Pinstripe Bowl Win by the numbers

Coming into the Pinstripe Bowl on Saturday against Rutgers several Irish players had significant statistical milestones within reach and several were achieved.

T.J. Jones had 5 receptions moving him into 2^nd in all time school history with 181.  His 5 receptions also move him into 7th in single-season school history with 70.

T.J. Jones’s 66 receiving yards on the day moved him into 7th in single-season school history with 1108.

Tommy Rees’s passed for 319 yards moving him into 3rd all-time in school history with 7670.  It also made him only the 3^rd quarterback in Notre dame history to pass for 3000+ yards in a single season.  That yardage also moved him into 4th in single-season history with 3257 and with 5 300+ passing yard games into 2nd in single-season school history.

Tommy Rees’s victory moved him into 7^th in all time school history at quarterback at 23.

Troy Niklas’s 76 yards receiving moved him into 7th in single-season TE history with 498.

Stephon Tuitt’s 1.5 sacks against Rutgers moved into tie for 4th all-time in school history with 21.5.

Kyle Brindza’s five field goals moved him into 3rd in single-season history with 20.

Zack Martin finished his Notre Dame career extending his current record with 52 consecutive starts.

One that was not achieved and could not be achieved was George Atkinson III needed 57 rushing yards to reach 1,000 for his career.  He was suspended for violation of team rules (supposedly for texting during a team meal).

Outside of the record books there were some other players who I would like to recognize for their performances on Saturday.

Team Offense; 31 first downs, 38:16 Time of possession, 5-5 in the Red Zone (2 touchdowns and 3 field goals), 7-16 on third down conversions (43.75%), 1-1 on fourth down conversions.

Team Defense; 4 interceptions, 4 sacks, held Rutgers to 3 of 12 on third down conversions (25%).

Camp McDaniel; rushing for 80 yards for 4.7 yards per carry and 29 yards receiving for 109 all-purpose yards.

Amir Carlisle; 81 yards on 3 kickoff returns (27 yards per return).

Tarean Folston; rushing for 73 yards for 4.3 yards per carry, 1 touchdown and 21 yards receiving for 94 all-purpose yards.

Alex Wulfeck had 1 punt for 25 yards but it placed inside the 20 yard line.

Dan Fox had 1 interception to cap of his career at Notre Dame.

With Saturdays results Notre Dame beating Rutgers 29-16 and Michigan losing 31-14 to Kansas State, the Irish has reclaimed the top all-time winning percentage. Notre Dame 874-305-42 = .73301 is once again the winningest program in college football history, surpassing Michigan 910-321-36 = .73244

Looking at Rutgers by the numbers.

Rutgers 2013 OVERALL FBS RANKINGS; PASSING YARDS 242.3 52nd Overall, RUSHING YARDS 133.7 97th Overall, POINTS FOR 27.473^rd Overall, POINTS AGAINST 29.883rd Overall.

Rutgers 2013 Team Leaders; PASSING, Gary Nova 165 completions, 303 attempts, 2159 yards & 18 touchdowns.  Chas Dodd 63 completions, 105 attempts, 712 yards & 2 touchdowns. 

RUSHING, Paul James 146 carries, 833 yards, 5.7 yards per carry & 9 touchdowns.  Justin Goodwin 108 carries, 518 yards, 4.8 yards per carry & 5 touchdowns. 

RECEIVING, Tyler Kroft 40 receptions, 530 yards, 13.3 yards per catch & 4 touchdowns.  Quron Pratt 31 receptions, 493 yards, 15.9 yards per catch & 0 touchdowns. 

KICKING, Kyle Federico 33 extra points made, 34 extra points attempted, 97.1 extra point percentage, 9 field goals made & 15 field goals attempted.  Nick Borgese 6 extra points attempted, 6 extra points made, 100 extra point percentage & no field goals attempted.

Rutgers Pinstripe Bowl Game Notes.

History

The teams first met at the Polo Grounds on Nov. 8, 1921 with the Irish claiming a 48-0 victory.

Notre Dame leads the series against Rutgers 4-0.

The Irish have recorded shutouts in three of the four meetings with the Scarlet Knights while scoring at least 42 points themselves in all four contests.

The New Era Pinstripe Bowl marks the 26^th time that the Irish have played at Yankee Stadium.  Notre Dame is 16-6-3 (.700) all-time at Yankee Stadium, including a 1-0 mark in the new stadium and a 15-6-3 (.688) record in the original facility.

On Nov. 10, 1928 at Yankee Stadium, head coach Knute Rockne delivered perhaps the most famous halftime speech in sports history. With Army leading the Irish at intermission, Rockne told his team about Notre Dame's first All-American, George Gipp, whose death bed wish was that someday when the Irish were down that Rockne implore the team to "win one for the Gipper." Notre Dame scored two second half touchdowns after the speech to defeat Army, 12-6.

Notable Head-to-Head Statistical Matchups

Notre Dame Fighting Irish		Stanford Cardinal
National Rank 78th, Rushing Offense (157.1 yards per game)	vs.		Rushing Defense, National Rank 3rd (89.5 yards allowed per game)
National Rank 116th, Kickoff Return Defense (25.17 yards allowed per kickoff)	vs.		Kickoff Returns, National Rank 1st (27.21 yards gained per kickoff)
National Rank 103rd, Sacks (1.36 sacks game)	vs.		Sacks Allowed , National Rank 10th (0.91 sacks allowed per game)
National Rank 107th, Red Zone Offense (75%)	vs.		Red Zone Defense, National Rank 21st (75.8%)
National Rank 40th, Passing Offense (254.1 yards per game)	vs.		Passing Defense, National Rank 101st (259 yards allowed per game)

 

Top Notre Dame Performances vs. Rutgers

Rushing Yards: Tony Fisher, 27 carries, 135yards, 1 TD

Passing Yards: Carlyle Holiday, 13 attemps, 25 completions, 270yards, 4 TD’s

 

Receiving: Arnaz Battle, 3 receptions, 108yards, 2 TD’s

 

 

NOTRE DAME – RUTGERS CONNECTIONS

 

The Irish boast five student-athletes from the state of New Jersey in Carlo Calabrese (Verona/Verona H.S.), Bennett Jackson (Hazlet/Raritan H.S.), Rashad Kinlaw (Galloway/Absegami H.S.), Elijah Shumate (East Orange/Don Bosco Prep) and Tyler Stockton (Linwood/The Hun School).

Notre Dame’s Elijah Shumate, DB & Rutgers Leonte Carroo, WR, Darius Hamilton, DL, Aidan Murray, P and Gary Nova, QB all attended Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.)

Notre Dame’s James Onwualu, WR and Rutgers Andre Hunt, RB both played for Cretin-Derham Hall H.S. (St. Paul, Minn.)

Notre Dame’s Greg Bryant, RB and Michael Deeb, LB along with Rutgers Bryant-Gross Armiento, DB all attended American Heritage H.S. (Plantation, Fla.)

A VICTORY OVER RUTGERS

Improves Notre Dame’s record to 9-4 on the season.

Improves Notre Dame’s all-time record to 5-0 (1.000) against Rutgers.

Improves Brian Kelly’s all-time record at Notre Dame to 37-15 (.712).

Improves Brian Kelly’s record in bowl games to 2-2 (.500) as Notre Dame head coach.

Irish Milestones Within Reach

George Atkinson III needs 57 rushing yards to reach 1,000 for his career.

TJ Jones needs 131 receiving yards to move into 5th all-time in school history and 150 for 4^th all-time.

TJ Jones needs 4 receptions to move into 2nd all-time in school history.

TJ Jones needs 3 TD receptions to move into 4th all-time in school history.

TJ Jones needs 3 receptions to move into 8th in single-season school history and 5 for 7^th.

TJ Jones needs 39 receiving yards to move into 7th in single-season school history, 73 for 6^th, 82 for 5^th, 106 for 4^th, and 108 for 3^rd.

TJ Jones needs 1 TD reception to move into 8th in single-season school history and 2 for 6^th.

TJ Jones needs 1 100-yd game to move into 3rd in single-season school history and into 7th all-time in school history.

Tommy Rees needs 252 pass yards to move into 3rd all-time in school history.

Tommy Rees needs 2 TD passes to move into 3rd in single-season history.

Tommy Rees needs 42 passing yards to reach 3,000 for the season (third QB in ND history).

Tommy Rees needs to be responsible for 19 points to move into 2nd all-time in school history.

Troy Niklas needs 1 TD reception to move into 1st in single-season TE history.

Stephon Tuitt needs 1.0 sacks to move into tie for 4th all-time in school history, 2 for 3^rd and 3 for 2^nd.

Prince Shembo needs 1.0 sacks to move into tie for 6th all-time in school history and 2 for 5^th.

Kyle Brindza needs 2 field goals to move into 3rd in career history.

*1 more start will extend Zack Martin’s record of most starts and consecutive starts to 52.

Notable “The Last Time” Notre Dame against Rutgers

The Defense Recorded nine or more sacks vs. Rutgers, 1996

The Irish Among the National Leaders

Category Rank Stat	National Category Rank	Category Rank Stat
Passing Yards Allowed	17th	201.7
4th Down Conversion % Defense	5th	0.278
Passing TDs	17th	Tommy Rees – 27
Passing Yards/Completion	8th	Tommy Rees – 14.91

 

Bowl Storylines

As the weekend approaches and the match up against the Scarlet Knights nears in the Pinstripe Bowl there are a few things that will play out at the season comes to an official end Saturday afternoon.

Swan Song for Tommy Rees.  For four years Irish fans have cheered and jeered number 12.  When Rees appeared as a freshman he may not have been looked upon as a physically dominant signal caller however he seemed to have enough excitement to have the Notre Dame faithful saying things like “hey he’s only a freshman he could…”  However whether you feel he got a fair shake or not he has bailed out the Irish as much as he has blew it for them.  Statistically he will rank as one of the top Notre Dame Quarterbacks of all time.  Love him or hate him The Pinstripe Bowl will be the last time he takes the field for Her Loyal Sons.  I predict he will end his career with a win.

Possibly the last game in an Irish uniform for Stephon Tuitt.  My gut says that Tuitt has already made up his mind on whether he will stay or go.  I would suspect one way or another good or bad the past two years of the Louis Nix era has influenced him.  Stay; get your degree, re-elevate your NFL stock, comeback for another championship run.  Leave; make millions now, don’t risk injury in college, don’t risk your NFL stock dropping.  It could go either way but if I had to bet I would bet Saturday will be his last game for the Irish.

A look ahead to Notre Dame’s future Offensive Line.  Out; Chris Watt, Nick Martin and Christian Lombard.  In; True freshman Steve Elmer, Redshirt freshman Mark Harrell and Redshirt Sophomore Conor Hanratty.  Yes down the line Elmer will be joined along the offensive line by fellow classmates Hunter Biven, Mike McGlinchey, Colin McGovern and John Montelus but for now we will get a bit of a sneak peek into next season.

A tryout for Cooks and Denbrock.  With the departures of Chuck Martin and Bob Diaco Kelly has moved, at least for the interim two of his other coaches into coordinator positions.  There has been and will be speculations as to what Brian Kelly will do to fill both his Offensive and Defensive Coordinator positions, stay in house or look outside the family.  Kelly has a history of promoting from within so bother Kerry Cooks and Mike Denbrock could have the inside track. 

Fighting Irish 12 Days of Christmas 2013

A Leprechaun in a sold out stadium

 

 

 

Two Tuitt Tackles

 

 

 

 

Three T.J. Jones Touchdowns

 

 

 

Four Folston Carries

 

 

 

 

 

 

Five Golden Domes!

 

 

 

 

 

Six Shembo Sacks

 

 

 

 

Seven Heisman Winners

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eight Elmer Pancake blocks

 

 

 

 

 

Nine Nix lead goal line stands

 

 

 

Ten NFL Hall of Famers

 

 

 

 

 

  

Eleven National Championships

 

 

 

Twelve Tommy Rees Comebacks

ECHOE Awards 2013

Friday night Notre Dame Football held their annual ECHOES Awards event for the 93 time in their history.  Here’s a quick review and a few thoughts from Talking Irish.  However if you want to watch the entire show CLICK HERE.

 Scout Team Player of the Year, Offense- Torii Hunter Jr.  No real surprise here, Torii would most likely have been a contributor on the field this season as a freshman if it weren’t for the fact he was recovering from an injury suffered before the season even started.  Look for Hunter to make an impact day one next season

Defensive Scout Team Player of the Year – Joe Romano.  There are probably more talented players on the scout team, there are defiantly players who will have a more impactful career as Romano is a walk on senior but there may not be any with more heart.

Newcomer of the Year - Tarean Folston.  Hard to argue this selection, Folston should be exciting to follow over the next several season.  Talking Irish Honorable Mention – Corey Robinson

Father Lange Iron Cross Award (recognizes strength & conditioning excellence) – Carlos Calabrese.  No surprise that a guy who works out at a place call “House  of Iron” would win this award.

Special Teams Player of the Year - Kyle Brindza.  Not to take anything away from Brindza but the Irish did not (and has not) have a lot of other options for this award.

Pietrosante Award (for best teammate, courage, loyalty, teamwork, pride and dedication) – Chris Watt and Dan Fox.  Hopefully there were many options for this award.  However without a doubt from everything I have heard these two most assuredly deserve this recognition.

The Moose Krause Lineman of the Year (Defensive Lineman) – Stephon Tuitt.  This is the second time Tuitt has won this award.  I would love for him to try for a third.  Due to injuries along the defensive line this season there were not a lot of other options here.

Guardian Life Insurance Lineman of the Year (Offensive Lineman) – Zack Martin.  One thing is for sure…someone else will win this next year after Martin has won it four consecutive years. 

The Next Man in Award - Kona Schwenke.  Even though at times it seemed as if half the team could qualify for this award it is well deserved for Schwenke who could have been a starter on half the teams in the country.

Offensive Player of the Year – Tommy Rees.  Although this may be debatable we can’t really argue that Rees is in the conversation; 2938 yards and 27 touchdown passes moving him into elite status statistically of all-time great Irish Quarterbacks.

Defensive Player of the Year - Prince Shembo. He is a beast and has been a catalyst for this defense all season.   Shembo highlighted his talents against Arizona State with 7 tackles and 3 sacks.  Talking Irish Honorable Mention: Dan Fox

Most Valuable Player – T.J. Jones.  If consistency was a barometer for this award this should be no shock at all.  Jones has been looked to all year and has answered the bell each time.

Seniors Part 3 Those with eligibility left.

Louis Nix has signed with an agent so that make him ineligible for him to exercise his fifth year eligibility.  Sad but not surprising.

Lo Wood has option to transfer after sitting out this season with an injury.  Wood did action in 21 games for the Irish in his career.  Perhaps he saw the upcoming number and talent in the defensive backfield.  I think he may have had a chance to compete for playing time and would be possible to be asked back next season.  Currently UCF and Georgia Tech are front runners.

Alex Welch is also transferring for his fifth year.  After redshirting his freshman season Welch saw action in 10 games for the Irish but had only one catch for eight yards.  He then missed his entire junior season with a knee injury he suffered in preseason.  The University of Cincinnati is rumored to be his first choice as it is his hometown.

Luke Massa.  After coming to Notre Dame and starting his college career as a quarterback Massa at 6’4” 237lbs was moved to receiver due to a logjam at the quarterback position.  Ironically his senior season saw an abundance of receiver talent and potential that limited his playing as well.  However he is the holder on the place kicking team (which makes him a secret weapon on a fake) and he could serve as a double secret probation backup quarterback if needed.  Return: Doubtful.

Arturo Martinez who as a walk on defensive lineman has been if nothing else an inspiration being a cancer survivor at Notre Dame.  He was even referred to as Notre Dame’s “new” Rudy.  Return: No.

Tyler Plantz has seen action on special team over the past two seasons however as a running back he has not been a contributor.  Return: No.

Christian Lombard who played in all 13 games as a sophomore as a backup and on special teams moved up to start all 13 games last year as a Junior. As a senior Lombard started the season as a starter before being derailed by an injury.  At 6’5” 315lbs look for Lombard to be back for a fifth year to add experience, leadership and stability to the offensive line.  Return: Almost assured.

Andrew Hendrix is probably the most interesting name on this list for a couple of reasons.  After redshirting his freshman year Hendrix saw action in five games as a sophomore highlighted by his appearance in the Stanford game.  As a junior he appeared in three games in limited action.  This season Hendrix took a step back in his play and did not serve as reasonable back up.  Although the quarterback situation next season may lack experience but should have enough talent and potential to overcome any issues.  Also Andrew is a pre-med student and may be moving on with his studies anyway. Return: Doubtful.

Bruce Heggie could continue to play as a very serviceable backup on the offensive line, especially at center.  However the Irish have a solid stable of up and coming talent on the O-line lead by Nick Martin at center.  I am not sure Kelly would give a scholarship spot to a third string center.  Return: Unlikely

Nick Fitzpatrick is a walk on wide receiver who at 5’8” and 170lbs from Mishawaka, IN right next to South Bend who was just that, a walk on wide receiver who at 5’8” and 170lbs.  Return: No.

Will Cronin worked his way into being walk on member of the Red Army.  Cronin played interhall quarterback for his dorm Alumni Hall when the Irish came looking for a scout team QB.  Return: No.

Joe Romano who is known as one of the hardest works on the team as a walk on did get to travel to Stanford as the Irish were light in the defensive backfield with suspensions to Shumate and Hardy.  Prior to that he did appear against Wake Forest in 2012 as a reserve.  Return: NO.

Austin Collinsworth appeared in all 26 games of his freshman and sophomore season before missing his junior year with a shoulder injury in spring practice.  Collinsworth’s play has been a bit roller-coaster ride this season.  He has made some big plays and has gotten burned as well.  There is always a need for good defensive backs with experience but in Austin’s case he has more experience than skill and that may not be enough to compete with up and coming talent.  Return: Possible.

Kevin Carr is a very lineman at neatly six and half feet and 355lbs who never was able to move into the next level.  He was part of the University’s Navy ROTC program for his first two years at Notre Dame then became a walk on.  He got to travel with the team this year to play Air Force.  Return: No.

Justin Utupo redshirted his freshman year then saw action mainly on special teams as a sophomore.  As a junior he saw the field as a backup in eleven games.  He has been a fill in as needed this season with injuries decimating the defensive side of the ball.  Most years it would be unlikely to see him return however the Irish may need more depth along the defensive line at end.  A lot of that will depend on the health of the likes of Tony Springman and Chase Hounshell.  Return: Possible.

Kendall Moore was selected Defensive Scout Team Player of the Year his freshman season.  He then appeared in all 13 games of his sophomore and junior seasons at Notre Dame on special teams and as a reserve linebacker.  This season Moore has helped solidify and injured defensive line by putting his hand on the ground and coming in at defensive end when not at linebacker.  He has had a solid career that most time would not be good enough to get him asked back but much like Utupo Moore may be valuable for the depth and stability of the defensive line in 2014.

Jude Rhodes is a walk on kicker who grew up in Kenya and that may be his only claim to fame along with his dreadlocks in South Bend.  With more and more kickers coming into college as specialists there may not be room for another as a kicker a luxury for most teams on the Irish roster in 2013, but you never know with special teams.  Return: Very Doubtful.

A look at games today that may interest Irish Fans.

#10 Michigan State vs. #2 Ohio State.  The only loss this year for the Spartans was against Notre Dame.  A Michigan State win makes the Irish look a little better this season.

#17 Oklahoma vs. #6 Oklahoma State.  A win over the #6 one loss OSU helps the Sooners look better making the loss for the Irish a bit better.

#25 Texas vs. #9 Baylor.  A Texas loss could back Notre Dame into the Top 25.

#7 Stanford vs. #11 Arizona State.  Either way it can be spun to make the Irish look good; a Cardinal will fortifies their greatness making the Notre Dame close loss seem like a good showing, a Sun Devil victory moves them up higher in the rankings, another top team the Irish beat this season.

Unranked Utah State (8-4, 7-1MW) vs. #23 Fresno State.  Like the Texas game a Bull dogs loss Notre Dame could back into the Top 25.

South Florida (2-9) vs. Rutgers 5-6.  A Scarlett Knights win makes them bowl eligible and a possibility for an Irish opponent in the Pinstripe Bowl.