Post Game Observations (Navy '14)...

[IRISHDODGER]

Yes, playing Navy sucks. Whatever. Respect tradition, we owe them.]

Golson is the absolute man. I just feel like he plays amazing for 10 plays, then shits the bed for 1 play. Still, he's a top-5 QB easily.

Folston coming into his own is a god send for this offense. Thank god the mass subs are done with.

We need Schmidt and Day for ASU.

We have more talent than the last 4 teams on our schedule. Unfortunately, it will probably come down to TCU or Oregon losing a game.

No way Schmidt will be back for ASU...be lucky to be back for next season. I'm guessing he had his ACL & MCL shredded.

 

[IrishLax]

I simply don't know enough about defense to make a really informed post on this... but my biggest observation is that read + react just does not work against a team executing at the level Navy was unless your DBs can consistently get off blocks and be a factor on the perimeter.

We had some busts after Morgan came into the game, but I'd rather give up a couple big plays selling out for a drive killer than still give up big plays while simultaneously being paper cut to death at 3-4 yards per play on the ground.

So burn the game film because we're never going to play another game like that.

Actual important takeaways not related to option football goofiness:
-Injury bug finally hit. Going to be really interesting to see who is healthy/fresh for next week. Defense is thin.
-Golson became completely gun shy after throwing that pick. Refused to throw into any kind of tight window or over defenders. I understand that, but he needs to play to make plays like he did against FSU.
-Brian Kelly did a horrible job in terms of in-game management. He needs to get his head out of his ass and learn when the math says you don't kick long field goals in high winds when it doesn't change the opponents drive goal conditions. He also absurdly stuck to throwing the ball when Folston was dominant all night and he could've kept feeding him. I'm NEVER in the "run more" camp for the sake of just running more... but before the late 4Q clock grinding Folston was darn near 10 YPC... come on coach... similarly against FSU, Folston had a very impressive drive and then when it go to crunch time in the second half we almost completely abandoned the run.
-Nyles Morgan is so physically more gifted than Joe Schmidt I'm not entirely sure how big the drop off is going to be. I think he can compensate for the mental shortcomings with his abilities, my question is can the rest of the defense?

 

[kmoose]

Overall, I thought the defensive line played well, especially the interior guys. They controlled the middle of the field. We were getting hit on the outside most of the night.

Really? The Navy fullback had 16 carries for 135 yards. That's damn near 8.5 yards per carry. but you think that our D Line controlled the middle of the field?

 

[Grahambo]

No way Schmidt will be back for ASU...be lucky to be back for next season. I'm guessing he had his ACL & MCL shredded.

They had his ankle in a boot, not his knee.

 

[IRISHDODGER]

No way Schmidt will be back for ASU...be lucky to be back for next season. I'm guessing he had his ACL & MCL shredded.

Boston College
BYU
California
Georgia
Georgia Tech
Miami (FL)
Michigan
Ole Miss
Missouri
Oklahoma
Penn State
Pitt
Purdue
Rutgers
Southern Cal
Stanford
Virginia Tech
Washington
West Virginia
and
Wisconsin

Ok, I should have stipulated in the 2000s...not the history of CFB. We all know Navy was decent when they had Staubach & Belino. Are you implying they've beaten the likes of SCum, OU, Stanford, Wisky, Ole MIss, PSU, scUM, Miami and UGA in the BCS era? I haven't looked it up, but I'll wager that's a "no". The other teams I didn't list? ...they've been pretty unimpressive too (Purdont, Pitt, Rutgers, VaTech, UW, WVU, Cal, BYU). So how about since 2000?

 

[returnofthemack]

What? You got beef with Da Kine Coach, brah?

haha I think it might be mostly from us losing to them 3 out of my 4 years and seeing his smug-ass face on the sidelines.

 

[stlnd01]

I can't stand him.

Why? He's a really good coach. Respect the guy.
And we're not going to stop playing Navy nor should we. Maybe try to play them earlier in the season. But playing them is good for the soul, and, let's be honest here, we almost always win.
And, honestly, I can't really read much from the Navy game into how we'll play in other games. It's their Super Bowl and they play a totally different style than anyone else. We won. That's what matters. If Golson doesn't throw that pick at the end of the second quarter we probably win by 20 or more.

 

[IRISHDODGER]

They had his ankle in a boot, not his knee.

Really? That's good news. I assumed it was his knee based on the replay. Not saying his ankle will be ready anytime soon, but he's eligible for a 5th year, no? I like his chances w/ a bum ankle vs knee.

 

[stlnd01]

They had his ankle in a boot, not his knee.

Yeah. Ankle's a lot better than a knee.

 

[no.1IrishFan]

As shitty as this win seems, I'm honestly not that worried. I saw a DC who didn't really have a response for the best triple option attack in the country(nothing new there).
Despite a few missed opportunities, the offense looked good. Golson had the kind of night I was hoping he'd have.

Navy took away BVG's strength, disguising blitz packages.
Definitely didn't help ourselves in the polls tonight, but I think we're fine going foreword.

Back to real football.

 

[ickythump1225]

I'm tired of worrying about "oh man what is the committee going to think?" Or "we need team x to beat team y...but not by too many points, just you know by a semi-decisive margin. That will set up the show down where we need team U to beat them by more than 4 TDs while there is a full moon and then proceed to lose to team Z during a solar equinox."

It's tiring and frankly takes the joy out of the game for me. The committee so far as I can tell is a sham and I don't care what they think. I just want to see Notre Dame win the rest of their games and let the chips fall where they may. They're either going to vote for us or not and I don't care anymore. It's not worth fretting over.

 

[jspags10pg]

Yes, playing Navy sucks. Whatever. Respect tradition, we owe them.]

Golson is the absolute man. I just feel like he plays amazing for 10 plays, then shits the bed for 1 play. Still, he's a top-5 QB easily.

Folston coming into his own is a god send for this offense. Thank god the mass subs are done with.

We need Schmidt and Day for ASU.

We have more talent than the last 4 teams on our schedule. Unfortunately, it will probably come down to TCU or Oregon losing a game.

I bet Kansas State will beat TCU next weekend. Buuuut that doesn't help us any since KState will just take TCU's spot. Then we need WVU or Baylor to beat KState...and if Baylor runs the table they will probably jump us too haha. But I think Baylor still has to play Oklahoma so hopefully the Sooners can give Baylor loss number 2.

Basically...we need a lot to go our way to make it in. Not a good predicament...but it's possible. Just gotta hold up our end and hope for the best amongst the others.

 

[kmoose]

I'm tired of worrying about "oh man what is the committee going to think?" Or "we need team x to beat team y...but not by too many points, just you know by a semi-decisive margin. That will set up the show down where we need team U to beat them by more than 4 TDs while there is a full moon and then proceed to lose to team Z during a solar equinox."

It's tiring and frankly takes the joy out of the game for me. The committee so far as I can tell is a sham and I don't care what they think. I just want to see Notre Dame win the rest of their games and let the chips fall where they may. They're either going to vote for us or not and I don't care anymore. It's not worth fretting over.

^^This^^

 

[Grahambo]

-Nyles Morgan is so physically more gifted than Joe Schmidt I'm not entirely sure how big the drop off is going to be. I think he can compensate for the mental shortcomings with his abilities, my question is can the rest of the defense?

The 'problem' seems to be that Joe makes all the adjustments. Kelly said after Joe left the game, they stuck to one call the rest of the way. Now, its deep enough into the season where guys shouldn't need as much help getting adjusted and that someone like Jaylon should be able to make calls. Him and Joe have practically the same amount of playing time and while Joe is noted for his football IQ, I agree with you that the drop off may be overstated at this point.

It could also become a 'blessing in disguise' in that other guys now have to mentally step up and not rely on Joe doing everything for them. That could help as each guy might have to do just a little more studying.

 

[Black Irish]

Navy may have run all over the Irish, but damn our guys were hitting hard on defense tonight. Making guys pay for running at them.

 

[Grahambo]

Really? That's good news. I assumed it was his knee based on the replay. Not saying his ankle will be ready anytime soon, but he's eligible for a 5th year, no? I like his chances w/ a bum ankle vs knee.

Yeah. Ankle's a lot better than a knee.

Yeah. Not that I know the extent of his injury but the boot/cast was on the ankle and he was on crutches...so...yeah.

 

[Redbar]

1.) Offense played very well.
2.) Not sure why we don't shorten games and crush will with our running game when it is rolling like it was at times tonight.
3.) The defense was exactly what everyone said they wanted and were willing to live with: attacking, aggressive, fast, but at times they gave up plays. If Navy is going to go for it all the time on 4th, it is very hard to keep them from getting 1st downs. That option should average 2.5 yards per play.
4.) Golson was really good as was Folston. Happy for CJ and really impressed and happy for Greer. If there was any doubt about Farley and a fifth year I think he cleared it up nicely.
5.) Would never advocate for dropping Navy, but man do I hate playing this game.
6.) Love this team, anyone bummed about the playoff picture really let their expectations get ahead of them. We are a really good team, maybe things will fall right for us, but no one could be disappointed with how this team is unfolding. Even if the "frozen five" situation had never happened, this year has been an unexpected surprise, next year I see us as a favorite to make the playoffs.

 

[ickythump1225]

3.) The defense was exactly what everyone said they wanted and were willing to live with: attacking, aggressive, fast, but at times they gave up plays. If Navy is going to go for it all the time on 4th, it is very hard to keep them from getting 1st downs. That option should average 2.5 yards per play.

Statistically speaking it's better to go for it on 4th down more often because it gives you 4 downs to get 10 yards rather than 3. You only have to average 2.5 yards a down as you said rather than 3 1/3.

 

[MNIrishman]

Ok, I should have stipulated in the 2000s...not the history of CFB. We all know Navy was decent when they had Staubach & Belino. Are you implying they've beaten the likes of SCum, OU, Stanford, Wisky, Ole MIss, PSU, scUM, Miami and UGA in the BCS era? I haven't looked it up, but I'll wager that's a "no". The other teams I didn't list? ...they've been pretty unimpressive too (Purdont, Pitt, Rutgers, VaTech, UW, WVU, Cal, BYU). So how about since 2000?

Navy rarely plays big teams. However, when they do, they really get up for them. In 2009, Ohio State (final rank #5) beat Navy 31-27, escaping through a returned 2 pt conversion on the final play of the game. Navy finished that season off by beating the hell out of SEC powerhouse Missouri 35-13 in the bowl game. In 2011, South Carolina (final rank #9) needed the last TD of the game to win by 3 at home. In 2014, then #5 Ohio State was behind at the half to the very Navy team we just played.

No, Navy aren't world beaters, but they will PLAY THE HELL OUT OF YOU IF YOU DOUBT THEM. No doubt they would have more wins against power five teams if they played them at a greater frequency. Any time you play Navy, you're probably going to look worse than you actually are against the rest of the field. We're hardly the only ones to struggle a bit against the Middies.

 

[stlnd01]

As shitty as this win seems, I'm honestly not that worried. I saw a DC who didn't really have a response for the best triple option attack in the country(nothing new there).
Despite a few missed opportunities, the offense looked good. Golson had the kind of night I was hoping he'd have.

Navy took away BVG's strength, disguising blitz packages.

It was amazing what happened there at the end, when we knew they had to pass. They had no chance.
Like you said, back to real football. We'll be fine.

 

[kmoose]

Ok, I should have stipulated in the 2000s...not the history of CFB. We all know Navy was decent when they had Staubach & Belino. Are you implying they've beaten the likes of SCum, OU, Stanford, Wisky, Ole MIss, PSU, scUM, Miami and UGA in the BCS era? I haven't looked it up, but I'll wager that's a "no". The other teams I didn't list? ...they've been pretty unimpressive too (Purdont, Pitt, Rutgers, VaTech, UW, WVU, Cal, BYU). So how about since 2000?

Air Force
Stanford
UConn
Missouri

 

[Wild Bill]

2. I think we all need to face the fact that we are not as good as we had hoped that we were. Navy pretty much dominated both Lines of Scrimmage. The offensive line did a good job of run blocking, but pass blocking was lacking. And they didn't do either well, with any consistency. We have good talent, but not the elite talent that can just line up and overwhelm the guy across from him. I think that says even more about the coaching, considering that we have had some great games from both lines.

Really? The Navy fullback had 16 carries for 135 yards. That's damn near 8.5 yards per carry. but you think that our D Line controlled the middle of the field?

Folston ran for 149 but their D line dominated our O line? Really?

Most of Copeland's yardage came on two carries (87 yards). One of those plays busted in the fourth when we had a two score lead and the defense was focused more on not getting beat deep (didn't work out too well). The safeties and linebackers share the blame for the yardage on those two runs. Are they capable of playing better? Sure. They weren't dominated.

 

[kmoose]

Folston ran for 149 but their D line dominated our O line? Really?

Most of Copeland's yardage came on two carries (87 yards). One of those plays busted in the fourth when we had a two score lead and the defense was focused more on not getting beat deep (didn't work out too well). The safeties and linebackers share the blame for the yardage on those two runs. Are they capable of playing better? Sure. They weren't dominated.

If the fullback ripped off two carries that equaled 87 yards, then our D did not control the middle of the field. In thinking further on it, I would say that my impression that our D line was dominated by their O line was based on the fact that we did not get consistent penetration from the front 4 tonight.

 

[Wild Bill]

If the fullback ripped off two carries that equaled 87 yards, then our D did not control the middle of the field. In thinking further on it, I would say that my impression that our D line was dominated by their O line was based on the fact that we did not get consistent penetration from the front 4 tonight.

It's hard to get penetration against an option team. Backside linemen are being cut and are worried about keeping defenders off their knees, not penetration. One playside lineman is usually doubled and its tough to consistently split the double. The other is the unblocked option man. They anticipate his penetration and option off of him.

 

[kmoose]

It's hard to get penetration against an option team. Backside linemen are being cut and are worried about keeping defenders off their knees, not penetration. One playside lineman is usually doubled and its tough to consistently split the double. The other is the unblocked option man. They anticipate his penetration and option off of him.

This is the problem with ND in the last 20 years or so. ND used to have guys on the d line that would almost always beat the guy across from them(when playing the academies), and even the two guys that would double team them. That was my point about the lines. We no longer have the elite guys all the way across both lines, that can simply line up and pound the guy across from them, no matter the blocking technique.

 

[IrishLax]

This is the problem with ND in the last 20 years or so. ND used to have guys on the d line that would almost always beat the guy across from them(when playing the academies), and even the two guys that would double team them. That was my point about the lines. We no longer have the elite guys all the way across both lines, that can simply line up and pound the guy across from them, no matter the blocking technique.

I think a complicating factor is that they were clearly coached to play disciplined and not aggressive/attacking. At someone point we're going to realize that "beat the guy in front of you and hope for a negative play" is a better strategy than "take away the fullback, read and react, stay in your land at all costs."

 

[SoJerseyIrish]

Just got back from the game. It was windy on the field, the flags at the top of the stadium were blowing straight and it looked to be swirling on the field level.
You guys already discussed Joe, he was in an ankle boot at the end of the game on crutches. Didn't see the cause of his injury but I thought they announced him as making the tackle on the play, maybe I was dreaming or drinking too much. N Morgan looked the part and when he saw the play he got to the ball FAST. Hopefully he can get up to speed FAST b/c I would guess Joe is done for the year.
C. Robinson had his ankle heavily taped and seemed to be limping at times.
Jarron Jones was in and out of the lineup as well, his appeared to be an ankle as well, it was taped up at the end of the game.
Cody Riggs is going to give me a heart attack.

I know many are tired of playing Navy and trust me when we were dropping like flies out there I was losing my shit in the stands. But sitting in the stands, seeing the camaraderie, the tradition, the respect, it was powerful. Many ND Fans taking time to thank the Navy Middies and the entire team saluting the Middies in the stands. Frustrating b/c as someone pointed out, we always lose players but there is something special about this matchup, the Navy fans really respect ND and vice versa.......I think it needs to stay. (bash away)

Time to move on and get ready for ASU.

 

[EuropeanDomer]

- Golson was good.

- Folston was having a great day and i do not know why, Kelly suddenly stopped running. Anyway, another day in the office for Folston. He did not look good at the beginning of the season but now he is the feature back.

- WR were ok.

- OL was very good, a lot of running lanes for Folston and protected Golson very well.

- DL with their worst game of the season but i'm not concerned about this. Just a bad day, they are very good.

- I'm honestly not impressed with Jaylon the last three games, not at all. It looks like just a bruised ankle for Schmidt. Onwualu was having the best game of his career imo. Impressed with Martini and his composture against a triple option being a True Freshman. Morgan had a lot of wow plays (both good and bad), he needs to play more.

- Redfield is getting better every week. Shumate has his ups and downs and Tranquill is IMPRESSIVE, he will be a high pick in the NFL draft some day, looks better than London Collins when he was a Freshman. Rough day for Riggs.


Just an ugly game, nothing to worry about. Onto the next.

 

[FLDomer]

One thing that sticks in my head is how in Gods name could our WRs not get open?? It seemed, especially in the second half, Golson was looking and looking only to get flushed because it seemed no one got open.

 

[NDBoiler]

One thing that sticks in my head is how in Gods name could our WRs not get open?? It seemed, especially in the second half, Golson was looking and looking only to get flushed because it seemed no one got open.

It's because Golson is 5'-11" and can't see very well over the 6'-5" line. Either that or he is still very indecisive at times.