What to expect.

What to expect, watch to watch for and what to hope for.

Irish fans should expect a win at the very least, but how it happens remains to be seen.  I expect that the best match up to watch this Saturday will be between Maryland’s offensive line and Notre Dame’s defensive line.  The Irish faithful should not have to hope for but need to hope for its front seven win that battle (especially the running game), because if they do, everything else should easily go Notre Dame’s way.

Although upperclassmen with injury issues such as Manti Te’o and Ethan Johnson are expected to play, their time should be limited.  This is Johnson’s first game in a while and he does need to get in some “knock off the rust” reps.  I look for underclassmen to get in some meaningful work and have a chance to shine.  What Notre Dame can’t have and what we all need to hope for is no more injuries. 

I expect that at 2-7 and becoming bowl eligibility out of Maryland’s future, playing the Irish at Fed Ex field may be enough motivation to get the Terps fired up enough to get and keep them motivated.  I hope to watch the Irish load up on highlight film plays and statistical numbers for the season.

Maryland

At 2-7 and riding a five game losing streak, Maryland is not exactly a major obstacle in the Irish picking up a win this Saturday. Although it’s technically a home game for the Irish, they will be playing at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland.  As you look over the Terrapins’ depth chart, you can see it’s peppered with freshmen, sophomores and juniors in starting and key roles. 

Taking into consideration how banged up the Irish are, especially on defense, I would expect to see a number of regular starters on the sidelines this weekend not in pads.  I can live and the Irish can win with giving a week off to Lynch, Hounshell, and Te'o.  Offensively, since Braxton Cave needs to sit out, Golic has proven he can handle the workload. 

This is the kind of match-up that Notre Dame may not need to rest guys, but it is an opportunity to get some of the young guys some game reps and experience.  George Atkinson III and even Cam McDaniel should get some meaningful touches in this game.  In no way should we play any freshmen that we have not used yet and burn eligibility.  There are a number of sophomores that have no eligibility to save and could use the reps.  These players include Luke Massa who was converted to wide receiver.  This game could also allow Kelly to see more of guys like Collinsworth at receiver and Hendrix at quarterback.

Of course, it would be horrible if the Irish stumble this weekend.  With the hype around the uniforms for this game as part of Shamrock Series, I don’t want a repeat of USC where the best part of the game was the helmets.  Two outcomes will be satisfactory this Saturday.  First, the Irish totally dominate Maryland from start to finish.  Along the way Wood and Gray each have 100+ yard rushing games, and Floyd has a career game.  On defense, Notre Dame racks up 3 sacks, two interceptions and scores a touchdown off a turnover.  Special teams also has at least one touchdown.  Second, Notre Dame works in their second and third teams for most of the game, young guys get playing time and the Irish win if even by only 7 to 10 points.

Wake Forest Review

Overall, Saturday’s game against Wake Forest was a good win for the Irish.  The Demon Deacons are a solid team and beating an ACC team on the road is not a huge statement, but it’s still a solid win.  The win officially makes Notre Dame bowl eligible. Brian Kelly said several times Saturday night after the game “we did not beat ourselves.”   That doesn’t mean there was perfect execution. There were mistakes to be sure but none that were fatal. 

Senior center Mike Golic Jr. had to come in for Braxton Cave and got some solid playing time and performed well.  The player combination that really stood out was the front three on defense with Lynch, Nix and Tuitt.  To think we could see them together for the next three years is a great prospect for Irish fans.

I liked Kelly’s fire on Saturday.  He went after players and referees as deserved.  During his press conference after the game there was a discussion about the success of the running game a reporter asked a question about the deficiencies and Kelly took him to task.

"I mean is there a negative to everything? Is there a negative?" Kelly said. "We just won a football game, on the road. I mean, what kind of, really, what kind of question, what do you want me to say? What's the answer? We won 24 to 17 against a good football team, and you want to know what's wrong with the passing game. You know what's wrong with it? Um, the coach doesn't call good plays. How's that? There's nothing wrong with it. We're fine. We just won a good game."

Although I think that Notre Dame could have and should have played better against the run, they stepped up when they needed to.  The Irish shut out Wake Forest in the second half despite the Demon Deacons being in or on the Irish 10 yard line twice and walking away with zilch.

Offensively the Irish did well with Gray accumulating 92 yards (4.8 yards a carry) and Wood with 87 yards (averaging 6.2 yards per rush).  I am still waiting for Gray to get a 100-yard game this season and I hold Brian Kelly accountable for getting that done.  Rees did what he needed to do to win by going 14 for 23 with a touchdown and two interceptions.  Thankfully, the interceptions did not cost them the game.  The receiving corps duties were fairly shared between six players (including running back Wood), with Michael Floyd leading the way with five catches.

Special teams were led by kickoff returns (as they have all year).  Collinsworth and Atkinson both had two returns each; Collinsworth’s long went for 41 yards while Atkinson’s long was 32.  As for kickoffs and field goals, both were sufficient with Ruffer making his only attempt of the day for a 44 yard score while Brindza kicked off five times averaging nearly 70 yards per kick.  Even the punting game was respectable, with Turk kicking three times for an average of 41.3 yards per kick. 

Assuming the Irish win their next two games over Maryland and Boston College and lose to Stanford, is an 8- 4 record a good enough regular season improvement over last year’s finish of 7-5?  I think the bowl game scenario becomes much more important in judging the success of the season.  What bowl, against who and what kind of win?  Some early predictions include a matchup with Florida State in the Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando.  At 6-3 and 4-2 in the ACC the Seminoles would be a respectable opponent.  Florida State has an explosive offense led by its passing game averaging over 292 passing yards per game.