Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/874913
www.BLUEANDGOLD.com SEPT. 25, 2017 27 3 Takeaways by junior cornerback Shaun Craw- ford — two interceptions and one fumble recovery — in the second half. It was the first time a Notre Dame defender came up with three turn- overs in a game (or one half) since the 2010 Sun Bowl, when future first-round NFL safety Harrison Smith intercepted three passes during a 33-17 win versus Miami. Crawford was sidelined all season as a freshman in 2015 with a torn ACL and played in only one full game in 2016 before seeing his season end with a torn Achilles. 4 Touchdowns scored by junior Brandon Wim- bush, a school record by an Irish quarterback. Everett Golson most recently scored three times during a 49-39 victory versus Navy in 2014. It was the first four-touchdown effort by a Notre Dame player since receiver Maurice Stovall scored that many in a 49-23 victory versus BYU on Oct. 22, 2005. However, it was the first time a Fighting Irish player ran for four touchdowns in a game since Nov. 17, 1984, when running back Allen Pinkett achieved that during a 44-7 trouncing of Penn State. 5-0 Record of head coach Brian Kelly against Boston College, with victories in 2010 (31-13), 2011 (16-14), 2012 (21-6), 2015 (19-16) and this season (49-20). Especially notable is his teams have outscored the Eagles 101-39 in Alumni Stadium. The 5-0 ledger versus Boston College ties his 5-0 mark against Purdue from 2010-14 for the best against any opponent he has faced while at Notre Dame. 6 Consecutive victories by Notre Dame in this series since 2009 — after Boston College had evened the rivalry at 9-9 with six straight from 2001-08. The current Irish winning streak is the longest Notre Dame has produced, eclipsing the four in a row from 1975-92 (the first four games in the series) and four more from 1995-98. 6 Times in Football Bowl Subdivision history, per the NCAA record book, two players from the same team rushed for 200-plus yards in the same game. In addition to Irish running back Josh Adams (229) and quarterback Brandon Wimbush (207), they were: Tulsa's Gordon Brown (214) and Steve Gage (206) versus Wichita State on Nov. 2, 1985; Michigan State's Sedrick Irvin (238) and Marc Renaud (203) versus Penn State on Nov. 29, 1997; West Virginia's Patrick White (220) and Steve Sla- ton (215) versus Pittsburgh on Nov. 16, 2006; Ball State's MiQuale Lewis (301) and Cory Sykes (203) versus Eastern Michigan on Oct. 24, 2009; and Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon (216) and Montee Ball (202) versus Nebraska on Dec. 1, 2012. 15-15 Notre Dame has scored on all 15 of its trips into the red zone this year — 13 touchdowns and two field goals. It was 6 of 6 in touchdowns against both Boston College and Temple while scoring 49 points apiece. Entering the Boston College game, the Fighting Irish were one of 13 teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision to be perfect there with at least nine trips inside the opponent's 20-yard line. 49 Points scored by Notre Dame, the third most it ever tallied in the 24-game his- tory versus Boston College. At the top is the 54-7 demolition against the then No. 9-ranked Eagles in 1992, followed by the 52-20 win in 1997, both at home. This is especially notable because in the 12 previous meetings against Boston College since 2001, Notre Dame averaged only 18.4 points per game, with the 31-13 victory in Kelly's first season in 2010 the most. 207 Rushing yards by junior quarterback Brandon Wimbush, shattering the 48- year record of 146 yards on 11 carries held by reserve quarterback Bill Etter during a 47-0 victory versus Navy on Nov. 1, 1969. The closest that stan- dard had come to being broken was two years ago when DeShone Kizer rambled for 143 in a 24-20 comeback win against Temple. 2,200 Career rushing yards for Adams after his all-time high of 218 ver- sus Boston College. Officially, he became the 17th Notre Dame player to surpass 2,000 rushing yards, and the first since Cierre Wood in 2012. BY THE NUMBERS BY LOU SOMOGYI 229 Rushing yards by junior run- ning back JOSH ADAMS. He became the first Notre Dame ball carrier to break the 200-yard barrier in a game since Nov. 28, 2003, when Julius Jones amassed 218 yards (23 carries) during a 57-7 rout of Stanford. Two weeks earlier in a 27-24 win versus Navy, Jones amassed 221 yards on 33 attempts. Jones also set the single-game school record that year with 262 during a 20-14 win at Pitt. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA