CLOSER LOOK