Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/894058
www.BLUEANDGOLD.com NOV. 6, 2017 21 BY LOU SOMOGYI T he "L Word" — letdown — was a popular topic following Notre Dame's 49‑14 blowout of archrival USC and prior to facing No. 14 NC State a week later. Instead, Notre Dame's 2017 re‑ venge tour continued with a 35‑14 victory versus the Wolfpack. The Fighting Irish again dominated the line of scrimmage with a 318‑50 yard rushing advantage, committed no turnovers and allowed only one touchdown on offense by NC State. It also was Notre Dame's sixth straight win by at least 20 points, the longest streak since the 1966 national champions had seven in a row. "What's impressive to me is that they consistently come out with the energy and the mindset to get after their opponent," Irish head coach Brian Kelly said of his troops. "… We don't talk about winning. Winning is not even part of our vocabulary. "We didn't talk about winning any games this year. It's about the mind‑ set that we've created to dominate our opponent." It was the third Notre Dame vic‑ tory against a team that defeated it last year, with the previous ones coming the week prior versus the Trojans and Sept. 23 against Michigan State (38‑18). Navy (Nov. 18) and Stanford (Nov. 25) are also on the docket, while the Irish continue their quest to advance to the four‑team College Football Playoff. Junior running back Josh Adams' assault on the Irish record book re‑ mained in full force with 202 rushing yards on 27 carries, highlighted by a 77‑yard touchdown in the third quar‑ ter that broke the game open and was the final tally. "If you hold your vote until the end of the year, that would be great," Kelly said of Adams' ascending can‑ didacy as a Heisman Trophy finalist. "He continues to play against top competition, and continues to excel on a very good football team … We should just let it play out." NC State held a 14‑7 lead early in the second quarter before the Irish scored 28 consecutive points and limited the Wolfpack to only 89 yards of total of‑ fense on 27 plays in the second half. On the opening series after half‑ time, NC State drove to Notre Dame's 42‑yard line and threatened to tie the game at 21 when sopho‑ more cornerback Julian Love jumped on an out pattern and intercepted a Ryan Finley pass that he returned for a 69‑yard touchdown along the Fighting Irish sideline. FIRST QUARTER: 7-7 Top Moment: Twenty‑nine sec‑ onds after North Carolina State took a 7‑0 lead off a blocked punt for a touchdown, Notre Dame responded with a two‑play drive in which Ad‑ ams first romped for a 35‑yard gain followed by junior quarterback Bran‑ don Wimbush finding fifth‑year se‑ nior tight end Durham Smythe for a 25‑yard score at the 9:36 mark. "That was most impressive for me, coaching for as long as I have. When you get a punt block, it has a ten‑ dency to really affect your football team," Kelly said. "Our guys never flinched. It was as if nothing ever occurred other than let's get back out on the field and get back to work. "That's hard to build. It took us a long way, a long time to get to that, and our guys just have that never‑ flinch, keep‑playing, one play at a time [attitude]." Top Performers: Love broke up two passes and had excellent cover‑ age on an incomplete deep ball be‑ fore getting beat on a double move by Stephen Louis for a 42‑yard gain in the closing minute of the quarter to set up the Wolfpack at the Irish 15. For NC State, All‑American defen‑ sive end Bradley Chubb recorded a sack and a QB hurry. Stats: North Carolina State had 112 yards of total offense (83 passing and 29 rushing) to Notre Dame's 81 (58 rushing and 23 passing). Items: With 10:05 left and punt‑ ing from his end zone, Notre Dame senior Tyler Newsome's kick was blocked by James Smith‑Williams and recovered in the end zone by Germaine Pratt for a 7‑0 lead. Wolfpack leading rusher Nyheim Hines was injured near the eight‑ minute mark and did not return to the game. SECOND QUARTER: NOTRE DAME 21, NC STATE 14 Top Moment: On back‑to‑back plays, Smythe and sophomore wide‑ out Kevin Stepherson made acrobatic 11‑yard receptions, the latter for a touchdown to give Notre Dame its first lead, 21‑14, with 5:30 left. Both plays went to officials review that showed them keeping at least one foot in‑bounds. Smythe's catch came on third‑and‑six to keep the drive alive. Top Performers: Senior rover Drue Tranquill was a factor against both the pass and run, recording a team‑ high six tackles (one for loss) plus half a sack that came on the final Wolfpack series of the first half. Smythe finished the half with three catches for 52 yards. Stats: Notre Dame had 40 plays in the first half for 216 yards, with 28 rushes for 136 yards and 8‑of‑12 passing for 80 yards. NC State to‑ taled 174 yards, rushing 11 times for 20 yards and completing 10 of 23 passes for 154 yards. 2017 REVENGE TOUR CONTINUES There was no letup for the Irish in a dominant 35-14 victory versus No. 14 North Carolina State Junior quarterback Brandon Wimbush accounted for three touchdowns versus the Wolfpack, on 25- and 11-yard passes plus a three-yard run. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA