Tied up neat in a bow.

The Champs Sports Bowl was the antitheses of the Notre Dame Football Season.  Glimpses of greatness, enough to cheer and hope for yet disappointing again.  When a child screws up do you blame the child or the parent?  I look back at the offensive play calling and am bewildered.  With Kelly’s offensive coordinator gone to begin his reign as head coach at UMass he took over directing the offensive play calling.  Offensive play calling often left me asking why. 

During Notre dame’s first drive the offense looked solid with Wood rushing for 4 yards at a time decent passes and getting to the Florida State 10 yard line.  This was the exact time Andrew Hendrix should have been inserted, instead the Florida State gets a 5 yard offside’s penalty, Wood rushes for 1 yard to the Seminoles 4 yard line setting up first and goal.  Instead of passing it in behind and experienced offensive line the Irish call pass and Rees throws into heavy coverage for an interception.

Although Motta would recover a fumble for a touchdown forced by Manti on the next play I think the writing was on the wall.  Going into the half with a 14 – 0 lead felt good with eh pace of the game favoring the Irish but like all season long when would the shoe drop?  With three interceptions and a missed field goal attempt a close game lose would be inevitable.  Hendrix did not get the reps Kelly had talked about leading up to the game: Rees went 16 for 27 passing for 163 yards with 2 interceptions, and 1 touchdown (all Michael Floyd) whereas Hendrix was 3 for 8 passing for 24 yards and 1 interception.   As for the quarterback rushing game, a so called integral part of Brian Kelly’s spread offense Rees rushed 4 times for a negative 28 yards and Hendrix had 4 rushes for 26 yards.

For two and a half quarters the defense looked like the 86’ Bears or the Steel Curtain of Pittsburg in the 70’s.  5 sacks, 7 tackles for a loss, and a forced fumble for a touchdown made the defense look has if it would be the hero of this bowl game.  There seemed to be only one adjustment made at halftime by the Irish, they stopped blitzing and frustrating the Florida State quarterback and his offense.  Just like many games this season and the season itself this game started out with great expectations and potential but sell short and left fans felling cheated.

Beating Florida State

For the Irish to beat Florida State, the plan on the surface is pretty simple - score more points.  To do that, there are several things that are going to have to happen.  Let’s start by limiting the points that the Seminoles put on the board.  The Florida State offense is like the team as a whole - athletic, talented and fast.  It starts and finishes with their 6’5” redshirt junior quarterback E.J. Manuel.  Manuel has great potential because of his physical abilities, but a shoulder injury to Manuel and injuries to other supportive offensive players around him have hamstringed his abilities.  Florida State also lacks a high level running game; it’s enough to keep most defenses honest but not a huge threat.  Notre Dame’s front seven should and need to control the run and force Manuel to rise up to his potential working with his athletic and speedy receivers (although not overly dominant).  The Seminoles will spread the passing attack to multiple receivers who again are not super stars and are also banged up. Junior Willie Haulstead (a leading receiver for FSU last season) has been out all season due to a concussion and senior Bert Reed is hobbled with a hamstring injury.  The Florida State receiving corps will be made up of a junior, along with couple of freshmen and sophomores.  They may be young but they are explosive and talented (averaging 15.6 yards a catch).

At running back Florida State is in distress.  The Seminoles started the season with Ty Jones who did not play well enough to keep his starting role and Jermaine Thomas who also lost time due to ineffectiveness (not that it matters since Thomas is academically ineligible for the game).  Currently Florida State’s running game is being led by two freshmen, Devonta Freeman and James Wilder Jr., both decent and with potential but I’d take Cierre Wood any day.  I like the Irish defense winning the battle over the Florida State offense.  In what should be a close game, the Irish defense would help the effort by throwing in a turnover, ensuring good field position and stopping the Florida State offense on crucial third downs.  This might very well make the difference between a Notre Dame win and a loss.  Florida State’s offensive line is banged up and young, opening up the opportunity for sacks and hopefully turnovers.  They are, however, BIG across the board. 

Offensively, the Irish will face a defense that is athletic, talented and fast.  The O-line must not only protect the quarterback (whomever it may be at the time), but must get Cierre Wood a 100-yard rushing game.  The quarterbacks need to rotate based on the situation, not based on injury or poor play of the other.  Florida State gets after it on defense; they are aggressive and can get the ball stopped not only at the line of scrimmage but often behind it.  The Notre Dame offense must limit mistakes, this means fa;se starts, fumbles and interceptions.

Overall, this should be a close game.  Do not expect a repeat of last year where Miami was unmotivated.  The Seminoles, just like the Irish, have pride on the line and an opportunity to salvage a relatively disappointing season.  I see Florida State being able to take advantage of offensive mistakes.  The Irish need to play a solid game - no need for anything new - Wood runs, Eifiert and Floyd catch, D-line stuffs the run and Manti tackles.  This should be a very physical game with a lot of emotion, despite not being  a BCS bowl.  This does, however, have some recruiting implications for the uncommitted and undecided.

I read in an article this week “the first team to 20 points should win.”  That may be right.

Champs Sports Bowl

A Notre Dame win secures a third straight Bowl game win after a nine bowl game losing streak.   It would also ensure one more win overall and one less loss than last year’s 8-5 record after beating the Miami Hurricanes.   The match up against the Seminoles may not be the traditional rivalry game as last year’s game against the Hurricanes was, but it’s about as good as we could get for not going to a BCS Bowl.  The Florida State tradition and lore does not match on any level to that of the Irish, but during the mid-80’s to the mid-90’s, the Seminoles were considered the gold standard of college football, and in a state with programs such as the Miami Hurricanes and the Florida Gators, that is impressive.  Perhaps the greatest and most memorable game against Florida State occurred in the fall of 1993 when the Seminoles came into South Bend as the #1 ranked team in the nation and although the Irish were ranked #2, Florida State was a huge favorite and were considered head and shoulders above every other team in the country, even to be able to beat some NFL teams.   Stories were being written how the Notre Dame grounds crew was letting the grass grow long to help slow down the Seminoles’ speed.  As we know, the Irish pulled off the upset and subsequently lost the next week to Boston College.   Overall, the two have played six times (Florida State leads series 4-2), once in a bowl (Florida State 31 Notre Dame 26 in the Orange Bowl 1996) and Florida State won the last game in 2003, 37-0 in South Bend.

This matchup (at least on paper) sets up well with subplots and storylines.  Both teams have a strong tradition and have had their share of past glory and championships.  Both teams are 8-4, had high preseason expectations and both teams disappointed.  Both teams finished the season stronger than they started, with the Seminoles winning six of their last seven.  Both teams could really use a win in this game as a springboard for next season as well as a wrap up in recruiting influence.  Neither team had a signature win (maybe Notre Dame’s win over Michigan State) to their credit.  Both teams, however, had several close losses that could have put their records into a more elite crowd.

In addition to the benefit of playing an additional game and recruiting charm, the additional practices may be the best benefit to teams.  The challenge and concern is the time between the final game and the bowl game.  Classes are not in session, and traveling to see family and friends for the holidays can be trouble for young men.  Florida State has had several student-athletes experiencing run-ins with the law, resulting in their suspension from the bowl game.

At a quick glance, it will be the Notre Dame offense will have to outperform the Florida State defense (6^th in the nation in total defense).  Rees and Hendrix will both have to play well - not one or the other, but both.  It’s not a BCS Bowl; it may not even be the marquee matchup that either team expected before the season started; but it is what it is.  Let’s sit back, enjoy, cheer for a win and move on.

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Champs Sports Bowl

A Notre Dame win secures a third straight Bowl game win after a nine bowl game losing streak.   It would also ensure one more win overall and one less loss than last year’s 8-5 record after beating the Miami Hurricanes.   The match up against the Seminoles may not be the traditional rivalry game as last year’s game against the Hurricanes was, but it’s about as good as we could get for not going to a BCS Bowl.  The Florida State tradition and lore does not match on any level to that of the Irish, but during the mid-80’s to the mid-90’s, the Seminoles were considered the gold standard of college football, and in a state with programs such as the Miami Hurricanes and the Florida Gators, that is impressive.  Perhaps the greatest and most memorable game against Florida State occurred in the fall of 1993 when the Seminoles came into South Bend as the #1 ranked team in the nation and although the Irish were ranked #2, Florida State was a huge favorite and were considered head and shoulders above every other team in the country, even to be able to beat some NFL teams.   Stories were being written how the Notre Dame grounds crew was letting the grass grow long to help slow down the Seminoles’ speed.  As we know, the Irish pulled off the upset and subsequently lost the next week to Boston College.   Overall, the two have played six times (Florida State leads series 4-2), once in a bowl (Florida State 31 Notre Dame 26 in the Orange Bowl 1996) and Florida State won the last game in 2003, 37-0 in South Bend.

This matchup (at least on paper) sets up well with subplots and storylines.  Both teams have a strong tradition and have had their share of past glory and championships.  Both teams are 8-4, had high preseason expectations and both teams disappointed.  Both teams finished the season stronger than they started, with the Seminoles winning six of their last seven.  Both teams could really use a win in this game as a springboard for next season as well as a wrap up in recruiting influence.  Neither team had a signature win (maybe Notre Dame’s win over Michigan State) to their credit.  Both teams, however, had several close losses that could have put their records into a more elite crowd.

In addition to the benefit of playing an additional game and recruiting charm, the additional practices may be the best benefit to teams.  The challenge and concern is the time between the final game and the bowl game.  Classes are not in session, and traveling to see family and friends for the holidays can be trouble for young men.  Florida State has had several student-athletes experiencing run-ins with the law, resulting in their suspension from the bowl game.

At a quick glance, it will be the Notre Dame offense will have to outperform the Florida State defense (6^th in the nation in total defense).  Rees and Hendrix will both have to play well - not one or the other, but both.  It’s not a BCS Bowl; it may not even be the marquee matchup that either team expected before the season started; but it is what it is.  Let’s sit back, enjoy, cheer for a win and move on.

Check us out and “LIKE” Talking Irish on its Facebook page.