One loss conversation continues.

There is still a lot of football left to be played but the final four picture will now be more prevalent in conversations and the playoff picture will begin to come into focus.  The focus will begin VERY blurry and will be slow to develop. 

Moving forward there will be many games that will be important to the Irish getting into one of those four spots.  The most important games are the ones that Notre Dame are playing.  If the Irish stumble and don't win the rest of their games what everyone else does will be irrelevant because a two loss Notre Dame team will be out.

For now we'll take it one week at a time.

Mississippi State won and will remain in the #1 slot.  Irish fans should either root for the Bulldogs to win out and keep that spot stable or loss two games which could happen with match ups against Alabama and Ole Miss.  A one lose Mississippi State team could edge out a one loss ND squad.

Irish fans may be looking to have Florida State win out.  If they lose fine I think the Irish could leapfrog the Seminoles, however FSU could have a legitimate argument that since they beat the Irish.  Both having one lose Florida State's win over the Irish could be seen as the tie breaker.

Ole Miss's loss to LSU may have bumped them out.  With games still on the schedule against #1 Mississippi State and #5 Auburn the Bulldogs may be the most important cog in all of these moving parts.

Alabama is a big one-loss threat to bumping our the Irish.  Although the Tide woe by 14 points over Tennessee, they may have needed a bigger statement win.   With one loss and games against high ranked teams LSU, Mississippi State Auburn they could be a #1 seed if they win out and others lose.

Auburn just got by South Carolina and has a tough road ahead with games against Texas A&M, #9 Georgia and  #4 Alabama.  Before yesterday I might have argued the Tigers are the most dangerous one-loss team now I think they are the most suspect and will lose at least one more before the season ends.

Oregon is often forgotten about playing out west and may have hoped not a lot of people watched last night as they barely got past an unranked Cal team.  Oregon still have a few teams that could trip them up but I would bet they win out if I had to.  Because the Irish have a tough schedule remaining I think a one-lose Notre Dame team edges out a one-lose Oregon team.

There are a number of one-loss teams behind the Irish in the rankings that Notre Dame fans need to keep their eye on.

If Michigan State can get by Ohio State next week Sparty has a great chance of finishing the season with one loss and would have the support of the Big Ten Conference behind them.  Their only loss is to a high ranked Oregon Ducks team giving them a good argument to get into the final four.

If Georgia wins out that means they will have beaten a top five Auburn team.  However I don't think they have enough in the win column to make a strong enough case to get in.  Their only loss was to at that time #24 South Carolina.

TCU also has a good shot at finishing with one loss but their Big 12 schedule does not have enough meet on the bone to get them in.  And yes I know they put up 82 points on Saturday against Texas Tech.

Kansas State could win out and represent the Big 12 this season.  Currently their only defeat was a 20-14 loss to #5 Auburn.

Even if they beat Michigan State Ohio State will not have any other quality wins this year to get in.  A 35-21 loss to a 4-4 Virginia Tech does not help their cause.

Note:  Marshall is and very well remain undefeated but their schedule is too weak to stand up to those top teams in one-loss group.

What now?

As conversation heats up about who will, or at least who should make the four-team playoff the picture will only get more blurry as teams fall from the ranks of the unbeaten and the term quality loses will come into play.  With conference play pitting teams against each other unbeaten teams will diminish and top ten one loss teams will become two-lose teams which will disappear from the discussion.

Each week the outcomes of top ten teams will become more and more important.  Without question the Irish must continue to win to stay in the playoff picture.  With one lose Notre Dame will need some help and will need to have some teams lose over the next several weeks to end up in the final four.

While Notre Dame has a bye this week, there are a number of relevant games that could help the Irish stay near the top of the rankings and work their way back to the top.

#1 Mississippi State plays Kentucky.   It would not be the upset of the century if Kentucky won, but they won’t.   However the Bulldogs still have to play #4 Alabama and Ole Miss.

#2 Florida State plays Louisville.  Again t would not be the upset of the century, but it probably won’t be, FSU wins.  The rest of the regular season looks to favor the Seminoles running the table; however a trip up or a loss in the ACC Championship game may push them out.

#3 Ole Miss faces LSU.  Three weeks ago I would have never given LSU a chance, this week I give them one, a slim one.   They still have to play Mississippi State (someone has to lose) and then a potential SEC Championship.

#4 Alabama plays Tennessee.  Although the Volunteers kept it close early last week against Ole Miss before getting pounded I expect the pounding to begin a bitter sooner this week.   Like the Irish the Crimson Tide has one loss.  They still have #24 LSU, #1 Mississippi State, #5 Auburn  and if they are lucky an SEC Championship game to play to finish the season .  Good luck with all of that.

#5 Auburn plays South Carolina.  Although the Gamecocks are having an off year and some people think they are better than their record shows, I am not one of those people, the Tigers will roll.  Much like the teams ahead of them in the polls Auburn has a gauntlet in front of them where teams will knock each other off and out.  Auburn still has #3 Ole Miss, #9 Georgia and #4 Alabama on its schedule.  

#6 Oregon plays Cal.  Oregon will win.  Sorry it is that easy for them this weekend.  After that there are some teams that will give them more of an issue: Stanford, #19 Utah and Oregon State.  If the Ducks get through their regular season a Pac 12 Championship game will not be a slam dunk.

*#8 Michigan State (*#7 in the USA Today Poll) play Michigan.  Traditionally when these two teams play you can through the seasons records out the window, not this season.  It won’t be close Sparty wins, easily.   After this weekend only Ohio State and a Big Ten Championship game seemingly stand in their why of finishing with only one lose and being in contention form a playoff spot. 

Come down off the ledge.

I am not saying that Notre Dame should have won the game but they could have won the game.  I am not sure I could be comfortable with that statement in years past against elite competition.  During the final offensive series for the Irish there was a feeling of not only could we win this but we will.  In the past I think Irish fans would have though "how are we going to blow this?"  Never have I ever believed in moral victories but Saturday night came as close as I could believe in.

For those of you who are still upset with the pass interference call at the end of the game; it was a penalty, not necessarily a good call or event the right call but a justifiable and defendable one.  I always have a saying for situations like this; "win by 50 points and one call, bad play or mistake won't make a difference".

For the first time in a long time I truly believe we belong with the elite programs on the national stage.  As far as the "playoffs" Notre Dame may still be in it as in College football there are such things as quality losses.  Quite frankly I will be more than happy finishing the regular season with one lose and a win in a major bowl.

There is little doubt that Brian Kelly and crew are headed in the right direction.  Kelly has the Irish focused on The Process and even thought there is still work to do Notre Dame is legitimately back in the Nation Championship discussion.  Brian Kelly has a rule: win-celebrate, lose-morn but only for 24 hours then move on.  The tough thing now is we have a bye and two weeks to strew.

I want to tip my hat to Seminoles but a couple of things left a bad taste on my mouth.  First; after Golson throws away his last pass and FSU has one the game they get a personal foul penalty.  Next Jimbo Fisher has to tell his team to stay classes when talking to the press.  Really?  If you need to tell them that to me that assumes they either they do not have class to start with and or they don't already know better.   Also in his post game interview he went on about how his team does it right on and off the field, in and out of the classroom and with high character.  Like backing Winston i like that he backs his quarterback but he takes it overboard to the point where anyone who has a brain and knows the players and the program he should say he is proud of them and supports them and leave it at that because they are no angels, road scholars or citizens of the year.

I did not add any pictures to this post as they were all too painful to see.  But to end on a positive attitude (or at least as positive as we can be) and at lease lose with class here is a little something to help sooth the feelings.  That's life.
 

Season Midpoint 6-0

At 6-0 the Irish are halfway through the 2014 season.  After Saturdays win over North Carolina there may be as many questions to be answered as there were at the start of the season and there might be as much to be happy about as there is to be concerned about.  So what can Irish fans deduct about Notre Dame at the seasons midpoint.

Brian Kelly Post Game: North Carolina

Concerns & Questions



Offensive Line Coach Harry Hiestand

The offensive line was supposed to be one of if not the strongest part of this team.  The potential is there, the talent should be there but the results are coming up short.  The lack of a run game in my opinion is not the fault of the running backs but is on the shoulders of the offensive line.  Lack of communication, not knowing their assignments or maybe they are just not as good as we thought, either way it needs to be corrected before next week.

The defensive secondary has played the "next man in" role admirably at time but overall it has sown that it has been and can be a liability.  Injuries and suspensions have played a very large role the problems that Notre Dame has had in the secondary.  Against a top 10 passing offense the Irish could have big problems.



Golson fumbles against Syracuse

Turnovers are a more recent issue for Notre Dame.  In the first three games the Irish did a very good job protecting the football.  In the last three games turnovers have become a major area of concern.  Everett Golson have thrown some interceptions but the bigger concern should be the fumbles.

Positives & Upsides

Notre Dame is undefeated at 6-0 and history proves that Brian Kelly and more so Golson are winners, period.

The receiving corps have stepped up as a whole and as individuals.  This group is young and talented and will be around for a while and will only continue to develop.



Jarron Jones blocking his fourth kick in two years.

The defensive line has done a good job.  We all knew what Sheldon Day could do but there were a lot of question marks coming into the fall.  Jarron Jones had shown some promise in limited play last season and has done a very good job taking it to the next level.  Isaac Rochell continues to impress, like Jones will still have two years of eligibility left after this season.  Freshmen Andrew Trumbetti and Gratn Blankenship are looking good early.

Joe Schmidt.  Not tall enough, not heavy enough, not fast enough, all may be true but he silences his critics week in and week out.

The team is young and coachable.  Brian Kelly is playing and getting returns a lot of young players.  True freshmen; Drue Tranquill, Grant Blankenship, Daniel Cage, and Andrew Trumbetti to name a few.  Second year players (those with at least two years of eligibility left after this season and some with three); Steve Elmer, Mad Redfield, Corey Robinson, Tarean Folston, William Fuller, James Onwualu, Greg Bryant, Devin Butler, Tori Hunter Jr., Isaac Rochell, Cole Luke, Jarron Jones and C.J. Prosise.

ND Vs. Syracuse The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

The Good



Everett Golson

Golson; 32 for 39 passing (including 25  consecutive completions for a new school record), 362 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Torii Hunter Jr.; finally got to see the field after an injury filled start to his college career.

William Fuller

Corey Robinson; 8 receptions, averaging 11.4 yards per catch.

William Fuller; although not perfect he looked pretty darn good.

Jarron Jones had a blocked extra point.

The Bad

Turnovers; 4 fumbles ( 3 lost) and 2 interceptions resulting in 12 points from turnovers.

The Irish gave up 5 tackles for a loss.

The Ugly

Sloppy play that often looked as it came from laziness.

Folston

24 yards lost during rushing attempts.



The win; it wasn't always pretty but it is a win.

Games of Interest for Irish Fans

With the season a quarter over Notre Dame heads into a bye week.  Even with the Loyal Sons taking a week off there is still plenty of action this weekend that we should pay attention to.  It is important that teams on Notre Dame's schedule do well week in and week out (except when they play the Irish of course) to support the strength of schedule and help validate the Irish as a national power.

Rice vs. Old Dominion

Michigan vs. Utah

Purdue vs. S. Illinois

Syracuse vs. Maryland

North Carolina vs. East Carolina  

Florida State vs. Clemson

Navy vs. Rutgers

Arizona State BYE

Northwestern vs. Western Illinois

Louisville vs. FIU

USC BYE

As Notre Dame has cracked the top ten (#9) it is also important to keep an eye on the teams ahead of the Irish in the rankings.  For this Talking Irish is using the AP Poll, the teams are also in the USA Today poll with some slightly different positions.

#8 LSU vs. Mississippi State

#7 Baylor BYE

#6 Texas A&M vs. SMU

#5 Auburn defeated #20 Kansas State Thursday 20-14

#4 Oklahoma vs. West Virginia

#3 Alabama vs. Florida

#2 Oregon vs. Washington State

#1 Florida State vs. #22 Clemson  

Michigan in rear view.

In the over 40 plus meetings between Notre Dame and Michigan this was the first time that the Irish shut out the Wolverines and first time since the 1920's that Big Blue was shot out by a team outside their conference.  That's pretty impressive looking at the teams that play in the Big Ten Conference over the years including a defense monster like Michigan State.

The question Irish fans have to ask was Notre Dame that good or is Michigan that bad.  After thumping Appalachian State 53-14 realistic college football fans had to keep things in perspective that there is no way that game could be a true measure of the Michigan football teams abilities.

At the end of the day, or night as the case may be take out the score, turnovers and penalties the game was a lot closer than 31-0 from a statistics standpoint.  What the Irish did well is took advantage of situational opportunities; getting first downs when needed (third down conversions 7-15 and 1-1 on fourth down), making timely stops and putting the ball in the end zone and not settling for putting it through the uprights when the offense was in the red zone (3 touchdowns and 1 field goal in four trips to the red zone).

This was a team win.  Everyone played well and no one had to play great.  To be fait the offense was defiantly lead by the passing attack; 54 yards rushing and 256 yards passing.  This win is more about the bigger picture than wining a football game on September 6, 2014.  The Irish end this current rivalry run with a win, recruits that were in South Bend had to be impressed and momentum is building as the Irish move onto Purdue in the Shamrock series then into a bye week.