Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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THE FIFTH QUARTER LOU SOMOGYI in scoring (16.7 points yielded per con- test) that season. In 2012, the Notre Dame defense car- ried the program to a 4-0 September, al- lowing only 9.0 points per game to rank third nationally. Meanwhile, the offense was trying to find itself while ranking anywhere from 76th to 95th in the four major statistical categories. • The 2002 Notre Dame team was always referred to as "opportunistic," especially after forcing 13 turnovers dur- ing the 4-0 start. It was plus-seven in the turnover category. In 2012, the Irish again forced exactly and cornerback Lo Wood. Senior Zeke Motta has emerged as one of the most improved players on the team — with his main competition the other safety, sophomore Matthias Farley. Three different freshmen — starting corner KeiVarae Russell, nickel Elijah Shumate and safety Nicky Baratti — have made huge contributions to com- plement one of the nation's premier front sevens. In 2002 under first-year head coach Ty- 13 turnovers (after inducing just 14 a year earlier in 13 games) and stood at plus-nine. • In 2002, it seemed nobody really be- lieved the Irish were for real until they defeated Florida State, 34-24, in Tallahas- see to improve to 8-0, which elevated them to No. 4 nationally. • This year, most people again are rone Willingham, that grip quickly faded once November arrived. The Irish lost three of their last five games, barely sur- vived a 30-23 win against a Navy team that finished 2-10, and were outscored 72-19 in the last two outings at USC (44- 13) and North Carolina State (28-6) in the Gator Bowl. That year with Willingham, the pro- pointing to the eighth game — at Okla- homa Oct. 27 — as the acid test on whether the Irish are again a contender or still a pretender. One dramatic difference between 2002 and 2012 is that the 2002 secondary was considered the heart and soul of the team with consensus All-America cor- nerback Shane Walton and third-team All-American Duff at the opposite spot. Safeties Gerome Sapp and Glenn Earl also would have future NFL careers. Conversely, this year's defensive back- field has been in an enormous state of flux with the graduation of both cor- nerbacks and first-round safety selec- tion Harrison Smith, and season-end- ing injuries to safety Jamoris Slaughter gram was akin to a meteor, flashing brightly and signaling a new voice and sudden fix, before burning out quickly. In 2012, under third-year head coach Brian Kelly, the infrastructure had been gutted and remodeled the first two sea- sons. Instead of just a new, shiny coat of paint on the Notre Dame football house, new plumbing fixtures, re-wiring of the electrical circuits and a new "heating" system were installed. The process was going to take longer, but the long-term payoff is expected to reap much higher and consistent rewards. The script doesn't have to be the same 10 years after. ✦ Senior Editor Lou Somogyi has been at Blue & Gold Illustrated since July 1985. He can be reached at lsomogyi@blueandgold.com