Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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OFFENSE: DESHONE KIZER Temple pressured the sophomore quarterback all game, but he stayed under control and made plays when needed. Kizer finished 23-of-36 pass- ing for 299 yards with a touchdown. And with Temple focused on shutting down senior running back C.J. Prosise, Kizer also picked up the slack in the ground game. He posted career highs of 17 carries, 143 rushing yards and two scores. In the process, he ripped off a career-best 79-yard scamper that gave the Irish a 14-10 second-quarter lead. Kizer also led the Irish back from a late fourth-quarter deficit, hit- ting freshman tight end Alizé Jones for a 45-yard gain and tossing a 17- yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Will Fuller to put the Irish ahead 24-20 with just 2:09 left in the game. DEFENSE: SHELDON DAY Notre Dame's defensive staff de- cided to let the senior defensive lineman loose against Temple, and the results were impressive. Day controlled the middle of the line of scrimmage, constantly beating the Owl linemen up field. He spent much of the game on the Temple side of the line of scrimmage, which kept the Owls from getting its run game going. Day was highly disruptive, fin- ishing the game with six tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and one sack. The team captain forced a fumble and batted down a pass that was destined for an open receiver. He also had a number of pressures, which forced several erratic throws despite there being open receivers. SPECIAL TEAMS: JUSTIN YOON It was a rough game for the Irish special teams, but the freshman kicker was a bright spot. Yoon nailed all three of his extra point tries and gave the Irish a 17-10 third-quarter lead with a 23-yard field goal. TOP PLAYERS OF THE GAME BY BRYAN DRISKELL Sophomore quarterback DeShone Kizer completed 23 of 36 throws for 299 yards with one touch- down and two interceptions, and ran the ball 17 times for a career-high 143 rushing yards and two scores. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA