Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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The Grind Of The Ground After Notre Dame opened with 293 yards rushing against Navy — the program’s highest total in nine years — it followed with 52 yards on the ground against Purdue. In the first quarter against the Boilermakers, the Irish ran only one designed rushing play with a running back while conceding that it probably wouldn’t be able to penetrate Purdue’s stacked front that was daring it to pass. Although sophomore quarterback Everett Golson (289 yards passing) and junior Tommy Rees (35 yards passing on the game-winning drive) exploited it while not throwing interceptions, head coach Brian Kelly said there is a need to do a better job of committing to the run, or creating a more physical mentality. “In retrospect we could’ve done a better job as a staff in finding ways to just lock some runs in there and get after it,” Kelly said. “Clearly, we’re going to have to play better up front against Big Ten opposition.” To elevate to a higher tier, Notre Dame will have to prove it can consistently produce on the ground versus its “power foes.” In Kelly’s first two seasons against Stanford, the Irish produced only 44- and 57-yard outputs in 37‑14 and 28-14 losses to the Cardinal. Last year, it manufactured a paltry 41 yards on the ground in the 31‑17 setback versus USC. Against Florida State in the 18‑14 Champs Sports Bowl defeat, it produced only 93 yards on 35 carries. One misleading number in the rushing attack, though, is the quick sweep pitches to senior Theo Riddick are counted as “pass plays” because there is a forward lateral from the quarterback. Riddick had nine-, six- and five-yard runs in the third quarter against the Boilermakers on those sweeps, but they were counted in the passing stats. The Irish also had a 16-yard gain off that play in the first half that was negated because of an Irish personal foul. Similar to the shovel pass, which is basically like a draw, those quick tosses serve the purpose of being ruled incomplete passes rather than fumbles if the ball is dropped. Tragic Week For Manti Te’o Preparations for the Michigan State contest on Sept. 15 took a tragic turn for senior All-America candidate Manti Te’o. Within a span of 24 hours, Te’o’s maternal grandmother passed away, followed by his girlfriend, Lennay Kukua, who had been battling leukemia, on Sept. 12. A day later, Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly stated that his star Mike linebacker would make the trip to East Lansing. “He lost some people very close to him, and it’s obviously taken a toll on him,” Kelly said. “Our players have been there for him. There has been great support. “He wants to be with his teammates. He wants to be with his people that care about him. He’s a strong man, and he’s going through a tough time, but he’ll rise to the occasion.” Because Notre Dame has a bye on Sept. 29, Kelly and Te’o had some discussions about the Hawaii native getting back to his homeland for a few days between the Michigan State and Michigan game. “We’ve got a bye week coming up [after Michigan], but we’ll see how things go,” Kelly said.