Concerns About the Stanford Game?

[NDinL.A.]

One of the things that makes any forum great is healthy debate, with people bringing up different points of view. Amid the euphoria of this great Notre Dame win/season, I'm reading almost all positive comments on different ND boards about our team (I can't begin to tell you how awesome it is to work somewhere where there are tons of hardcore ND fans, especially after an ***-kicking like Saturday night).

But what about the concerns? To avoid one big circle jerk about how great ND is (and really, how fun is this???), does anybody have any concerns about the team, but more specifically, the Stanford game? The cynic in me definitely has some concerns, so I'll go first:

1. College Gameday is here. I keep reading and hearing about what a circus it is. I'm concerned about our boys' ability to stay focused at the task at hand. These are very young men, with healthy egos. So far so good, but with every big win the hype machine gets bigger, with more and more people telling them how great they are. BK gotta keep 'em focused.

(And I'll counter your counterargument with that it's easier said than done. EVERY coach tries to keep their teams focused, and then North Carolina State happens, or a Georgia/South Carolina game happens. It's tough!)

2. The running game and the offense as a whole. Our only good games were against really bad defenses. Can Everett keep his confidence riding high against a really good front 7? Can CW maintain his stellar play from last week (in other words, will they give him the damn ball?) And can the o-line dominate or at least nuetralize a good d-line? That concerns me.

3. Man, I was shocked how well Miami did against our front 3/4 for it seemed like most of the first half. It didn't seem like we could even sniff the Miami QB. But I haven't watched the game again yet, so I don't know. Am I wrong? Is it a concern?

We gave up 3 friggin points (shoulda been 13, fg missed and 2 dropped TDs on the opening drive, but still), so I'm thinking it shouldn't be a concern.

4. Punting. C'mon Turk!!!! We're not always going to play lights out (nobody does), and we'll need field position with our stifling defense.

5. Golson and fumbling. He had major fumbling issues per almost everyone that was at practice last year, and he had a hard time with the snaps in the B&G game. And this year, not playing in every quarter of the 5 games, he has at least 2 if not 3 fumbles (only one lost). Every time he scrambles, I get scared cause he holds the ball so far from his body at times. Tuck it young Everett!

Like I said, wonderful season so far. I can't even believe how much fun I'm having watching these guys play. But that doesn't mean we can't talk about all that ails the team, because no team is perfect (well, friggin Bama looks almost perfect). Personally, although many have us undefeated at the end of the year (at least from what I've seen on Irish boards today, I still have us losing 2 games but making a BCS game. Oklahoma and USC on the road. Hope to God that I'm wrong, and USC is looking really vulnerable, but both those teams pass the ball really well and they do scare me.

What say you guys? (And again, if I'm off say so!!!)

 

[Buster Bluth]

I don't think you're off. I'm terrified of Stanford coming into down super jacked and ready to kick ***.

If Notre Dame plays their best game, they will win. But they are not outside the margin of error and that should make everyone nervous. It's that simple. We haven't beaten this team since 2008. 2008! The Irish need to play with determination and when Stanford comes out swinging they absolutely knock their teeth in.

 

[blueNDgold44]

We hadnt beat scUM in 3 years and they still have there best player unlike the Trees

 

[tadman95]

I think you're concerns are legit but you know what? There's not a team out there that doesn't have issues. I think Alabama, Oregon, maybe South Carolina are the cream of the crop.

Other schools like us have their warts but they, like us are getting better every week.

Stanford is going to be a good test. Golson and the offense will have to show up against a good defense that can throw a lot of looks at a young QB. Miami was a good confidence booster but the offense has to keep progressing.

I like having the feeling that we have a chance on every play ala Golson, Wood, Eifert, Atkinson, Jones.

 

[tadman95]

I don't think you're off. I'm terrified of Stanford coming into down super jacked and ready to kick ***.

If Notre Dame plays their best game, they will win. But they are not outside the margin of error and that should make everyone nervous. It's that simple. We haven't beaten this team since 2008. 2008! The Irish need to play with determination and when Stanford comes out swinging they absolutely knock their teeth in.

That's pretty good motivation, a reason to stay focused.

 

[IrishLax]

1. Agreed. DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE! DON'T GET INFECTED WITH SUCCESS! Moderately concerned.

2. Spread them out and run some misdirection. DO NOT TRY TO OUT PHYSICAL THEM. Not concerned unless Kelly comes in with a stupid gameplan.

3. I think the fact that we only brought 3/4 and were so vanilla is what caused that. Need to mix things up... once we started doing that we got some pressure. I also think we were going with the Denard gameplan of "keep him in the pocket." Slightly concerned.

4. Our special teams are terrifying at times. We CANNOT lose the field position battle all game like we did against Purdue... it got too hard to drive the ball 80+ yards every time. Moderately concerned.

5. Turnovers and turnovers... we'll see what happens. Slightly concerned.

 

[rikkitikki08]

Stanford will be the toughest game yet this season, i think we still win but its going to be tight going into the fourth quarter

 

[johnnykillz]

We hadnt beat scUM in 3 years and they still have there best player unlike the Trees

Yup.

 

[NDHoosier101]

Turk and Kyle Brenza (not sure how to spell his last name) concern me. Turk was a rockstar in the Purdue game, one of the reasons we were able to pull that game out. But he's back to ole' 30 yard punt Turk we've all gotten used to the past couple seasons, I don't know what's up with that. Also Brenza has been great on kickoffs since he has been back, but he wasn't getting his kicks into the endzone against Miami and that was scaring me. With a tough defense we have to make teams earn their points, instead of letting them return a kickoff. Even though our kickoff coverage has been good enough so far, I still hold my breath everytime he doesn't at least kick it a yard or two deep into the endzone.

 

[phork]

Still not sure what to make of this team. Crazy year in CFB. This is the first legitimate team, meaning offense and defense, we'll face this year. I am fine with the D, the O is my concern. Kelly has continually said he isn't showing much because he hasn't had to. Not sure how much I believe that.

With every W another week goes by with EG learning the offense under fire. Hopefully he has enough under his belt to manage the offense and the D slams the door shut, again.

And yah, the punting game. There is that. How in the hell do you only punt it 30 yards? Your only job is to kick a ball. You could practice that with a pal every day for 3 hours outside of regular practice...

 

[Sherm Sticky]

1. Agreed. DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE! DON'T GET INFECTED WITH SUCCESS! Moderately concerned.

2. Spread them out and run some misdirection. DO NOT TRY TO OUT PHYSICAL THEM. Not concerned unless Kelly comes in with a stupid gameplan.

3. I think the fact that we only brought 3/4 and were so vanilla is what caused that. Need to mix things up... once we started doing that we got some pressure. I also think we were going with the Denard gameplan of "keep him in the pocket." Slightly concerned.

4. Our special teams are terrifying at times. We CANNOT lose the field position battle all game like we did against Purdue... it got too hard to drive the ball 80+ yards every time. Moderately concerned.

5. Turnovers and turnovers... we'll see what happens. Slightly concerned.

I agree...don't try to out physical Stanford. ND needs to spread them out and use our athletes. Don't run at them, run outside, use misdirection.

 

[Sherm Sticky]

Turk and Nick Tauch (not sure how to spell his last name) concern me. Turk was a rockstar in the Purdue game, one of the reasons we were able to pull that game out. But he's back to ole' 30 yard punt Turk we've all gotten used to the past couple seasons, I don't know what's up with that. Also Tauch has been great on kickoffs since he has been back, but he wasn't getting his kicks into the endzone against Miami and that was scaring me. With a tough defense we have to make teams earn their points, instead of letting them return a kickoff. Even though our kickoff coverage has been good enough so far, I still hold my breath everytime he doesn't at least kick it a yard or two deep into the endzone.

Brindza not Tauch you are talking about.

 

[Downinthebend]

Why doesn't Golson play the whole game in blowout situations, he needs all the reps he can get.

 

[Sherm Sticky]

Why doesn't Golson play the whole game in blowout situations, he needs all the reps he can get.

You would rather risk him getting injured?

 

[clashmore_jon]

I was a student last time gameday was here, and let me just say it really didn't make that much difference. The season was going well and everyone was psyched up. Campus started picking up on Tuesdays at about noon regardless of gameday or no gameday week. Really it only made a difference to students who gameplanned to be uP at 7. Anyway, point is that gameday just sorta was there along with everything else. Shouldn't affect players much.

 

[NDdomer2]

5. Golson and fumbling. He had major fumbling issues per almost everyone that was at practice last year, and he had a hard time with the snaps in the B&G game. And this year, not playing in every quarter of the 5 games, he has at least 2 if not 3 fumbles (only one lost). Every time he scrambles, I get scared cause he holds the ball so far from his body at times. Tuck it young Everett!

Hate to say it, but I have absolutely no idea why you brought that up, considering it was LAST YEAR...

Hmmm.....

 

[NDHoosier101]

Brindza not Tauch you are talking about.

Doh. Thanks.

 

[phork]

ND -9 fyi.

 

[greyhammer90]

We don't show up.


That is all.

 

[gkIrish]

ND -9 fyi.

This is what concerns me most. Great bulletin board material for the trees

 

[UmphreakDomer]

im nervous about the right side of our line.

im nervous of carlo and fox in coverage against a 6'8" TE.

it isnt luck, but the guy can play some QB.

if we play the way we did against MSU, this should work out well for us. and this will be the mold for USC (minus wood and lee).

 

[NDBoiler]

On Point #3, I would say that the reason you saw that is becasue for the most part, there were no blitzes in the first half, just rushing 3 or 4 guys typically. So in that respect, i don't think it is much of a concern. The Miami quarterback seemed somewhat mobile in the pocket too. When they did blitz, you saw some hurried throws at times. I think the defensive strategy against Miami was similar to Michigan, basically just keep everything in front of the safeties.

 

[irishog77]

I agree with much in here. How awesome is that ND hasn't trailed for one second this year! That's great, but what happens if they get down 10 or 14 early?? Which brings me to another point-- turnovers. Man the team has been great in that department so far this year. Part of me, however, has a hard time believing they can go from a team that was so turnover prone last year, to know knowing how to keep a hold of it for 60 minutes. Special teams concerns me as well. We all know the punt return situation. And yes, the punting itself has been, inconsistent, shall we say? Luckily it hasn't really mattered much. This is one of those areas that you don't really notice or think matters much...until it costs you a game. Don't you reach a point, also, where if ___ amount of plays aren't available to you offensively (whether it's because of lacking personnel to preform the plays, lack of execution in practice, lack of understanding, or whatever the case may be), they really aren't in the playbook? I'm still concerened about our LB's in space (or more specifically, in coverage). A good showing against Stanford is needed to appease me. ND ain't runnin' for anywhere near 376 yards against SU (I think we can ALL agree on that...but also, not that they necessarily have to...against them or anybody). Will they be able to reach 200 though? 175? 150? Whatever the rushing yardage is, does the passing game have enough from Golson, the WR's, and the TE's to carry the team, if need be?

 

[UmphreakDomer]

5. Golson and fumbling. He had major fumbling issues per almost everyone that was at practice last year, and he had a hard time with the snaps in the B&G game. And this year, not playing in every quarter of the 5 games, he has at least 2 if not 3 fumbles (only one lost). Every time he scrambles, I get scared cause he holds the ball so far from his body at times. Tuck it young Everett!

i agree with all of this. i will point out though, that his first "drop" that was called down this past game, wouldve been a TD and still a ground caused fumble. but, yes, youre correct. he carries the ball too far and away from his body.

 

[ND NYC]

this game will be won and lost for us "between kellys ears" on the offensive side of the ball.

pray to god he doesnt pull a usc 2011, tulsa 2010 etc.

 

[Old Man Mike]

Us: 1]. no issue with reading newspaper clippings. This is a team with plenty of veterans who haven't quite "done it" yet. They know that they have nothing yet to brag about. Plus there's Manti. Every day is on the job. Plus there's Kelly. He's "programmed" the team with enjoy it today then back at the next bunch on monday. And there's Everett. He knows he has a long way still to go, as does almost every position group.

2]. Our offense: We get better all the time [factoring in the ascended quality of the early B1G opponents on D compared to USN]. We get better because Coach is seeing what part of the playbook these guys can really run and what they're not so good at. Kelly's system beats almost any defense short of the pros if the players are solid. The Niklas roadgrader discovery last game was major. The Everett roadrunner near-breakout was also major. This is a team in serious evolution, not marginal tweaking improvement.

3]. Our defense: We forget the level of talent the Miami O-Line has [plus they're two-deep]. Asking our bunch to pressure with just three and four was asking too much. Bobby-the-D will figure it out. Give him a couple of series, maybe even a quarter, and he will figure it out. Also our guys [both sides] are wearing people out. Kelly said a long time ago that we would fight the good teams like heavyweight slugfests, and win the 4th quarters decisively. AND, each week our young studs come closer and closer to turning the ball around to our offense. Heck even Carlo made a few decent covers.

Them: 1]. even their own papers are calling them overrated and not much more than an average team. I think that's too harsh, but they seem to be "good" not great nor even very good yet. But what they have is some veteran leadership who are used to winning. That's why they'll battle to the death. On the other hand, they do not come to Notre Dame with the incentive of previous years, nor the confidence of having Luck, nor anything like what our guys have who'd like to stop losing to them.

2]. their offense: Nunes was fabulous against a really lousy D. He has not been that great consistently. The vaunted Stanford running game has also been inconsistent. They still have very dangerous TEs, but I'll bet Bobby has a plan. WE after all are TE multiple too.

3]. their defense: Richrod embarrassed them --- well OK, he'll embarrass a lot of people --- but the fact that he scored nearly at will, shows that this Stanford team is not the one we've seen the last few years. Their CBs are apparently very suspect, and they seem to have lost their best one during the AZ game. Whether he'll be ready for our game, I don't know. And any dings to corners can have lasting slowing effects.

All that said, we SHOULD win in another thugfest. Stanford in this holistic sense behaves like MSU --- a bunch of angry not-very-civilized smashers who think they're tougher than you and will shove that attitude up your nose. We should win this game close. I am almost willing to go along with one of their writers who said "First one to 20 wins".

 

[Grahambo]

I worry the team will let confidence turn into 'swag'. I hate that word. To me, it represents cockiness and an over the line type of mentality. I believe it causes one to believe to much into something when he shouldn't. In turn, that causes laziness and a reliance on an ability that, maybe good, is not good enough to survive on its own.

I believe Manti embodies the perfect amount of confidence. It's strong, it gets passed around the entire team, and you can smell it through the television set.

All in all, its pretty much what a lot of people are saying when they say 'dont' buy into the hype'. Just my expanded thoughts on that.

Stanford doesn't do anything this season that scares me unlike the past few years with Andrew Luck and that incredible defense with Harbaugh. I view it in the same light I did with MSU because I believe they are very similar.

Game plan might look the same. Shut down the run, make a young QB beat you in a hostile environment and allow the athleticism of the offense take you.

 

[BobD]

Concerns about the Stanford game?

Only a fool would not be concerned. They're a very capable team and it'll take our best to beat them.

They're coming to Notre Dame determined to take away this great unbeaten feeling we all have right now.

They've already lost one game, they NEED to beat us.

Planning - Coach Kelly and Diaco will have the team prepared with a good game plan.

Execution - Our team has proven they're very capable of executing the game plans and managing the ball this year.

Focus and Determination - I think this is where the game will be won.....or lost.

 

[Bluto]

I was kind of surprised we had no sacks against Miami too. However, if Nunes finds himself in the same situation as the QB from Miami (running from the pressure on multiple occasions) we probably get three or four sacks on the night.

 

[tommyIRISH23]

My concerns

1. Moving the ball consistantly. I don't think we need to score 41 points, but we have to move the ball to get our defense some rest because Stanford will beat up our defensive line with Taylor. The zone read could end up saving this game.

2. Our recievers have to get open quickly and cleanly.

3. Our LB's covering TE's.

4. My biggest worry. Golsons backside. I imagine pressure with be come from Stanfords outside LB's and we can bet Golic will get beat more than a few times. I'd roll Golson out fairly deep towards Golic's side fairly often. Golson has to be decisive and get rid of the ball quickly. I can see him getting blasted in back and fumbling if he holds onto the ball too long.