I mentioned, earlier this week, that I would be paying close attention not to who was successful in this game, but to who wasn't. Based on that, here are my observations:
1. The defensive line got almost NO penetration all day. Penetration is HUGE to disrupting the option offense. It stuffs the fullback if he gets the ball, it forces the QB to pitch early, and it can even account for some turnovers. I know that Navy is a well disciplined team, but our D linemen should have been able to blow them off the ball and into the backfield.
2. Our linebackers are terrible. The two freshmen are playing well, for true freshmen. But they still aren't anywhere near GOOD college linebackers. Crum makes a lot of tackles, but 97% of them are five yards downfield.
3. Sharpley showed why he is not a starting QB in D-IA football....his accuracy is bad, he doesn't feel pressure well, he doesn't protect the ball in the pocket, and the one run that got blown up in the backfield was entirely his fault. In watching the replay, it's obvious that the D-lineman was left free, to be picked up by the TE coming in motion. Sharpley called the snap count too early, and the TE couldn't get there in time, leaving the guy completely free.
4. Even taking the two 4th down decisions out of the equation, the Irish were outcoached. Especially in the OT periods. In the third overtime, the Midshipmen came out throwing, and ND was in no way prepared for either the TD pass, or the 2 pt. conversion pass.