Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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FIGHTING WORDS WES MORGAN football that directly impacted the Irish. "So for us the focus and all of those things, not looking ahead, we don't have to worry about that anymore. "We have one game left on our schedule. Our guys know what's at stake now. This is about an undefeated season. They cannot do anything else but beat USC. The rest is up to other people to decide. But they can clearly focus." Until Nov. 17, it seemed like what was out of Notre Dame's control — what appeared to be the nation's most daunting schedule turning into a less- than-impressive collection of mostly middling squads — would have the final say. Purdue, a trendy, dark horse pick accommodating parties involved in giving the Fighting Irish a late-No- vember nudge towards the BCS title game. But Kelly might want to up- date his Christmas card list. Folks that might want to check their mailbox soon include: • Baylor's Glasco Martin and Lache Seastrunk, who combined for 298 rushing yards and four touchdowns in the Bears' 52-24 clobbering of K- State, which opened the door for Notre Dame just minutes before the Cardinal kicked it off its hinges by beating Oregon. Those two players were really nice as far as Notre Dame is concerned. • Stanford's Zach Ertz and Jordan to win the Big Ten Conference title, turned out to be a pretender and is 5-6. Michigan State, also 5-6, decided to take the year off after winning 11 games last season. The Miami Hurri- canes (6-5) weren't bowl eligible until beating up on hapless South Florida Saturday. Brigham Young (6-5) turned out to be bottom-tier bowl filler. Pitts- burgh? Loser. Boston College? Free lunch. But Notre Dame did what it had Williamson, who made a circus catch for a touchdown to force overtime and kicked the 37-yard game-winning field goal in the extra frame, respectively, to finish off the Ducks. Also nice. • UCLA linebacker Anthony Barr, to do by beating them all, as well as a respectable Michigan squad (8-3), and excellent programs in Stanford and Oklahoma, both of which might occupy top-10 space by the time this column reaches its audience. The Irish still needed help, which who drilled Southern California senior quarterback Matt Barkley and sepa- rated the prolific passer's shoulder in the final minutes of a 38-28 Bruins vic- tory. It's a little naughty to celebrate an injury, but it sure works out nicely for the Fighting Irish next week. The No. 1 Fighting Irish. "I voted them No. 1 in the country for a reason because I think they're the best team in the country, and I think they played like that tonight," Kelly said. ✦ was delivered all at once. The NCAA has strict rules when it comes to ath- letes and improper benefits, so Notre Dame can't send any gifts to all the Assitant Editor Wes Morgan has been with Blue & Gold Illustrated since February 2011. He can be reached at wmorgan@blueandgold.com