Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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FIGHTING WORDS WES MORGAN as ferocious as Notre Dame's, darted across the highway. It got everyone's attention, but the Irish managed to swerve safely around instead of experi- encing a ruinous smashup and a radia- tor full of fur. Notre Dame, facing a massive chal- The Cougars, with a defense nearly responsible for keeping a victory within sight, though even that unit had its share of hiccups. Both sides need some maintenance with Oklahoma now at the plate and USC batting cleanup. "It's a hard-fought win, but I think lenge on the road in Norman, Okla., is more alert than an overly caffeinated member of the Anchorage Polar Bear Club. However, their subdued reaction to the narrow victory is a sign the Irish continue to be all business this fall. Kelly, on the other hand, realizes a little pleasure must be part of the equation. "They worked too hard to not ap- we're a team that holds ourselves to a higher standard," fifth-year senior de- fensive end Kapron Lewis-Moore said. "We have to play at a higher standard of play, and I think today a lot of guys were like, 'We can play a lot better than that.'" Senior tight end Tyler Eifert, who nor- preciate and understand how tough it is to win college football games across the country," he said. "I was just trying to let them know that they are going to be in close games, and they are going to be in tight games during the course of 12 games, 13 games. "You're going to have to win those mally is the most stoic of the bunch, appeared the most excited after the vic- tory. (Catching four passes for 73 yards and a touchdown helps.) But he echoed Lewis-Moore's evaluation, while taking Kelly's postgame speech to heart. "We're happy to get wins, but it's not games. That's part of the way they played and I wanted them to hear that, and I think they did and now we'll move on." Junior quarterback Tommy Rees did just enough in a shaky passing effort, completing 7 of 16 attempts for 117 yards with a touchdown and an inter- ception, in Golson's place. Irish fans, though, are eager to see Golson fully recovered from a concussion against Stanford and back in the starting lineup versus the Sooners. Fortunately, Notre Dame's three-headed rushing attack pounded out 270 yards. The vaunted Irish defense was again all bad to be disappointed," Eifert said. "We thought we could play better, and we know we're capable of playing bet- ter. But we work too hard every week to get a win to not be happy about it." Unlike in 1957, when Notre Dame was thrashed 34-6 by Michigan State be- fore traveling to then-No. 2 Oklahoma — pulling into Norman angry and with something to prove (which it did by ending the Sooners' record 47-game win streak) — this year's team got an equally effective wake-up call in a win. A little scare might be what the Irish needed. ✦ Assitant Editor Wes Morgan has been with Blue & Gold Illustrated since February 2011. He can be reached at wmorgan@blueandgold.com