(Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire)
Another week, another dominant win, but of course, not without the requisite slow start. Submitted for your consideration:
Game 1-Texas A&M
ND kicked off to the Aggies, who cruised down the field to the ND 17 and then took a 3-0 lead on a 34-yard field goal. The Irish went on to a solid 23-13 win over an excellent team that hasn’t lost since and is ranked 14th in the latest AP poll.
Game 2- Northern Illinois
In a game we would all like to forget, the Irish actually took a 7-0 lead on an 11-yard Riley Leonard run that capped off the first drive of the game. Northern Illinois, however, tallied the next two scores, and at the end of the first quarter, owned a 10-7 advantage. We all know how this one ended.
Game 3–Purdue This game of utter destruction is the outlier. ND led Purdue 42-0 at the half and rolled to a 66-7 final. It is hard to tell just what kind of start the Irish had in this game because their opponent never really showed up.
Game 4–Miami (Ohio)
The Irish returned to their slow-start form. The ND offense produced zero points in the first quarter. Miami (Ohio) scored first, and midway through the second quarter, they led 3-0. Riley Leonard was having a hard time hitting the broadside of a jumbotron, and boos cascaded down in Notre Dame Stadium. Perhaps those jeers served as a wakeup call though, because the Irish woke up and scored two TDs in the last four minutes of the half and closed things out with a 28-3 win.
Game 5–Louisville
In this one the Irish had just about the worst slow start imaginable. ND fumbled away the opening kickoff, and a few plays later, the Cardinals owned a 7-0 lead. Not to worry, though, because apparently slow starts make the Irish stronger. Jeremiyah Love, Jaden Greathouse, and Leonard all found the end zone before the end of the quarter. The Irish went on to a hard-fought, quality 31-24 victory.
Game 6-Stanford
It was more of the same. The Irish took their requisite step back but then took charge. ND punted away its first possession, and Stanford promptly drove 63 yards in 9 plays to take a 7-0 lead. But the Irish now with their opponent right where they wanted them, turned thigs completely and scored the next 49 points to notch an easy victory.
Game 7-Georgia Tech This past week, before the Irish finally got started, they couldn’t, as usual, get out of their own way. They went three and out on their first possession and threw an interception on Riley Leonard’s worst pass in a month on their next. Georgia Tech, led by their backup quarterback (all due respect to Zach Pyron, by the way—he was solid and played with fortitude for four quarters), owned a first quarter 7-0 lead until the Irish finally broke through midway through the second quarter
The rest of the game is recent history. The Irish controlled time of possession (35:44), held the hard-charging Yellow Jackets to just 65 yards rushing, and picked off two passes. And the slow-starting Irish went to 6-1 with a solid 31-13 triumph.
Seven games, six slow starts.
So what to do about it? After the game, Marcus Freeman was asked about his team’s slow-start propensity and acknowledged the season-long trend, “You start slow, and we respond.”
He went on, “It’s life, man. Like I showed them a race of a girl running… 100-meter hurdles, and she fell over the second hurdle and gets back up and wins. It’s like, that’s life…you’re gonna hit some hurdles, and you gotta get up and sprint through the finish line. And that’s what they did.”
The 2024 Irish have shown a knack for winning races, but also for tripping on the first hurdle most every week.
A popular point of discussion regarding the early success offenses have had against the Irish, before ND finds a way to respond, revolves around Al Golden’s ability to make in-game adjustments. This was elaborated on by freshman sensation cornerback Leonard Moore after the game. “It’s crazy to see how we make adjustments. The first 15, they are going to come out with their best plays. So we make adjustments and lock in.” Leonard had a big day with seven tackles, one tackle for loss, and a pass breakup.
So why are the Irish so commonly caught off guard by those “first 15” presumably scripted plays? Inquiring minds want to know.
And that brings us to Navy. Kickoff is at 12 noon next Saturday at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey and 6-0, 24th-ranked Navy is good. Really good.
This is not your father’s Naval Academy football team. If ND starts slow, Navy’s #4 ranked rushing attack can control the clock, limit possessions, and torture you into submission. Ask Brian Kelly about how that happens. But the Irish are known for good defense, and Al Golden has plenty of experience against the option, right? True but, that might not be the end of the story because the Midshipman offense is also #2 nationally in passing efficiency! They don’t pass a lot (12 times per game on average), but they do pass it well. Last week against Charlotte, Navy scored seven touchdowns en route to a 51-17 rout. Two of those TDs were scored by the defense, two were on the ground, and three came through the air.
That’s right—Navy can pass the football. Quarterback Blake Horvath, who has rushed for 621 yards and 10 TDs, is also a 64% passer who has tossed 10 TDs and just one interception. An obvious point for comparison here are Riley Leonard’s numbers. Leonard has also rushed for 10 TDs, but he has only thrown six TD passes.
Navy’s offense averages 44.8 points per game (4th), while ND averages 34.6 (26th).
Navy, for certain, has not played a schedule quite like ND’s. None of their six victims have been ranked. Their week 3 opponent Memphis was pretty good—they now stand at 6-1—but the other five Navy wins came against opponents with a combined record of 10-25.
After seven games, Notre Dame has put themselves in a position where they almost certainly control their own destiny in their quest for a College Football Playoff berth. But that control is razor-thin. Lose one more time, and in all likelihood, the Irish are headed to another Sun Bowl-like “opt-out” game for the postseason.
Start slowly in another game like they have in six of the seven so far in 2024, and the luck of the Irish, just may run out.