[January 2, 2006] FIESTA BOWL #9 Notre Dame (9-2) vs #4 Ohio State (9-2)

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OSU_Fan14

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i just want to say great game to all irish fans. hopefully our universities will pony up and schedule a series between us.
 

BGIF

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KMAC,

You are truly Hurricane caliber.

If I stepped on you, I'd throw my shoe away.
 

irishtexan

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ND got their asses kicked around like a poodle tonite, Wooden will have to go to the nearest Tempe hospital's burn unit because that kid is just straight toast after tonight. UGLY, UGLY, UGLY, game. We could have won that game, the team was missing something tonight.
 
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Zephyr

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KMac151993 said:
We beat no one this year, we got outcoached in this game by a long shot. Ohio State today proved that ND is not a legit Top 10 team. While the officiating and the announcers were bad it still didn't give up the 600+ yards and numerous big plays. 5 sacks given up and 6 dropped passes. Once again we proved we didn't belong.
BULLSEYE! I could not have said it any better...
 

BGIF

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OSU_Fan14 said:
i just want to say great game to all irish fans. hopefully our universities will pony up and schedule a series between us.

Classy post!

The previews about OSU speed were on the mark. Big plays and that goal line stand were the difference.

Maybe next year we can play again, for all the marbles.

Beat Michigan!
 

brucejcarr

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KMac151993 said:
We beat no one this year, we got outcoached in this game by a long shot. Ohio State today proved that ND is not a legit Top 10 team. While the officiating and the announcers were bad it still didn't give up the 600+ yards and numerous big plays. 5 sacks given up and 6 dropped passes. Once again we proved we didn't belong.

You should be banned! Dude you are such a fair weather ND fan. I bet you will personally start fireweis.com. The coaching staff did not lose this game, our lack of team speed did. Tressel has recruited well why he has been @ OSU and our previous staff has not. Charlie took another coches players and showed them how to win.

We need two things to win a bowl game next year, 1)Speed in the secondary and 2)Speed at Linebacker. Weis is starting to put his team together with Speed......Get it. Speed and Athleticism win in college football.
 
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TexasDomer

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Hey, all, let's not prove the point others make, that Notre Dame fans are the most fickle in the world.

If you had asked me at the start of the year if I would take 9-3 and a BCS berth, I would have done it.

OSU took advantage of what we all knew was our weaknesses--our defensive secondary and lack of overall team speed. They used their team speed and their annual "Teddy Ginn is a Stud in the Bowl Game" offense that Tressel seems to save for January.

We were beaten by a better team, but I believe we deserved to be there. Let's keep the faith, and look forward to better things in 2006.

GO IRISH!!
 

jiggafini19

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KMac151993 said:
Ill start the petition to fire Rick Minter. 600+ yards given up and 34 points. This season was no different then the 2000 season. We never beat a good team. Weis has to win me over again because this was terrible.

9 starters return on defense next year. If they can somehow manage to do worse or even stay equal, I might sign this petition. For now, too early. Let him get another year with this group, get his recruits in there and let's see. I challenge anyone to find a silver lining in that performance. Remember Weis went after Golden of Virginia first and had to go with his #2 D Coordinator in Minter when Golden took a pass on the job. Notre Dame gets beat on the same pass plays time and time again. It's like watching replays where only the uniforms change.

Third down was horrible. The pass coverage actually got worse than Stanford. There was no improvement. They took a big step back on secondary defense. Notice how Samardzija and Stovall were taken out of the game? That's coaching. Jamming the receivers up front, getting in their faces. I'll continue to say this: ND has four projects in the secondary. They were all offensive guys in high school, with Zbikowski going both ways.

Polian/Parmalee special teams: Well done. Blocking two field goals was the highlight of the game...and the camera view of Laura Quinn. Is Fitzpatrick still hurt? Another missed XP. Hopefully ND Burkhardt can kick the ball out of the end zone. That helps Ohio State's D a great deal working with 80 yards to defend.

Darius Walker, I want you in my foxhole any day. Ditto on Troy Smith. Troy Smith would be at the top of my preseason Heisman Watch List right now.

Thank you to the seniors.

Another disappointing January. Go Bears.
 
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I thought Weis made some good adjustments on offense in the second half. I can't watch this defense anymore, what a joke, let Walls and McNeil start next year.
 
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Zephyr

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TexasDomer said:
Hey, all, let's not prove the point others make, that Notre Dame fans are the most fickle in the world.
If you had asked me at the start of the year if I would take 9-3 and a BCS berth, I would have done it.
OSU took advantage of what we all knew was our weaknesses--our defensive secondary and lack of overall team speed. They used their team speed and their annual "Teddy Ginn is a Stud in the Bowl Game" offense that Tressel seems to save for January.
We were beaten by a better team, but I believe we deserved to be there. Let's keep the faith, and look forward to better things in 2006.
GO IRISH!!

I apologize for my lack of faith. It's hard to control emotions sometimes. I still Love the Irish, they are still the best in my book.
 

jiggafini19

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irishtexan said:
i literally feel sick, 4 plays 55+ yards....absolutely ridiculous, i am so sick and tired of ND giving up big plays, is it Minters scheme or talent? 8 straight bowl losses....f*cking shit man

Probably a little of both. Notre Dame does not have two "true" corners. Wooden and Richardson were offensive players in high school. Making the change to corner at this level isn't easy.

Scheme plus Willingham's recruiting= work in progress.

They did not improve from Pitt to Ohio State in my opinion. That is a problem.
 

guff

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For starters, I caved in. On the last day of my vacation I blew 3 hours and 45 minutes watching exhibition football. Last time I will do that. I make this vow - I will not watch another non-championship bowl game. EVER. Even ND is playing against 22 naked chicks - I'm not watching.

Has anybody else grown very tired of Laura Quinn? She gets less attractive each time I see her.

I wish someone would have told ND defense that it wasn't touch football.

Oh well - on to 2006
 
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bigdon

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jiggafini19 said:
Probably a little of both. Notre Dame does not have two "true" corners. Wooden and Richardson were offensive players in high school. Making the change to corner at this level isn't easy.
Scheme plus Willingham's recruiting= work in progress.
They did not improve from Pitt to Ohio State in my opinion. That is a problem.
Although I am dissapointed I cannot say I am surprised. All season long we have been talking about the ND defensive backfield and lack of a pass rush. OSU merely looked at the film and did what came easy. We made a mediocre QB look like a Heisman candidate.

Jiggs, you are right about the Willingham recruiting. What has me bothered most is these are the same guys who will be here next year and they aren't going to get any faster. We have recruited some good DB's but we can't expect the to come right in and solve the problem. Experience is essential.

Next year teams will be throwing 50-60 times a game. Why not? It is a proven against ND.

Also don't look for Sam to get those easy TD's next year. OSU showed everybody how to keep him out of the endzone.



Finally we ought to tone down the posts about the grad rates and academic standards of other schools like OSU. Those points, while legitimate, carry NO weight with anyone other than US. That is NEVER mentioned in anywhere except as a footnote. If we want respect we have to beat these teams ON THE FIELD--not in the classroom.
 

wahoo

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That sucked....

That sucked....

Well now we know what we gotta do to reach the top5. We need a defense that can stop someone on 3rd down. It seemed that right after the Bucks converted then a big play happened. We have to get some good cover corners and some fast head-hunting linebackers...
 

KMac151993

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jiggafini19 said:
9 starters return on defense next year. If they can somehow manage to do worse or even stay equal, I might sign this petition. For now, too early. Let him get another year with this group, get his recruits in there and let's see. I challenge anyone to find a silver lining in that performance. Remember Weis went after Golden of Virginia first and had to go with his #2 D Coordinator in Minter when Golden took a pass on the job. Notre Dame gets beat on the same pass plays time and time again. It's like watching replays where only the uniforms change.
Third down was horrible. The pass coverage actually got worse than Stanford. There was no improvement. They took a big step back on secondary defense. Notice how Samardzija and Stovall were taken out of the game? That's coaching. Jamming the receivers up front, getting in their faces. I'll continue to say this: ND has four projects in the secondary. They were all offensive guys in high school, with Zbikowski going both ways.
Polian/Parmalee special teams: Well done. Blocking two field goals was the highlight of the game...and the camera view of Laura Quinn. Is Fitzpatrick still hurt? Another missed XP. Hopefully ND Burkhardt can kick the ball out of the end zone. That helps Ohio State's D a great deal working with 80 yards to defend.
Darius Walker, I want you in my foxhole any day. Ditto on Troy Smith. Troy Smith would be at the top of my preseason Heisman Watch List right now.
Thank you to the seniors.
Another disappointing January. Go Bears.

jiggafini19 at least you can understand what I am trying to say, obviously some are too upset to. I maybe a lil emotional sometimes but I am sick of losing. We haven't won a meaningful game since 1993, we gave up over 600 yards in a BCS bowl game. I just think that Weis and the coaching staff were to partially blame, Weis I am sure will admit it. Being from the Pro game were things are different his game plan would have worked but in the college game, one you needed to score points there after that fumble, if he kicks the field goal then its 10-7 instead Quinn gets sacked and OSU gains the momentum and never gives it back, that was the turning point in the game. I am not at all saying fire Weis and calling for Minter's head is a lil premature but still even the athletes we have can contain plays. Like jiggafini19 said we did not improve one lick from the start to the finish and beat no one along the way, our best quality win was over Navy.
 

KMac151993

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irish9331 said:
Still watch the tape against FSU every once and awhile. Loved KMac

That was a team, well coached, well played, the last time I could walk around proud and with my head up in Jan. and not be laughed at for a blow out in a bowl game or losing season. Can we find an extra year for Kevin? He would lead us to a title.
 

KMac151993

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O I also hope that Fasano goes pro his fumbling problem is out of control, seems like everytime he gets a helmet on his arm he drops the ball. Let John C and Konrad take over for him.

On a second note, I know sometimes it may seem like I am fickle fan or as one put it a Miami fan, but I am one of the biggest ND fans in the world hands down. I just love the Irish so much that it pains me so much to see things like this happen to my team. I get emotional and post things but who doesn't isnt that what the boards are for and the game threads? Outside the game threads I don't make these emotional posts.
 
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nayers

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don't worry boys, it sucked, but help is coming go Irish in 06
 

KMac151993

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That help can not come soon enough, I think after watching tonight this team is 2 to 3 years away from being a national championship caliber team. Give guys like Walls and Frazier some time and they will turn this thing around. Maybe Jones will be the next ND QB to win a bowl game in '08
 

absoluteirish59

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"All season long we have been talking about the ND defensive backfield and lack of a pass rush". -Bigdon
Exactly. That says it all. That is why ND lost. No speed in the LB's or defensive backs. Zibby has good speed but he is always up defending the run. No pass rush. How many 3rd and long did troy smith complete? I count at least 5. Thats ridiculous! I'm not disrespecting him but we made him look like tom brady/mike vick. He had 5-6-7seconds to throw the ball at times. Nobody in college football can cover ginn and holmes for that long. The key play was 3rd&11 with 2+ minutes to go, talley had smith in his grasp and could'nt bring him down and he completed to gonzo for the first down. The ensuing TD by pittman meant shit, the game was won on that 3rd and 11. No doubt in my mind if we stop them there we drive down the field to tie the game at 27 all and go to overtime. But just like in the mich st. game, the usc game, we could'nt make that crucial stop on defense. As someone else wrote though, if you told me 9-3 and a BCS game at the beginning of this year i would have jumped at that. Note to Charlie: Recruit DB's Fast LB's and some pass rushing ends ala justin tuck. Speaking of tuck GO GIANTS!!!
 
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polishdomer

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Disagree with the recruiting...

Disagree with the recruiting...

The biggest problem that I see for the Irish is disruption inside...we lack a DT that can break through and produce a double team from the OL which may open up a pass rush from the outside. I am hoping we sign at least 5 DTs next year...and some LBs as well...
 

absoluteirish59

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polishdomer said:
The biggest problem that I see for the Irish is disruption inside...we lack a DT that can break through and produce a double team from the OL which may open up a pass rush from the outside. I am hoping we sign at least 5 DTs next year...and some LBs as well...
I agree with that but, landri does draw alot of double teams. I think he and zibby are the only guys who can hold there own on defense.
 

Irishkid23

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Speed is what we need

Speed is what we need

KMac151993 said:
That help can not come soon enough, I think after watching tonight this team is 2 to 3 years away from being a national championship caliber team. Give guys like Walls and Frazier some time and they will turn this thing around. Maybe Jones will be the next ND QB to win a bowl game in '08

WE NEED SPEED!!!!

I agree, we are 2 or 3 years away from a NC. We need fast, tough LB's, DB's and DL. We don't have them yet, but we should by '08.

The kids played well this year for what was expected from them. They are just as disgusted as we are. In fact ND will be ridiculed in the media and Weis will be laughed at as the ND savior. They wanted to win, but were outcoached on both sides of the ball, and athletically outclassed; BUT they did not quit.

Our day will come!! Then we can do the laughing.

GO IRISH!
 

BGIF

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bigdon said:
Although I am dissapointed I cannot say I am surprised. All season long we have been talking about the ND defensive backfield and lack of a pass rush. OSU merely looked at the film and did what came easy. We made a mediocre QB look like a Heisman candidate...

Don,
I agree with the pass rush and DB coments but that stuff about Smith being "a mediocre QB" is bogus.

The NCAA STATS rank Smith as #7 in the QB Efficiency at 158.45 just ahead of Matt Leinhart and not far behind #4 Brady Quinn and that was before the Fiesta Bowl.

Smith will finish in the TOP 5. And that's without his rushing ability.

He's far from mediocre.
 

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Fiesta Bowl Post Game Weis Interview 60102<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:eek:ffice:eek:ffice" /><o:p></o:p>
<o:p></o:p>
THE MODERATOR: Turn it over to Coach Weis for opening comment.

COACH WEIS: My captains will be here shortly. Obviously, first of all, I would like to congratulate Ohio State, they were definitely the better team today. We got behind pretty good there in the first half and we rebounded it to get it to a one score game 27-20, but the bottom line is they still came up with the big play and we had a couple third downs there where we got the ball back and just tried to get it to a tie game and get it to overtime. We have to compliment Ohio State and how they played. They definitely were the better team today and deserved to win. There's no reason to sit there and make any second-guesses or complain, because they definitely were the better team

THE MODERATOR: We'll open it up for questions.

Q. Could you talk about how Troy Smith's ability to hurt you guys?

COACH WEIS: It was my biggest fear going into the game. Sure enough, here it is the first third down in the game, and he runs for a third down. That's one of the biggest problems we had in the first half and we couldn't get off the field in the third down. I don't have the stats, but I think it was 5-5 on the third down. We're cranking it up to some 50 percent and they're 100 percent on the third down. That makes a big difference. That was my biggest fear going into the game. He didn't disappoint. His best football is ahead of him. He's definitely on the rise.

Q. I was wondering Darius had a very good first quarter and first half, got shut down on the second half. Can you talk about the Ohio State front four?

COACH WEIS: What I decided at halftime was I was not going to allow the tempo of the game to stay the way it was. It's very important as an offensive coach not to get stagnant. We were lucky for it to be 21-7 in halftime. It very easily could have been a three score game. When it got to be the point where I needed to change the tempo of the game, where you go to a no-huddle mode, that really isn't him getting shut down. It was really a choice of a head coach coming out swinging to try to change the tempo of the game.

Q. Coach, can you talk a little bit about the play of AJ Hawk.

COACH WEIS: It's no mystery that AJ is a great player. He's got a great career ahead of him. He runs all over the field, and I think that he's got a bright future ahead of him. You know, he's a dynamic player who makes plays, and I have a lot of respect for him, and he definitely showed up tonight.

Q. Coach, were you thinking three wasn't going to be enough?

COACH WEIS: That's what I was thinking. In hindsight, I'm not big on second-guessing myself. When we ran the ball on the third down, and with 1 and a half and came up with nothing, we had a play we practiced where we felt pretty good about our chances of either scoring a touchdown or, in that case, not scoring a touchdown. You can sit there, you know, and second-guess and say, well, should I have done this? It's easier in hindsight to say, hey, take the points, but we planned on going into the game and taking a lot of chances. There were some chances that didn't present themselves, and we knew going into the game -- and the team understood the risk, because I explained it to them, this is how we were going to play the game.

Q. Brandon, what are you going to take away from your time on the team and time at the university?

BRANDON HOYTE: I learned a lot. The bottom line is the coaching staff taught me a lot about the game of football. I have great memories with them as well as our team.

Q. Coach, the play where they overruled the incomplete pass, how big was that in the game?

COACH WEIS: It was obviously a big play. There's nothing you can do about it. That's being done with the upstairs. I said, "I hope that guy is right. You better be right." What am I going to sit there and say? They have all the different TV copies. I'm going by how I see it looking up on the big screen. I disagreed with it, but I'm prejudiced. I wanted it to be the other way. That was -- what I said to the official up on the field was "I hope you guys upstairs was right because that changed the whole complexion of the game."

Q. What was it like to line up and play against that team, look across, and see the helmets and the whole entirety of the night?

BRADY QUINN: It was a great experience, something I always looked forward to. I knew it would have to be a bowl game to play against Ohio, but to have an opportunity to play the Buckeyes was big for me. It was better than I hoped.

Q. Coach, you talked about Troy Smith, but overall they had well over 600 yards in total offense. How disappointed were you?

COACH WEIS: I was disappointed in the number of big plays we gave up. There's a number of big plays, you know a lot of times when you look at statistics, if they're nickel and diming you, and getting 5 and 10, you can live with it and say they're physically kicking your butt, but when you give up that many plays that was disappointing. That was one of our big goals going into the game was this was going to be a game getting the big plays. That was disappointing.

Q. Charlie, talk about what happened your adjustments you were trying to make in the second quarter?

COACH WEIS: Like I said, I thought after that first drive, we continued to move the ball. I thought that we got stagnant in the second quarter. That's why at halftime we got ready for no-huddle, and halftime was a long time, that 22 minutes, and I just felt that we got stagnant and it wasn't giving ourselves a chance to change the pace of the game.

Q. Charlie, momentum seems to be a buzz word. How does this moment affect, if at all, the momentum of the program?

COACH WEIS: Obviously, it's a bit rhetorical. When we win the game, it has a much more positive effect than when we lose. I'm not going to say it has no effect at all. I think, a couple minutes ago when the game is third and 9, 3 and 11, you get off the field, and who knows, the game is tied, and then you're playing in overtime. That wasn't the way it turned out. We lost by 14, but if we lose by 21, and we're not competitive, it's different than when you're fighting. You're fighting with two minutes left in the game and you still have a chance to win it.

Q. Brady, your relationship with AJ Hawk to the side, what was it like going against him in the game today, and how inspired was he playing?

BRADY QUINN: Obviously, he's a great player. He showed up today and had a great game. I'm sure he's got a bright future in the NFL. He was playing in the Fiesta Bowl and playing against Notre Dame, he was amped.

Q. You talked about how important winning this game was and how this season would be remembered. What do you do to turn this into a positive off the field?

COACH WEIS: They told me there's two ways you can go after a loss. One way is too sit there and feel sorry for yourselves, or you can take that bitter taste in your mouth and say "I don't want to have that bitter taste again next year." It's either one or the other, which way do you want to go. I told them they can count on me, I'll always be there for them, but they're the ones that have to make that decision because ultimately it really comes down to the players are players, the coach is coach. They know how bad this feels and how important that it is to them. They're the ones that are going to have to make the strides and take it to the next level. Obviously today wasn't good enough.

THE MODERATOR: Thanks guys, appreciate it.
 

jiggafini19

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KMac, you're right about Fasano's buttery fingers. He had issues the second half of the year holding on to the ball.

Also agree about the FG to go up 10-7. I'm not one for kicking long field goals unless you have a stud of a kicker, but it wouldn't have been that long. Fitzpatrick's missed XP lead me to believe the staff knew something we did not about his health. Otherwise, Weis kicks that FG.

Big Don, I agree 100%. For every Maurice Clarett, there are a couple of Craig Krenzels. But the media won't tell us about those guys because the criminal stuff reads better.
 

NDgettysburg

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KMac151993 said:
Being from the Pro game were things are different his game plan would have worked but in the college game, one you needed to score points there after that fumble, if he kicks the field goal then its 10-7 instead Quinn gets sacked and OSU gains the momentum and never gives it back, that was the turning point in the game.
Bingo....

But you know, I just had a bad feeling when Samardzija dropped the opening bomb....just seemed like a very bad omen for him to drop what was a sure TD.
 

KMac151993

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Jigga if only I could add to your rep. more often. I still think you try the FG because then you keep the momentum going. To me the worst thing that could happen did, even a missed FG still doesn't sting as bad as a sack to loose 8 yards on 4th down. I wonder why on 3rd we didn't try the fade to Stovall, in fact we never tried it.
 
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