With Notre Dame football falling to Georgia in one of the most significant games of the early season, there’s talk of how the loss will affect the former’s season.
Despite the 20-19 final score, it was a difficult game to witness from the Notre Dame sideline. The offense was frustratingly inept, and it seemed as if it was only a matter of time until Georgia’s offense broke free from the hold of a strong Irish defense.
It was clear that Notre Dame deserved to be in this game from the get-go, but their offense was never quite capable of giving the team what it needed to secure the win. On the flip side, Notre Dame’s defense proved more than capable of keeping the Irish in any game down the stretch.
There were things that looked good and things that looked bad for the Irish on Saturday, but there were also overreactions on both sides of the aisle as the game came to a close.
Here are five of them that surfaced in the wake of Notre Dame’s Week 2 loss.
5. The Irish defense is back to form
Remember when a Manti Te’o lead Irish defense brought Notre Dame to the coveted national championship? It’s been a while since the Irish have witnessed such success, but many were quick to jump upon the Irish’s strong showing against Georgia, claiming the Irish defense had finally returned to its true self.
While there is no taking away from what the Irish did on defense last night, their excellent performance came against a fairly average quarterback in Georgia backup Jake Fromm. However, the dynamic combo of Nick Chubb and Sony Michel was held in check by an Irish team that struggled mightily against the run last season.
There is no doubt that this defense is much improved from the one we saw last season, and they should only get better as the season treads on. While the 191 rushing yards allowed by the Irish appear to be on the higher side, there was never a sense that the defense was incapable of defending the rush at any point in the game.
The Irish defense will look to maintain their strong start as they take on the Boston College Eagles next week. This will be a much easier contest, and should only fuel the fire for Notre Dame’s up and coming defense.
4. Brandon Wimbush isn’t the answer at quarterback
Notre Dame quarterback Brandon Wimbush felt the wrath of local and national critics after the loss, and will likely continue to hear it until he records his first big win. It was to be expected, however, as quarterbacks almost always function as a team’s scapegoat following significant losses.
Not all of the slights against Wimbush were unfounded, however, with the junior struggling on multiple occasions to find his receivers on a regular basis. He didn’t have much help from the rest of his offense though, as he was pressured on many of his throws. In addition, the Irish had trouble gaining traction in the run game, further inhibiting Wimbush from get much going.
However, the thought that this game paints a picture of Wimbush’s future is wrong. There is plenty of time for Wimbush to iron out the kinks down the stretch, and there’s little reason to believe he won’t do so.
For Notre Dame fans, there was also the realization that the Irish will not be playing Temple week in and week out. Wimbush looked great in his first start for the Irish, but his flaws were put on display against a very proficient Georgia defense.
Wimbush definitely didn’t perform as well as coaches and fans alike would have hoped, but it will take more than one bad game to validate any rumblings of a quarterback controversy.
3. This season is deja vu for Notre Dame
Notre Dame experienced a similar start last season when it dropped its opener to an unranked Texas team, and many see the same struggles brewing after last night’s loss to Georgia. However, there are a multitude of reasons as to why this year differs from the last, most notably that this is simply a very different team.
In addition, many fans forget that the Irish were not the favorite to win this game. Despite playing at home against the Bulldogs, they were ranked nearly ten spots behind Georgia heading into the game. They have since seen themselves drop out of the top 25 in the most recent AP poll, but will look to fight their way back in against more even competition.
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In addition, the Irish lost two of their first three games to unranked competition last year, and saw themselves fall out of the top 25 after being ranked as high as ten. This year the Irish have been operating to a reverse effect, clawing their way into the top 25 before exiting shortly after.
The Irish shouldn’t be far outside of the top 25 as it sits right now and should be given the chance to re-enter should the Irish perform well against the likes of Boston College and Michigan State. On that same token, the Irish will have the opportunity to earn even more respect against teams such as USC and Miami down the road.
While this game didn’t end as well as some may have hoped, it’s important to remember that this loss isn’t the end of the world. The Irish have plenty of time to get back on track and should take advantage of some weaker competition in the next few weeks before taking on the nation’s best down the stretch.
2. The rushing game won’t hold up
After a week one game that saw three Irish players rush for over 100 yards (Josh Adams, Dexter Williams, Wimbush), the Irish witnessed a much less exciting outing against a stout Georgia front seven. To put it in perspective, the entire Irish team had far less than 100 yards combined in last night’s loss.
Adams, Notre Dame’s most polished rusher, managed only 53 yards on 19 carries. What makes this rushing performance even more astounding was the fact that Notre Dame’s second leading rusher was their backup quarterback Ian Book. Book managed two yards on a scramble after coming in for relief of Wimbush after a contact lens malfunction.
As mentioned before, the overall poor offensive outing came full circle due to a phenomenal defensive showcase from the Bulldogs. The Irish did not have much of a passing threat and Georgia knew it. They stacked the box, brought pressure on every play, and it worked to perfection.
In turn, Adams could not get much going, leaving Wimbush to make the big plays in only his second game as a starter. When Wimbush failed to make those plays, Georgia knew they could continue to focus on stopping Adams. It seems simple, and that’s because it is.
But one poor game against one of the nation’s stronger defenses doesn’t spell doom for the Irish rushing attack. In fact, it should only prepare them for what is to come when the Irish take the fight to more capable teams. There will need to be more creativity from offensive coordinator Chip Long as the majority of Notre Dame’s basic options were snuffed out easily by Georgia.
Look for Long to do just that in the coming weeks before the rubber really meets the road against USC.
1. The Irish don’t have enough playmakers
There has also been talk that the Irish don’t have enough playmakers on the offensive side of the ball. While there is some merit to this statement, it’s important to note that the Irish boast much of their prominence on the defensive side of the ball.
Outside of the offensive line and tight end positions, the Irish have struggled with recruiting top-of-the-line players on the offensive side of the ball. Outside of wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown, few receivers could be seen making spectacular catches. Junior Chris Finke had some clutch catches himself, but made some questionable decisions on special teams as well.
The defensive line was constantly making contributions, and players such as Greer Martini and Drue Tranquill could be seen making plays at any given time. As mentioned before, the Irish have struggled to recruit well on offense, and this has translated to some growing pains on the offensive side of the ball.
However, these issues will likely be straightened out as the season continues as many of these players are playing in their first few games with the Irish. Look for the coaching staff to get things in order quickly which should help some of these young players to really come into their own.
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This will be a very telling year for the Irish, but it’s important to make sure that we as fans don’t let a one-point game get in the way of a season with this much potential. The Irish are in a good position to reestablish themselves as a respected team in the college football realm, and they are still on track to realize that goal.