Getting the job done.

Over the last 36 hours I have had many people come up to me so happy and impressed that the Irish beat Navy 56-14.  That’s what they’re supposed to do.  With seven rushing touchdowns and 182 yards on the ground, Notre Dame dominated the Midshipmen’s rushing defense in traditional impressive manner.  However, size, speed, and blue chip recruiting talent overwhelmingly favored the Irish and should not have surprised anyone, even if Navy has enjoyed victory over the Irish in the last two years.  Even though Notre Dame had one passing touchdown (one compared to seven rushing), they out passed Navy 260 yards to 33.  With that being said, Navy is a good team compared to their record.  Prior to playing Notre Dame, they had lost four games by a total of eight points.

Not to say I was disappointed, I was happy with the game overall and there were highlights to be sure.  None more impressive than when after the game the Midshipmen stood behind the Irish players while they sang the alma mater to the student section, then the Navy players headed to their students in the stands to sing the Irish players stood behind them in support.  Why? Out of respect.

On the field, here were the highlights to be happy about and build upon as the season progresses.  There were a lot of numbers that stood out on the stat sheet but the first one that hits me was that the Irish offense was 7 for 7 in red zone scoring (all touchdowns).  This shows the ability for Notre Dame to finish drives strong.  On the defensive side of the ball, Notre Dame held Navy to 196 yards rushing, which under normal circumstances would be a good day, but against a team that averages over 300 yards a game on the ground, it’s a great accomplishment.

Manti Te’o led the Irish with 13 tackles while playing for his “bros.”  There was an obvious issue stemming from Brian Kelly’s comments in the media about the buy-in from the players he recruited versus those he inherited, but it wasn’t evident on the field Saturday.

I have finally come to terms with Michael Floyd and have made a full confession that I am a Floyd fan.  For years I have been hesitant to support him based on my perception of his non-football persona.  On Saturday I was willing to move forward.  He is immature and I can deal with that.  He is not a bad person, and as a matter of fact I think he is a good kid.  Sure, he is being a puppet and regurgitating what he is being told to say, but he is willing to do it because he wants to say the right things.