On the last Saturday of September the #6 Fighting Irish of Notre Dame rolled up over 680 yards of total offense in a 62-27 win over the University of Massachusetts Minutemen. The Irish led just 21-20 midway through the second quarter but a CJ Sanders punt return for a TD and a DeShone Kizer TD pass to end the first half gave Notre Dame a comfortable lead that they would never come close to relinquishing.
The first half was highlighted by CJ Prosise picking up where he left off last week and a Special Teams return that gave Notre Dame the lead for good. While the Irish started off sluggish with a sack killing their first drive, Prosise got the offense going on the second drive when he took a delayed handoff and went 57 yards down the home sideline for a score. There was a lot to like about the play call itself as the offensive line opened up a huge running lane and Will Fuller had a block downfield that was over 50 yards from where the play started. Fuller continues to impress as he is blossoming into one of the best all-around receivers in the country.
On their next drive the Irish pushed the lead to 13-0 on 7-yard run from Kizer that was aided by a Quenton Nelson kickout block. Regarding Kizer, he wasn’t being asked to do too much early on and it looked like he needed a few easy throws to grow his confidence. To Brian Kelly’s credit he designed high percentage throws for him and it looks like the tight ends are getting more involved each week which should mean bigger things for Alize Jones moving forward. Notre Dame’s offensive line continued to open holes on this drive as Prosise went over 100 yards rushing in the 1st Quarter alone.
A Marquis Young 80-yard TD run to end the 1st Quarter got the Minutemen on the board and made it 14-6 after the extra point was blocked by Sheldon Day. On Notre Dame’s ensuing possession Kizer was intercepted trying to hit Fuller on a deep post route, which led to a Sekai Lindsey 1-yard run and a 14-13 score. The UMass scoring drive was aided by a Blake Frohnapel to Tajae Sharp pass on a 4th and 5 to keep the drive alive and Irish fans uncomfortable in their seats. The Irish defense struggled against the run at times in this game and it should be a point of emphasis for Brian Van Gorder heading into next week.
After both teams traded scores (including a nice catch and run by Fuller), a botched handoff on second down led to a Tyler Newsome punt that was downed at the UMass one-yard line. The Minutemen were unable to gain any ground and were forced to punt from the back of their own end zone and Sanders made them pay with a 50-yard punt return for a touchdown where he weaved through traffic for the score. Sanders did a great job of working his way upfield as soon as he gathered the ball in and had plenty of room to work. While the poor field position had a lot to do with the return, it was refreshing for Irish fans to see a big play from the Special Teams.
Kizer engineered a nice drive to end the 1st Half as the Irish worked in the 2-Minute offense and it ended with a short TD pass to Chris Brown to give the Irish a 35-20 halftime lead. Kizer was 5/8 on the drive as the Irish covered 74 yards in just 1:21 to get a score that clearly took its toll on the Minutemen. In the 3rd Quarter the Irish lead swelled to 48-20 after TD runs from Prosise and Dexter Williams. At this point the Irish interior lines on both sides of the ball were dominating the line of scrimmage and for the better part of the 2nd half Notre Dame’s reserves saw playing time.
Brandon Wimbush saw his first action of his career and had a 58-yard TD run late in the 3rd Quarter that made it 55-20. For his part Wimbush looks like he has the physical tools to be a big-time QB for the Irish in the future but for now this is Kizer’s show to run. Josh Adams also added a 70-yard touchdown run that put him over 100 yards on the day and the Irish were able to empty the bench in the 2nd half on both sides of the ball as they managed a comfortable lead throughout. This was encouraging, as past performances against lesser opponents have produced games that were much closer than necessary.
Let’s look at some of the questions JVan posed prior to kickoff:
Will the Irish maintain the level of play they established last week against Georgia Tech? The Irish played good football in spurts but against a better team this game may have turned into a struggle. The good news is that after UMass got within 21-20, ND rattled off 41 unanswered points before UMass scored at the end for the final margin. The Irish will need to play a more complete game next weekend.
Can Kizer complete a high percentage of his passes and make way for Wimbush? Kizer wasn’t asked to do a whole lot but he ended up a tidy 15/22 for 207 yards and 2 TDs to go along with the lone interception. He also added a TD on the ground as he continues to get a better grasp of the offense. Wimbush was able to see some quality minutes in the second half as he entered at the 8:00 mark of the 3rd Quarter. This is the lone reason why I can support this type of opponent as it is important to get the backups some meaningful reps in game situations.
Will Josh Adams and Dexter Williams produce quality rushes when called upon? Adams had 133 yards and a TD on 13 carries and Williams added another 40 yards and a touchdown as Kelly spelled CJ Prosise liberally throughout the game. Despite their lack of experience, all three backs have looked good this season and the Irish had over 400 yards on the ground.
Can UMass improve upon its third down conversion rate of 27%? Yes – Umass was 5/17 on third down for a 29% conversion rate. Sometimes improvement is made in the smallest of increments.
Will UMass linebacker Kassan Messiah play inspired ball when he sees his likeness on the Notre Dame Library? I don’t believe this Messiah was able to do much for UMass as he only had 4 tackles but word on the street is that Mark Whipple picked up some literature on converting to Catholicism while he was on campus.
The good news for this week is that the team came out of this game relatively healthy. The Irish were also able to get experience for a number of guys on the team as four freshmen scored TDs today. While they moved to 4-0, things get much tougher for the Irish next week as they head to Death Valley for a matchup with Clemson in primetime.
irishhawk50 says:
A good point about the Irish in the past playing down to lesser teams the whole game. They did manage to pull away, but as you said they won’t have that kind of breathing space against Clemson. I know Duke isn’t bad but the victory over. GT takes a little shine off last week. This team is good but I am not sure how good. Clemson, Navy, USC is going to make for a tough October, but we’ll take it one week at a time. Still a lot to clean up and time is short.
John Vannie says:
Nice job, Jason. I missed the game on TV but your summary told me what I needed to know. I think ND is the type of team that plays its best when it is challenged, so I believe they will get it together and beat Clemson.
canuck75 says:
When have we ever had freshmen that looked like this! They all look spectacular. As BK said, he’d be crazy to take Fuller out to put ESB in, but what a specimen!
Great recruiting and good coaching. I am feeling pretty good about the next few weeks.
Larry says:
Secondary is a worry. They give too much space to receivers. Need to be more aggressive in their coverage.
Kenny M says:
Kizer needs to step up his play if we are to have any hope of beating Clemson. Defense has to be able to get pressure on their QB. The D played better in the second half but overall they played soft today. I don’t think we can go into death valley in prime time and beat Clemson.
Wimbush impressed me today and thsts not easy to do!
NDBonecrusher says:
Kudos to all who called the whole “slow-start-then-pull-away” thing. Over 600 yards offense, 2 100+ rushers, Wimbush is a stud, valuable experience for backups, and NO INJURIES TO KEY PERSONNEL, at least that I know of. Nice day at the office.
Secondary and special teams still an area of concern. A messy PAT hold will not hurt you too much vs UMass, but might be a big deal next week and subsequently.
Way to (finally) physically dominate a less-talented team. Time for Clemson!
NDBonecrusher says:
Blocking. Hines Ward must have soiled himself when he saw Fuller blocking for Prosise all the way to the end zone. And did anyone else see Greer Martini DECK some dude on Sanders’s punt return? Yeesh. That kid got some nasty in him.
Aaron says:
The positives……no injuries, finally pounded the team like we are suppose to. Some young players got alot of game experience. Our front 7 on the D side of the ball is one of the best in the country.
The Negatives……..play calling at times is suspect. Defense as whole needs to play a whole game. Our secondary is our Achilles heel and teams (Clemson, SC, and others) are going to exploit that!!!! O-line needs to play better to dominat the line of scrimmage.
Big game for the Irish to start the Month of October which will surely define our season.
Go Irish!!!!
bocceman2 says:
I have been highly critical of Kelly not having the team focused in a lot of games over the past several seasons. The first half up to the punt return by Sanders was case in point. However, ND coaches did a helluva job at half making adjustments and inspiring the team for the second half. This Irish team can go far if they can stay focused rest of season.
austinirish says:
I am optimistic heading to South Carolina. The D will need to do the kind of job it did against GT. But I like this team’s mojo.
flirish says:
As with the comments above I have been very critical of kelly and was in the first half of this past game. It was great to see nd take control of a game and win like they were supposed to win.
Secondary is veteran and experienced. Not sure why they are so bad. One interception in four games. burned deep by everyone. We need to step up the pass rush to help the secondary. Clemson has 10 times the speed of any team we have played this year
El Capitano says:
I have to credit Kelly for bringing in Autry Denson. He and he alone has gotten Procise, Adams and Williams up to speed in short order. Great hire. Jury is still out on Todd Lyght but I think it will also prove to be a great call.