Notre Dame Defense Disappointing Against Michigan

A year ago, Notre Dame's defense held the Michigan Wolverines to just six points and forced five turnovers. But this year, Devin Gardner and company hung 41 against the Fighting Irish. They scored on 5 of 6 possessions in the first half to put up 27 points. Michigan kept it going despite one mistake in the endzone by Gardner in the second half. 

When it was all over, Gardner threw for 294 yards and 4 touchdowns. He also added 82 yards rushing with a touchdown. His favorite receiver was Jeremy Gallon who caught 8 passes for 184 yards and 3 touchdowns.

That makes you wonder, how does a defense go from being so dominant to so dominated. I think the answer is a couple of factors. One, Michigan has a really good team this year. They will probably sore through the Big Ten Legends Division and play Ohio State for the title. I will give the Wolverines their due. They are really good.

Two, Notre Dame is really missing some key players. Manti Te'o, Kapron Lewis-Moore, and Zeke Motta all graduated while Danny Spond had to retire early for health reasons. But Brian Kelly and Bob Diaco have a next man in philosophy. Based on that, the talent to replace those guys is there on paper. However, when you have a leader like Te'o, his presence raises the performance of everyone around him. So far nobody has assumed that responsibility. I am still waiting for Louis Nix to fill that role and so far he hasn't.

Giving credit where it is due, Notre Dame's offense has really played well. Yes Tommy Rees did have two interceptions, but through two games he has thrown for 660 yards and five touchdowns. TJ Jones appears to be on pace for a Michael Floyd type year. So far he has caught 15 passes for 232 yards. I also like what I see from USC transfer Amir Carlisle. He looks to be capable of being a Theo Riddick type back.

As disappointing as this loss was, Notre Dame needs to regroup quick because all is not lost and this can still be a great year. The offense is looking real good and the talent is there on defense, they just need a leader.

A Tough One to Predict

The thing I have always loved and will miss about the Michigan-Notre Dame rivalry is that you generally have two powers both with National Championship aspirations. The result is a huge boost for the winner and a big early setback for the loser. This year is no exception.

Going into this game, I always have an idea who I think will win. But this year it is really a hard one to call. Both teams handled their week one opponents quite easily, but it is hard to say who is better between Central Michigan and Temple. Overall, Michigan was more impressive but Notre Dame looked like they were experimenting more with different players, especially at tailback.

Looking at the Quarterbacks, Tommy Rees was sharper and unlike Devin Gardner, he did not turn the ball over. However, we all know that Gardner adds a running dimension that Rees cannot.

Defensively, Michigan was more impressive. However, there is not a Notre Dame fan who believes that the Irish defense played anywhere near a level they are capable of. The Wolverine defense is also younger and less experienced.

Both teams had their share of mistakes. Michigan had lots of penalties and turnovers while Notre Dame had many special team errors including missed field goals.

So at the end of the day, there really is not enough information after one game to make a good prediction. I guess we just have to watch.

Plenty of Bulletin Board Material Thanks to Brian Kelly and Brady Hoke

As Notre Dame and Michigan prepare for their last meeting at the Big House, much of the talk has been about comments made by the two head coaches. I am not sure how much of a difference it really makes and perhaps the media overplays it a bit, but there is definitely bulletin board material in both locker rooms thanks to Brian Kelly and Brady Hoke.

First Hoke made a comment last summer in Grand Rapids that Notre Dame was chickening out on the rivalry. That was obviously a ridiculous comment because we know why Notre Dame is withdrawing from the series. They have an agreement with the ACC to play 5 games with them starting in two years. There are only 12 games in a schedule and they have to get rid of some games. They won't cancel USC, Stanford, or Navy. So what are they supposed to do.

Then Kelly made the statement that you don't take 35 years off a series and call it a great rivalry. There are two problems with that. First, tell any Notre Dame fan that Notre Dame and Miami are not still big rivals. These two haven't played regularly in 20 years but in two recent meetings, it definitely felt like a big rival.

Second, to suggest that this isn't a huge rivalry is just absurd. The two schools are linked by history as it was Michigan who taught Notre Dame the game of football. But more importantly these two teams both generally have national title hopes each year. The win is a huge boost for the winner and definitely a setback for the loser. This year is no different from that.

Kelly did recant later and said it is a great rivalry, but it doesn't matter. I am not sure how much it will matter on Saturday but Hoke and Kelly both provided bulletin board material for their opponents.

Two Players Who Need to Step it Up Against Michigan

Although Notre Dame defeated the Temple Owls quite easily, I think every Notre Dame fan agrees that the Fighting Irish need to play better against Michigan. The defense was particularly frustrating to watch at times. After being so dominant a year ago, it was frustrating watching Temple move right down the field. Probably the most disappointing part was the fact that the defensive line did not just dominate the Owls line. Louis Nix did not record a single tackle. That was due in large part to the fact that he was double teamed. That will continue to happen every week. The good thing about that though is that it opens up the other defensive linemen. Stephen Tuitt was in on 3 tackles and did have a sack. But the other defensive tackle Sheldon Day only had one tackle.

Yes it was his first start replacing Kapron Lewis-Moore, so I won't rush to judgement on the sophomore. Having said that, he needs to do something this week against Michigan. He needs to make more of an impact to take some of the attention off of Nix. There is a lot of hype around this young man. Now he needs to live up to it.

Another young man with a lot of hype is freshman linebacker Jaylon Smith. Smith is replacing Danny Spond and only recorded one tackle. He needs to improve on that to help veteran linebackers Dan Fox who led the team with 10 tackles, Carlo Calabrese who had 9, and Prince Shembo who had 4. We can expect that Michigan might see unproven Smith as a weakness that they will want to exploit. He better be up to the challenge.

I don't want to come across as all negative because they did only surrender six points. However, we all know that Temple did leave some off the board with missed field goals and a questionable decision to go for it on 4th and goal on the first drive of the second half. After that the defense did play better and allowed no more long drives. But still, they still were not as dominant as they should be.

Manti Te'o's leadership was sorely missed and somebody needs to step up and take that role on now. Heading into Michigan, Smith and Day are definitely two players under the microscope and they both need to step up their game.

Notre Dame Produces Mixed Results in Win Over Temple

Offensively, the Fighting Irish were very efficient. Tommy Rees was sharp. He threw for a career high 346 yards with 3 touchdowns. He showed improved arm strength on those throws and most importantly, he did not turn it over.

The Irish were also effective running the ball. USC transfer Amir Carlisle was most impressive with 68 yards on only seven carries. His number of carries need to go up. His first carry electrified the crowd with a 45 yard gain. Cam McDaniel was also impressive with 68 yards on 12 carries. He seems to be the power runner of the group. George Atkinson was a little disappointing with only 34 yards although he did have the only rushing touchdown. I was happy that he didn't fumble. Perhaps it is time to consider making him more of a third down specialist than a featured back.

The Irish have a good group of receivers led by TJ Jones who had six catches for 138 yards. Davaris Daniels had 3 catches for 69 yards and two of them were long touchdowns. He may have had a third one if he didn't cramp up on a long bomb. Chris Brown should get a bigger role as the season progresses as well. Tight End Troy Niklas only had one catch but it was 66 yard touchdown.

After having such a dominant defense last year, it was disappointing to see them give up over 70 rushing yards in the first half. I expected Louis Nix and Stephen Tuitt to just dominate that Temple line. It didn't happen and that is a concern going into Michigan. Last year, the Irish only gave up four rushing touchdowns and gave one up in the first half.

The defense did play better in the second half but they still did not look as dominant as we are used to. No takeaways is a concern as well.

The Kicking game was just a disaster. Two missed field goals and two punts that went through the endzone are things that have to get corrected now. TJ Jones did show potential on punt returns but still did not produce great results.

The win is nice but the Irish definitely have to play better against Michigan.

Notre Dame Needs to Put Temple Away Early

Bottom line is that with a brutal stretch immediately following Temple, The Fighting Irish cannot mess around with the Owls. They have many new faces on offense and we need to see as many players get game experience as we can. The Irish need to be firing on all cylinders from the get go.

For Tommy Rees, this one season will determine how he is remembered in South Bend. Defensively, Louis Nix needs to be the anchor of the line and the guy who is the leader. He can have a Lombardi Award type year.

There is not much more to write about on this one. We have waited 8 long months for this and dealt with a disaster of an offseason. It is time for football.

Go Irish.

Thank You Danny Spond

With just one week before the Temple Owls suffer the butt kicking of a life time, the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame suffered a huge loss this week. Senior Linebacker Danny Spond had to end his playing career due to repeated head injuries. The sad part is that he went through so much to be part of the team last year after a bad concussion in the preseason.

Remembering him last year he was really an unsung hero in the shadow of guys like Louis Nix, Kapron Lewis-Moore, and the great Manti Te'o. Truth being told is that he would have been the main star on many other defenses. As it was, he was a huge part of that great defense last year. I remember most him saving the game against BYU.

With Spond gone, a couple of unknowns in Fresman Jayon Smith and Junior Ben Counsell will fight to fill that huge hole. Coach Kelly's theory has always been next man in so I am sure one of them will be up to the challenge. But Still, Spond will be sorely missed.

Thank you Danny Spond and we are happy that you will still be around to help the young linebackers.