Miami Postgame Thread

[FDNYIrish1]

They outgained us by 10 yards 324-314 and we were going backwards the last drive. This wasn’t the bloodbath some are making it out to be. We turned it over twice and they had the ball 7 more minutes

 

[Irish du Nord]

Chris Ash was getting zero pressure or the players?

We were in man most of the night.

You typed this like Ash simply decided not to get pressure.

Do you think he could’ve blitzed more? The defense seemed to lack pressure that we were able to generate all of last season. Granted Miami’s OLine looked good but it wasn’t the first good OLine we faced

 

[FDNYIrish1]

D should never get tired with the length of TV timeouts to recover.

Have you ever played a sport? Get fucking real man.

 

[Dale]

...they were literally stated to be the best OL in the country by an outlet or two, and top five by most. Jagusah or not, that is not going to be the case.

I think you’re really splitting hairs if some places called them the best and they finish as say, the 4th best. And I’m not a fan of Knapp or Wagner as elite talents as I just posted somewhere else. Miami will likely be the best OL in the country. I didn’t see a single other OL - Clemson, A&M, OSU, LSU, Bama, Texas etc - where I thought man they are for sure weaker than that unit. ND OL is paced for A) growth and B) depth.

 

[NDFAN2008]

Does anyone have the snap counts for the game? I saw Aneyas Williams in there for 1 play thought he would be utilized more this year especially last night considering he was such a threat blocker on 3rd down

 

[IrishinSyria]

Do you think he could’ve blitzed more? The defense seemed to lack pressure that we were able to generate all of last season. Granted Miami’s OLine looked good but it wasn’t the first good OLine we faced

I don’t know it seems like Miami’s built to punish teams that get too aggressive. Dangerous WRs and a QB who has been around for a million years and can see the holes in coverage quickly. Both of Beck’s touchdown throws came despite him being under heavy pressure.

 

[DomerInHappyValley]

I want to be pissed, but it took a circus catch for TD and an interception that took a couple of odd bounces for Miami to beat us at home with a Freshman QB.

Denbrock needs to uncuff the kid and I'm betting if we look at Becks average time to throw it will be less than 4 seconds.
Seemed like he was releasing it as soon as he completed his drop back all game.

 

[mrmcgrail]

Watched the recap of the game and the line wasn't terrible it was more odd play calling and a few just busts but they didn't get blown off the ball like crazy. Jags is a loss though he would make a difference because the right side of the line definitely wasn't strong at all. The d line that's a different story. You can't play hinish and onye together

 

[NorthDakota]

I fell asleep on my living room floor.

 

[calvegas04]

I fell asleep on my living room floor.

Thanks for not shooting anyons

 

[NorthDakota]

Thanks for not shooting anyons

There is still time

 

[Dale]

Do you think he could’ve blitzed more? The defense seemed to lack pressure that we were able to generate all of last season. Granted Miami’s OLine looked good but it wasn’t the first good OLine we faced

They could have I don’t know it changes the outcome. Beck had more incompletions when we blitzed but he also hit a couple big ones, both touchdowns. I just didn’t see a Carson Beck that to me was gonna give that game away. He had answers mostly all night. And really just hanging around worked, they had a chance to win. They forced 3 and outs. The offense had to catch up to the game more than the defense

 

[IrishLax]

I think that is a spot on take.

The OL was fine. He says you cant take too much out of the last series, which isnt unfair. The Irish OL played better in the second half, objectively. I personally think the media and Irish fans got too excited about the returning starters... they arent the best in the country.

The DL wasnt great, but went up against one of the best OL in the country. The DEs got some pressure in the second half, and the DTs just got bodied.

Brian Kelly would use more aggressive words to describe the same thing Freeman saw.

Respectfully, Knapp graded out as a "10" pass blocking grade on PFF which is otherworldly bad. And Lambert was almost as bad too, and the line overall gave up 3 sacks + 2 intentional groundings. 5 "sacks" on 35ish drop back is horrendous.

 

[calvegas04]

There is still time

Save the ammo for the Purdue or Bosie St game

 

[Katzenboyer]

Have a lot of thoughts on this one and want to watch the TV replay before I get too in depth, but here are my overall thoughts from where I was sitting in Hard Rock:

- the offensive playcalling left a lot to be desired. Miami was sitting on the screens to the boundary and we kept going there, and it finally bit us in the ass. That INT was the difference in the game.

- I've defended Knapp being the starter at LT here quite a bit, but he was flat out bad last night. Enough talk about Jagusah being a guard; put him at left tackle and keep him there.

- I don't understand how Jadarian Price runs for 45 yards on our best drive of the first half and then never touches the ball again. That's completely unacceptable.

- I'm very encouraged by Carr. He looked like a dude against a very tough DL.

- I love Hinish, but he's a JAG. Can he see some snaps? Sure. But he's not a starter.

- #10 on Miami, Toney, has been the rave of camp down here for the Canes, and the first half showed you why. But in the second half, they started putting Moore on him and he was very quiet. That was a good adjustment.

- Lots of missed tackles. ND had multiple opportunities to stop guys behind the line/for a short gain, but couldn't get the ballcarrier on the ground. That can't keep happening.

Despite all that, this was a 3 point loss against a Top 10 team on the road where ND had the ball with a minute to go and a chance to tie. I'm not going to panic yet; I trust the staff to identify and fix the issues we saw, but let's not pretend the sky is falling. Sucks to take the L, and I think they get the win with better playcalling, but the problems are fixable and this is still a good football team.

 

[Free Manera]

Knapp was apparently a corpse out there due to the humidity which honestly seems like it shouldn’t happen.

 

[N_D_Fighting_Irish]

Pardon my rant. If too long please just scroll ahead.

I assume all of this has already been said, but I'm absolutely livid that we lost a game with a roster whose supposed only "weakness" or question mark was a young QB, and it wasn't the young QB making any sort of mistake that cost us. It was ultimately the experienced coordinators.

Chris Ash was getting ZERO pressure all day and just insisted on soft zone that let Beck drive right down the field time and time again. He didnt take advantage of his elite corners enough, going man and generating pressure, which was his predecessor's bread and butter. Cleaned it up after the opening drive in 2nd half but holy shit we shouldn't be giving up 27 to anybody with the talent and depth on all 3 levels. Shuler looked lost on that late first half TD and should be ball hawking not playing center field. Pathetic effort on that play from our veteran in that group. Tae Johnson needs more burn, the safety group was dreadfully quiet.

Denbrock went from ultra conservative to letting Carr cook, with some of the worst playcalls in between. Screens to the boundary, on several occasions? On 2nd and 2 after an 8 yard run? We have the best RB room in the nation and our QB, not named Leonard, had more carries than both of them?! Wtf is wrong with you. Faison looked like an absolute weapon early and then just disappeared for a long, long stretch. Pauling? Greathouse? You're telling me we can't find a way to feed our best WR the football.

There is no reason to panic as they showed a lot of fight on the road against a quality opponent, even though it was too little too late. But this game was 100% on our coordinators. We got absolutely owned at the LOS on both sides. That cannot happen, ever. Freeman needs to clean this shit up and hold guys accountable. Lost opportunity.

I don't think we disguised our defensive schemes very well. Combine that with facing an experienced QB in Beck and our inability to win one on one match ups against Miami's massive OL, it was a pick your poison kinda of day for us and we slowly bled to a defeat. The rain and field conditions may have neutralized our DL's quickness and could be the reason for their poor play. I guess we will find out when we face A&M. Our "stops" in the fourth quarter were more Miami playing not to lose. Miami's play calling became extremely conservative.

Your point about the safety group is quite accurate. Both long Miami TD passes were a direct result of poor safety play. Talich drifting purposelessly in the endzone and not reacting. Shuler's passive attempt at an interception. The plays exemplified the reactive nature of defense.

On the offensive side, it seemed our gameplan was reminiscent to Charlies Weis's smoke and mirrors offense. There was no real attempt to establish the run. The screens and dump offs signified our unwillingness to compete in the trenches. We allowed ourselves to get bullied. I do not think Miami's defense is that good and they will be exposed.

I guess the biggest takeaway from the game is the loss of offensive identity.

 

[calvegas04]

 

[sfk324]

Have a lot of thoughts on this one and want to watch the TV replay before I get too in depth, but here are my overall thoughts from where I was sitting in Hard Rock:

- the offensive playcalling left a lot to be desired. Miami was sitting on the screens to the boundary and we kept going there, and it finally bit us in the ass. That INT was the difference in the game.

- I've defended Knapp being the starter at LT here quite a bit, but he was flat out bad last night. Enough talk about Jagusah being a guard; put him at left tackle and keep him there.

- I don't understand how Jadarian Price runs for 45 yards on our best drive of the first half and then never touches the ball again. That's completely unacceptable.

- I'm very encouraged by Carr. He looked like a dude against a very tough DL.

- I love Hinish, but he's a JAG. Can he see some snaps? Sure. But he's not a starter.

- #10 on Miami, Toney, has been the rave of camp down here for the Canes, and the first half showed you why. But in the second half, they started putting Moore on him and he was very quiet. That was a good adjustment.

- Lots of missed tackles. ND had multiple opportunities to stop guys behind the line/for a short gain, but couldn't get the ballcarrier on the ground. That can't keep happening.

Despite all that, this was a 3 point loss against a Top 10 team on the road where ND had the ball with a minute to go and a chance to tie. I'm not going to panic yet; I trust the staff to identify and fix the issues we saw, but let's not pretend the sky is falling. Sucks to take the L, and I think they get the win with better playcalling, but the problems are fixable and this is still a good football team.

Because he fumbled inside the 5 as a result of being a bit lax in securing the ball. The coaching staff has been pretty consistent that putting the ball on the ground in those situations is a cardinal sin.

 

[Dale]

Because he fumbled inside the 5 as a result of being a bit lax in securing the ball. The coaching staff has been pretty consistent that putting the ball on the ground in those situations is a cardinal sin.

It’s why Gilbert caught a TD as well. He was in for Fields post fumble

 

[NumbersGuy0520]

FanDuel, usually pretty sharp, now has us at 50-50 odds to make the playoffs, and 7th best odds to win it all. This tells me if you condition on us actually making the playoffs (which is now a coin flip), we have a very good chance to compete against the best. The season is not lost.

A lot of the sour grapes are because we folded in what was a very winnable game, which is both disappointing but encouraging.

Margin of error is now slim though. If we lose to TA&M it’s near zero. This is the painful reality of the Miami loss. If we drop another one or two, depending on how we do, we will look back at this one as what cost us the season.

 

[Dale]

FanDuel, usually pretty sharp, now has us at 50-50 odds to make the playoffs, and 7th best odds to win it all. This tells me if you condition on us actually making the playoffs (which is now a coin flip), we have a very good chance to compete against the best. The season is not lost.

A lot of the sour grapes are because we folded in what was a very winnable game, which is both disappointing but encouraging.

Margin of error is now slim though. If we lose to TA&M it’s near zero. This is the painful reality of the Miami loss. If we drop another one or two, depending on how we do, we will look back at this one as what cost us the season.

They probably would need USC to be good

 

[calvegas04]

If we opened up with a Purdue or Mac team we might be even more pissed off right now. Even with a win

 

[NumbersGuy0520]

They probably would need USC to be good

Very real shot of this at 10-2. Committee does claim to take into account recent form, and even if USC is mid, I do think 10-2 ND on a 10-win streak gets the nod on average. They would use first year QB growth and the close loss at Miami to justify it. Obviously this all depends on other teams’ records, but I do think we squeak in, on expectation.

The bigger concern at 0-2 IMO is dropping another random game in the season. We should win each, but it’s hard to win them all. I love what Carr showed us and trust he’s it, but he’s still young and I do expect him to make some mistakes this year.

 

[BabyIrish]

The only way we come close to winning a championship this year is if Carr goes bananas. More than likely we won’t be good enough in the trenches come playoff time.

 

[NDRock]

Disappointed for sure. Didn't get catch many breaks, Miami did. Middle 8 decided the game basically, as we did to most teams last year. Thought DL was shit in first half and much better in the second half. OL was poopy. Maybe we see some swapping for AM. CJ is a dog. Greathouse gotta show up in two weeks. Please leave the bubble screens in Florida

Yeah. We kinda got “out Notre Damed”. They won on the LOS, won the middle 8, and won the turnover battle. Credit to them. Let’s fix some stuff and roll the Aggies.

 

[NDVirginia19]

I think an under discussed portion of why the line play was so bad on both sides of the ball is the elements. I think the sloppy field gives more advantage to the bigger bodies, which was clearly Miami. Also, having been at both A&M last year and Miami this year, I would rather have played in the A&M game from a temp/humidity stand point

 

[NDVirginia19]

And as a consolation, out of the four losing teams in the four big games of the weekend, I think we have the most to look forward to positivity wise based on what we saw yesterday

 

[NorthDakota]

And as a consolation, out of the four losing teams in the four big games of the weekend, I think we have the most to look forward to positivity wise based on what we saw yesterday

We also played the worst of the four winning teams.

 

[NDVirginia19]

We also played the worst of the four winning teams.

I think Miami is better than Florida State