Notre Dame Football: 3 takeaways from dominant win over South Florida

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TAMPA, FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 12: Head coach Jeff Scott of the South Florida Bulls looks on from the sideline during the first quarter against the Citadel Bulldogs at Raymond James Stadium on September 12, 2020 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) /

2. USF was overmatched in all phases

The opening kickoff saw a facemark penalty on South Florida which proved to be a sign of things to come.

Jordan McCloud and Noah Johnson were both inaccurate and barely scrapped together 100 passing yards. Going 2-for-15 on third downs will not win you any game, nonetheless against Notre Dame.

The defense struggled against this offensive line, but to be fair it seems as if many teams will do the same going forward.

Special teams needs to be a key focus going forward for the Bulls. In addition to the opening kickoff penalty, South Florida struggled just to get clean punts off.

There was a high snap in the second quarter, in which Trent Schneider had to run for his life just to punt the ball away and avoid a safety. This led to an immediate Notre Dame touchdown as they were able to start the drive at the USF 25.

Another punt was blocked in the third quarter and taken back for a Notre Dame touchdown. Simply put, the special teams unit needs to be far better than this if South Florida wants to string some wins together.

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