The doors have opened. Welcome to the 12-team Playoff. South Bend, Indiana was the site of “David versus Goliath,” except this one did not fall in favor of the underdog.
The #10 Indiana Hoosiers’ magical season was spoiled due to the #7 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The blue and gold took to a dominant defensive outpour to secure a 27-17 home victory.
Here’s what I saw…
Notre Dame’s victory up-front:
From the jump, it was clear that this game would certainly not be a shoot-out. Both teams present a similar play style with a strict dependence upon the defense. Offensively, what can your run game do?
In the first half, Notre Dame showed up in those categories more. Defensively, the Irish were active out of the gate. Defensive coordinator Al Golden came out of the gate swinging with a strong emphasis on the blitz. Notre Dame had no problems stopping Indiana’s run game early on. Notre Dame’s front five just simply “out-physicaled” Indiana.
This scheme forced the ball into Kurtis Rourke’s hands. Rourke struggled mightily early on as Golden seemingly had no issues leaving both Christain Gray and Leonard Moore on islands.
After an early interception from Riley Leonard; Kurtis Rourke returned the favor and tossed an interception into the hands of Xavier Watts which ultimately led to Notre Dame’s first points. On the next play, Jeremiyah Love rushed in a 98-yard touchdown to open up the scoring column. This set the tone and laid out the winning blueprint for Notre Dame.
Early Jitters:
In the first-ever 12-team Playoff game, both teams exhibited some nerves. The prominent home-field advantage for the Irish presented a loud, electrifying atmosphere. However, that was reflected in the play of both quarterbacks.
More often than Rourke, we’ve seen Riley Leonard struggle this year. Although, Rourke certainly stumbled in trying to navigate an improbable Playoff road win. Besides the two trading early interceptions, both passing games were nearly nonexistent from time to time.
Neither Leonard nor Rourke looked very comfortable behind center. Riley Leonard was often frantic and even caused a delay in the game penalty after a kick return. Things weren’t much better for the Hoosiers as Rourke was not feeding well into the Notre Dame secondary and had a very inefficient start to the game.
The biggest head-scratcher came in the second quarter when the Hoosiers chose to run the ball on a 3rd and 10. For such a high-powered offense, Rourke's inability to establish a rhythm really held back Indiana. But establishing a rhythm was nearly impossible with the relentless Irish defense and a very loud crowd. Notre Dame attacked the interior and feasted off it. The box score would display everything you need to know – 3 sacks, 1o tackles for loss, and only 278 yards of total offense.
In the end, Riley Leonard came alive to uplift the Irish to their final touchdown and seal the deal. The screen passes were a large reason for Leonard’s pass success. Mike Denbrock utilized his speed on the outside with Jordan Faison who was the difference maker, and Riley Leonard’s top target. Faison finished with 7 receptions for 89 yards.
Check-in Rylie Mills and injuries:
It turns out Notre Dame had to pay a heavy price for this win. Some of the Irish’s biggest players on both sides of the ball finished the victory hobbled.
Rylie Mills went down late in the second half with what appeared to be a knee injury. The injury occurred as Mills attempted to make a tackle and his knee banged into his own guy. Mills was helped off the field but was seen walking on his own power on the sideline.
Marcus Freeman spoke on ESPN following the victory. “There is optimism, it sounds like it is not season-ending,” Freeman told Scott Van Pelt. “We just need to get him right for New Orleans”
This is definitely a sigh of relief for Notre Dame which also has injuries pertaining to both Bryce Young and Rocco Spindler.
Preview of Georgia in the Sugar Bowl:
Defense, defense, defense.
This will be won in the trenches. It’s just two heavyweights thuggin it out. Which one will want it more? That remains to be seen. Oh, by the way, no Carson Beck.
January 1, 8:45 PM EST, New Orleans - Mark your calendars