Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/82255
Charting The Irish Notre Dame’s rushing attack against Navy looked unstoppable in the team’s season-opening 50-10 win in Ireland. The 293 yards Notre Dame gained on the ground marked the most they’ve racked up against the Midshipmen since 1999, when they gained 350 rushing yards in a 28-24 win. For many, that signaled the return of a dominant running game for Notre Dame and good things to come. However, recent history shows that a strong opening day, especially against the undersized Navy defense, is not enough to draw any substantial conclusions. Notre Dame has topped 200 rushing yards in six of its last 11 meetings with Navy. The Irish ran for significantly more than their season average in all but three of those games. In the abysmal 3-9 season of 2007, the running game put up 235 yards against Navy, which amounted to more than 25 percent of its season total. Five years earlier, the Irish rushed for only 68 yards in the annual matchup, but still managed to finish 10-3 overall and average 139.4 yards per game. Fans who are looking to pull some positive projections out of the season opener would be better served to look at the plus-three turnover margin Notre Dame posted in Dublin. The four previous times the Irish won the turnover battle on opening day in the past decade they combined for a plus-22 margin for the rest of the year. The four times they have lost the turnover battle they combined for a minus-16 total. That number is significantly skewed by last year’s record-setting minus-15 mark, but still reflects a big difference even without the 2011 takeaway issues. Opening against Navy doesn’t pad this stat the way it typically does for the rushing attack either. The three-turnover difference this year was the largest Notre Dame has had against the Midshipmen since Lou Holtz’s days as head coach. 2002 In Season Opener: 130 Against Navy: 68 Per Game: 139.4 2003 In Season Opener: 167 Against Navy: 280 Per Game: 157.2 2004 In Season Opener: 11 Against Navy: 204 Per Game: 127.4 2005 In Season Opener: 275 Against Navy: 221 Per Game: 147.1 2006 In Season Opener: 138 Against Navy: 176 Per Game: 125.7 2007 In Season Opener: -8 Against Navy: 235 Per Game: 75.3 2008 In Season Opener: 105 Against Navy: 230 Per Game: 109.7 2009 In Season Opener: 178 Against Navy: 60 Per Game: 128.3 2010 In Season Opener: 153 Against Navy: 106 Per Game: 126.6 2011 In Season Opener: 117 Against Navy: 182 Per Game: 160.4 2012 In Season Opener: 293 Against Navy: 293 Per Game: ? Turnover Margin SeasonVs.Season YearOpenerNavyTotal 20023211 2003-102 2004115 20050010 2006015 2007-300 2008-2-4-3 20093-35 20101-21 2011-5-1-15 201233?