Initial Championship Game Thoughts

First, hats off to Georgia and Alabama for a great SEC title game Saturday night.  It was entertaining to say the least.  As the game progressed, I felt confident that the Irish could beat either team.  As great as the game was there, were several incidents that showed why each had lost a game during the season and why they could lose again.

There are several reasons why Irish fans should be happy that Notre Dame is facing the Crimson Tide on January 7^th.  For most of the season, Alabama has been seen as the best team in the country and many still think they are.  In any given season, there are so many Irish Haters that there is always talk of Notre Dame being overrated, and this year is no different.  With wins over more ranked teams and more bowl eligible teams than Alabama, there are still many people out there who feel Alabama is the better team that had a better season.  With Alabama being the defending National Champion from the SEC, the conference who has won the last seven national titles, there may be no better opponent to play for the Irish to solidify their claim as the number one team in the land.  As it is said, “to be the man you have to beat the man”.

These are two storied programs and there are and will be all kinds of historical statistics and tales of greatest for these two schools.  Wins, winning percentages, championships, Heisman winners, All- Americans and icons will all be rolled out in the coming weeks.  However, as this Irish team has displayed all season, their history and tradition is respected, but it has no bearing on this team’s play.  I am looking forward to the next five weeks of analyses and the match up itself on the 7^th of January in Miami.

What needs to be done.

The Irish will know sometime around 8pm Saturday night who they will be facing January 7^th in Miami for the BCS National Championship.  At that point, we will have five weeks to look at every opposing player, coach, game, injury, astrological sign, etc.  Until that point, and even after, there are things that the Irish needs to do no matter who they play.

Stay Focused - There will be a lot of distractions along with the many storylines that will develop over the next five weeks, with much media scrutiny for sure.  This team has done a great job staying focused on the job at hand, looking at one game at a time, one team at a time and no matter who they play on January 7^th, they will need to focus on them.  Besides, after the National Championship Game, the Irish’s next opponent will be the Temple Owls, which is a team we can focus on later.

Stay Healthy – Obviously, this a great time to rest and recover from the bumps and bruises of a long and hard fought season, but I am sure there is a lot of hard work, practice and training going on in South Bend that gives cause for concern each day. 

Improve Red Zone TD / Field goal ratio - The Irish push down the field and settle for field goals, and while three points are better than none, seven would be best.  This is an area that can definitely be improved in practice over the upcoming weeks.  A lot of this will be on the shoulders of Golson and his reads, checks and reps.

Let Longo do his thing - Kelly said that the team was hitting their stride in the weight room and that should continue.  Paul Longo deserves as much credit as anyone for this team’s success.  The worse thing that could happen is that the players lose their physical edge.

Stay out of trouble – Idol hands are the devil’s workshop.  Just consider the past transgressions of Rees, Calabrese, Wood, and Utupo.

 

What I know.

I often say, “I’m not always right, but I am never wrong.”  Most think it’s stupid and that I am being arrogant, but what I am really portraying is that I work within my scope and I try not to talk or get involved in things I don’t understand.  There is what I know, what I don’t know and what I don’t know that I don’t know.  For now, let’s just focus on what I know and what I don’t know about this team and this season. 

 

What I know

The Irish are undefeated at 12-0, Manti T’eo will be in New York for the Heisman Trophy Award, Notre Dame will play in the National Championship Game on January 7^th in Miami Florida, and I will be watching the SEC Championship on Saturday,

 

What I don’t know

Who the Irish will play on January 7^th (I think ND matches up better against Alabama, but I think Georgia will win the SEC Championship game), or what eligible seniors will come or be asked back for a 5^th year (although I have my suspicions).

Regardless of our National Championship opponent, Irish fans will look forward to first Monday in January with excitement.  For the next several weeks we will dissect the players the coaches and the season as it all leads up to the final game.  Six weeks may seem like an eternity, especially since it seems like only yesterday we were in Dublin watching the Irish dismantle the Midshipmen of Navy.  My recommendation to Irish fans is to enjoy every minute from now till the 7^th of January.  We’ve waited decades for this.

Join us on Facebook and Twitter

With Six weeks to go before the Irish take the field again we will posting inspirational and motivational material on our Facebook and Twitter accounts almost daily.  This of course will be in addition to our regular blog posts.

You’ve got questions…we’ve got answers.

Here are some questions (in bold) in an article posed by ND Nation’s John Vannie along with Talking Irish’s responses (in italics).

Can Golson and the Irish keep their emotions in check and get off to a solid start?

One of the goals Brian Kelly has had for his team is to get off to a fast start, which they have done very well thus far, outscoring their opponents 75 – 9 in the first quarter this season.  The Irish statistically play better on the road leaving all the distractions associated with home games behind, and I think this game will be no exception.

Will Notre Dame’s secondary minimize USC’s yards after catch with proper angles and crisp tackling?

I for one hope that Notre Dame’s secondary will minimize catches.  I believe three things will happen: first, USC’s wide receivers will have some big chunk play receptions (hopefully not too many), second, the Irish secondary will make solid tackles; and finally, Wittek will be intercepted at least once in this game.

Can USC stop the run while keeping its safeties back in a Tampa-2 defense?

Yes, at times, but not enough.  The Irish running backs will break off some big runs (the sooner the better) forcing the USC safeties to step up more often than they want to.

Will Wittek have time to display the poise and accuracy the Trojans will need?

At times, but he will also see the likes of Nix, Shembo, Tuitt, and Lewis-Moore crashing in on him causing him to think twice on throws, question his audibles and running for his life.

Can USC’s offensive line repeat last year’s domination of the Irish front seven?

No.  If you have seen any of Notre Dame’s games you know that is an easy question to answer.

Will this be the game that special teams play finally costs Notre Dame a victory?

I don’t think so.  It will not be the game in which it has to.

Which struggling kicker will come through for his team?

Overall, neither.  Although Kyle Brindza has blown simple kicks, he seems to be better under pressure.

Will the referees dare to call holding on the Trojans?

Contrary to a statement made a ridiculous and irresponsible article ,“All I can say is Max be prepared to go against the most one sided officiating in the history of officiated sports with a BCS championship game for Notre Dame on the line.” the officials should do their jobs as assigned.

USC Preview Podcast

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3rtxny6lQI&feature=plcp

USC

As we progress toward USC, there should be some comfort in knowing the enemy.  Each year, it seems we know we will have to do battle at the end of the season against mighty Troy.  A team with speed, skill and often a superior record (at least over the last couple of decades), a team with a history and winning tradition of their own who pride themselves on winning, especially against the Irish.  Brian Kelly was asked this week about his team heading to Southern California as the number one team and he explained that they feel that pressure every week, that every team gives Notre Dame their best when the Irish come to town.

At 7-4, USC may not be the force it was at the beginning of the season when they held the number one ranking, but with the exception of Matt Barkley being out, they still have the talent that got them that preseason ranking.  This may not be a great team, but even without their preseason Heisman favorite they are still a very sound team.  The USC running game still has two above-average backs in Junior Silas (740 yards, 5.4 yards per carry and 9 touchdowns) and Senior Curtis McNeal (658 yards, 6.3 yards per carry and 2 touchdowns), both of whom have multiple receptions out of the backfield. 

The Trojans may have lost their quarterback, but their passing game still has powerful weapons in the receiving corps.  Leading the charge are 6’1” sophomore Marqise Lee (107 receptions, 1605 yards, 15 yards per catch and 14 touchdowns) and 6’1” Junior Robert Woods (66 receptions, 721 yards, 10.9 yards per catch and 10 touchdowns). 

With Matt Barkley out, the Trojans will turn to redshirt freshman Max Wittek.  Wittek’s stats may not measure up to Barkley’s, but he has made the most out of what he has done.  Wittek has completed eight passes for 95 yards and a touchdown, giving him a quarterback rating of 214.2.  Kelly said he can’t be all bad being on scholarship at USC, and Wittek also had offers from most of the big programs including Notre Dame.  Here is the high school scouting report two years ago by Scott Kennedy of Scout.com:

Wittek is a greedy quarterback that is always pressuring the defensive backfield. He has tremendous vision and always wants to make the big play before checking down to his shorter routes. He has a quick release and a strong arm. He struggles with accuracy at times, but shows poise under pressure and a willingness to hang in the pocket and take a hit. A gun-slinger mentality, Wittek likes the high risk, high reward throws.

On the other side of the ball, the Trojans defense has been sub-par this season, especially for a USC team (giving up 24.8 points a game).  Expect the Irish to mix it up between the run and pass.  Notre Dame should try to come out fast and big to break the Trojans’ spirits early.  Going from number one in the beginning of the season to unranked at the end of the season (last happened in 1964), not being in contention for the Pac-12 championship let alone a BCS bowl makes a win over Notre Dame even more important.  Beating Notre Dame would be one of the only bright spots in this season, especially since doing so would likely crush Notre Dame’s chance at of perfection and a shot at the National Championship.  If they see that slipping away early, they may begin to give up all together.