Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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26 NOV. 7, 2016 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED TURNING POINT During Notre Dame's 2-5 start, head coach Brian Kelly has repeat- edly pointed out that the Irish had an opportunity to either tie the game or take the lead in the fourth quarter in the five losses, but couldn't finish the job in any of them. After Notre Dame fell behind 27-20 versus Miami because of a fumbled punt with 6:49 remain- ing in the game, it had yet another opportunity to rally — only this time it answered with a five-play, 75-yard drive that was capped by sophomore running backs Josh Adams' 41-yard breakaway for a touchdown. Just when it looked like another day of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, Notre Dame flipped the script from its late losses versus Texas, Michigan State, Duke, North Carolina State and Stanford. STATS OF THE GAME Individually, you can't top fifth- year senior nose guard Jarron Jones' six tackles for loss, which were two short of the NCAA record that has been "officially" kept since 2000. Unofficially, 1969-71 Notre Dame defensive end Walt Patulski was credited with eight tackles for loss in a 3-0 slugfest win over LSU in 1970. Because of the domination up front by Jones and his cohorts, the Fighting Irish limited Miami to a paltry 18 yards on the ground and didn't allow them to complement quarterback Brad Kaaya's passing skills with any downhill rushing attack. The 18-yard total was the lowest by an Irish opponent since the 30-13 victory at No. 8 Oklahoma in 2012, when the Sooners produced only 15 yards on the ground. ENDING THE NEAR MISSES Maybe the most significant over- all development for Notre Dame in the 30-27 victory over Miami was not adding to the five-game losing streak it had in games decided by seven points or less. The school record for such futility was eight from 1984-86 before con- cluding first-year head coach Lou Holtz's 1986 campaign with a 38-37 win at USC. That victory often has been cited as the one that eventually helped produce a national cham- pion two years later. To rally to victory against Miami after trailing 27-20 in the fourth quarter on a fumbled punt, and yielding 27 consecutive points, has to lift a heavy burden off the team's psyche. It was important for this season, but could prove even more valuable in 2017. THREE OBSERVATIONS BY LOU SOMOGYI Junior quarterback DeShone Kizer accounted for 294 yards of total offense and two touchdowns, and didn't turn the ball over. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA OFFENSE: QB DESHONE KIZER It wasn't always pretty, but the junior quarterback made enough plays to help the Irish pull out a much-needed victory over Miami. He completed 25 of 38 passes for 263 yards with a pair of scores and also added 31 rushing yards, but most importantly he had no turnovers. After Notre Dame fell behind 27-20 midway through the fourth quarter, Kizer responded by hitting freshman wide receiver Kevin Stepherson for a 25-yard gain, which got the offense out of its funk. On the game-winning field goal drive, Kizer recovered senior tight end Durham Smythe's fumble to keep the final drive alive. DEFENSE: DL JARRON JONES The fifth-year senior nose guard had a game for the ages against Miami, finishing with seven tackles and a career-high six tackles for loss. He also notched a sack and one pass broken up during the win. Notre Dame held Miami to just 18 rushing yards on 35 carries, and Jones was a primary reason for that. He dominated up the middle and spent much of the game in the Hurricanes backfield. Miami was forced to double team for much of the game, which helped junior Mike linebacker Nyles Morgan roam free for eight solo tackles. SPECIAL TEAMS: PK JUSTIN YOON Notre Dame scored just two touchdowns in its five red-zone op- portunities, but the sophomore placekicker made sure those failed touchdown drives ended with points. He nailed all three of his field goal attempts in the victory over the Hurricanes, including the game-winning 23-yarder with just 30 seconds left in the game. Yoon also converted all three of his extra point attempts. Senior walk-on John Chereson was inserted on kickoff duties to help take some pressure off of Yoon's leg/work volume. TOP PLAYERS OF THE GAME BY BRYAN DRISKELL