Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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On Paper Revisited By Lou Somogyi Michigan State Running Game Vs. Notre Dame Run Defense This game belonged to Notre Dame’s front seven, which asserted control from start to finish and was spearheaded by senior inside linebacker Manti Te’o (team-high 12 tackles). The Spartans made an effort to establish the run, but had all exits blocked on the inside and on the perimeter. Against a program that prides itself on its physical nature on both sides of the ball, Notre Dame held the Spartan to 29 yards on the ground last year and only 50 this season. Heisman candidate Le’Veon Bell’s 19 carries totaled 77 yards, and his longest run (15 yards) came on the last play of the first half when Michigan State was inside its 10-yard line. Advantage: Notre Dame Michigan State Passing Game Vs. Notre Dame Pass Defense The four sacks by Notre Dame don’t do it justice for how much pressure it applied on quarterback Andrew Maxwell, who did a pretty good job of getting the ball out of his hands while under duress. The Irish were able to apply pressure even while rushing three on occasion. Especially notable was defensive coordinator’s Bob Diaco’s blitz packages, which were hardly predictable and came from different locations on the field to confuse the veteran Spartan line. The Michigan State receivers showed no ability to get separation, which is why Maxwell seldom could go deep, and five passes were dropped in the first quarter by Spartans. The Irish were credited with eight passes broken up, including two by Te’o and another by fellow senior linebacker Dan Fox on a diving play. One freshman defensive back, Elijah Shumate, broke up two third-and-long passes while playing nickel, and another KeiVarae Russell, broke one up in the end zone in the first quarter. Maxwell’s 45 attempts averaged a meager 4.2 yards. Advantage: Notre Dame Notre Dame Running Game Vs. Michigan State Run Defense Brian Kelly’s modus operandi is to spread out defenses with the pass most of the game, and then finish them off in the fourth quarter with the run. With the Irish ahead 14-3 and taking over at their 4-yard line with 12:56 left, they used nine- and 26-yard runs by senior running back Cierre Wood (10 carries for 56 yards) to provide breathing room — and ran on nine of the 11 plays during an 84-yard march to set up sophomore kicker Kyle Brindza’s 27-yard field goal. Notre Dame is not a power team, but its bread and butter will be the outside zone runs, the main staple in the final quarter that maximizes the strength of both the running backs and the mobile offensive linemen. The sprint counter in the second quarter to sophomore running back George Atkinson III was a superb call (and set up the second touchdown) and made more effective by sophomore quarterback Everett Golson’s rollout capabilities. It’s the same play Notre Dame used twice on two different TD drives in the 20-16 victory at USC in 2010 when Wood romped for 28- and 26-yard gains. Against maybe one of the best defenses the Irish will face, Wood and Atkinson combined for 99 yards on 15 carries (6.7 yards per attempt). Advantage: Even Notre Dame Passing Game Vs. Michigan State Pass Defense Unlike in the Navy opener, Kelly’s play calling for Golson had him launching deep passes from the outset to loosen up the defense. He missed an open Chris Brown on the first series, but his nimbleness enabled him to elude a rush and break containment while firing across his body to fifth-year senior wide receiver John Goodman for the touchdown that provided a quick 7-0 lead. Unheralded senior receiver Robby Toma and junior wideout TJ Jones combined for nine catches for 117 yards, mostly in clutch spots. Golson’s mobility helps open up more avenues, and the staff has utilized him well on rollouts and moving pockets. The negative was averaging only 5.6 yards per attempt. Advantage: Even Special Teams Senior punter Ben Turk kept Michigan State at bay throughout the second half, specifically with back-to-back punts of 53 and 50 yards that pinned the Spartans back at their 12 and 21 yards lines, respectively. Later that quarter he drilled a 47-yarder that dropped near the 3-yard line and took a perfect spin back to the 4, dying like an ideal golf drive that lands and stays inches from the hole. A roughing the punter call on MSU kept another Irish drive alive. Sophomore kicker Kyle Brindza converted both of his field goal attempts and played his part on kickoffs for the “Stat of The Game” by helping keep Michigan State bottled up deep in its territory. Advantage: Notre Dame Third-Down Conversions The Irish came into the contest ranked fourth nationally with a .621 percentage on third-down conversions (18 of 29), but will drop significantly after a 1-of-14 effort in Spartan Stadium. Michigan State was only slightly better at 5 of 17 (.294). Remarkably, in the second half this year Irish opponents have converted only 2 of 17 third-down attempts. Advantage: Michigan State. Turnovers Zero turnovers by a sophomore quarterback starting in his first “true” road game against one of the two or three best defenses he will encounter this year is laudable. The one turnover late in the contest by Michigan State was inconsequential. Advantage: Notre Dame Analysis How would you have liked Notre Dame’s chances to win this game if you had been told the offense would be 1 of 14 on third-down attempts and senior tight end Tyler Eifert would not catch any passes while playing the entire game? It was emphasized all week: championship play, especially on the road, begins with defensive dominance, winning special teams, and limiting turnovers on offense. All three checked out about as well as they could for the Irish in Spartan Stadium.