Print Edition of the Irish Insider for Friday, September 29, 2017

ReDHAWKS pASSING

m iami ( oh ) has an established starting quarterback in Gus r agland. The red h awks started last season 0-6, and head coach c huck m artin turned to r agland. And r agland delivered. The redshirt junior led m iami to six straight wins and finished the year with 1,537 passing yards, 17 touchdowns and only one interception. The red h awks do have mutliple wide receivers r agland feels comfortable throwing to in Jared murphy, James Gardner, Luke m ayock and s am m artin. e ach of the four has recorded a game with 65 receiving yards or more, and that’s not to mention running back Alonzo smith’s 98-yard, two-touchdown performance against m arshall in Week 1.

In 2017, r agland is averaging 220 yards per game through the air on an offense that has put up 26 points a game on average. In addition, r agland comes in with eight touchdown passes on the year.

The Irish secondary made a big step versus m ichigan state, as sophomore cornerback Julian Love took an interception to the house for a touchdown and junior cornerback shaun c rawford forced a fumble at the goal line.

r agland’s numbers indicate m iami may protect the ball better than m ichigan state. r agland has thrown just three interceptions in his 11 starts, so turning m iami over will prove to be a tough task. however, the red h awks don’t possess the talent outside to threaten the Irish corners on a consistent basis.

eDGe : NOtRe DA me

ReDHAWKS RUSHING

m iami ( oh ) is one of the most balanced offenses notre dame will see this year. The red hawks are averaging 220 passing yards and 132 rushing yards per game. redshirt junior Alonzo smith is listed as the starting back, but redshirt junior backup Kenny Young will see a fair amount of carries, as Young’s 55 rushing yards per game and two rushing touchdowns leads the team this season.

The most encouraging stat for Irish fans is m iami ( oh )’s 3.2 yards per carry average despite 41 attempts per game. m iami’s strategy centers around tiring out opposing defensive lines, which plays into notre

dame’s willingness to rotate out eight or more players throughout the course of a game. The Irish front seven has been stout all season against the run, even keeping Georgia’s star duo of seniors sony m ichel and nick c hubb in check at under 75 yards each.

e DGe : NOt R e DA me

R e DHAWKS OFF e NSIV e COACHING

miami is coached by chuck martin, who is in his fourth year with the school. martin is no secret to notre dame, having coached in south bend for four years as a defensive backs coach before switching to the offensive side of the ball and taking the position of offensive coordinator in 2012-13. As offensive coordinator, martin helped notre dame reach the national championship game in 2012.

on the Irish sideline, first-year defensive coordinator mike elko is hoping to make martin’s return to south bend a bad one. elko’s squad is coming off of an impressive showing at michigan state where it tallied three key turnovers. The notre dame defense is allowing 18.5 points per game in 2017 and looks like a completely revamped unit from the year before.

e DGe : NOt R e DA me

R e DHAWKS SpeCIAL te A mS

redhawks sophomore kicker sam sloman has made five field goals on the year, with his long standing at 42 yards.

The Irish return teams haven’t had a breakout return yet, and junior punt returner chris Finke seems averse to calling for fair catches when returning punts in crowded areas of the field.

e DGe : e V e N

ReDHAWKS SCHeDULe (2-2, 1-0 m AC)

sept. 2 @ Marshall (L 31-26)

sept. 9 Austin Peay (W 31-10)

sept. 16 Cincinnati (L 21-17)

sept. 23 @ Central Michigan (W 31-14)

sept. 30 @ Notre Dame

oct. 7 Bowling Green

oct. 14 @ Kent State

oct. 21 Buffalo

oct. 31 @ Ohio

nov. 7 Akron

nov. 15 Eastern Michigan

nov. 21 @ Ball State

Last week’s 38-18 win over michigan state was notre dame’s best game yet.

offensively, the Irish found a balance they had lacked in their previous two games, and they did it against a defense far superior to Temple’s.

defensively, the Irish made big plays when they needed to and forced three timely turnovers, continuing to formulate an identity on that side of the ball.

This week’s opponent, miami (oh), shouldn’t be taken lightly. Gus ragland’s 8-3 record as the redhawks’ starting quarterback more than demonstrates miami’s ability to move the ball and put up points. however, so long as notre dame continues to build on last week’s success, it should take care of business come saturday.

FINAL SCORE : notre dame 41, miami (oh) 23

He A d

MIAMI (OH)

A convincing road win over rival michigan state should give Irish fans a sense of optimism about the direction of the 2017 season.

The Irish offense wasn’t blowing up the stat sheet, but it was efficient — especially in the red zone. The defense forced three turnovers, including a pick-six and a forced fumble at the goal line to prevent a sure touchdown.

The biggest question left to answer for brian Kelly and the Irish before notre dame is “back” remains: can they beat a ranked-opponent?

This week will not provide the answer to that question, as miami (oh), while having a solid offense with quarterback Gus ragland, simply doesn’t have the talent to match notre dame for four quarters. It won’t be close, but the redhawks cover the spread.

FINAL SCORE: notre dame 45, m iami ( oh ) 28

n otre d ame fans learned a few keys facts about their team last weekend.

b randon Wimbush can, in fact, pass the ball, and pass it well. The squad’s fourth-string running back has a promising future. And the Irish defense of old is working its way back, proving the 4-8 n otre d ame of 2016 is no more.

e ven though m ichigan s tate wasn’t a particularly good team, the Irish will be challenged even less this week against m iami ( oh ) than they were last week. The r ed h awks may be one of the strongest m Ac teams, and they may have grown leaps and bounds over the course of the past few years, but the Irish are simply too talented to slip up this weekend.

HEAD O

nO. 22 nOTRE Da ME

IRISH PASSING

While Ragland has received praise for leading Miami (OH) to a bowl game last year after starting 0-6, first-year Irish starter Brandon Wimbush has received less kind reviews in his first four starts. Wimbush’s critics who were discouraged by his accuracy in the Boston College game have been silenced for now after a 14-of-20 showing against Michigan State that included accurate passes downfield to Equanimeous St. Brown, Chase Claypool and Durham Smythe.

Claypool’s game versus the Spartans is encouraging, as the Irish have been looking for a clear No. 2 option behind St. Brown for Wimbush to go to. Once regarded as one of the deepest positions for Notre Dame coming into the year, the receiving corps has shrunk in the past weeks. Graduate student transfer Freddie Canteen is out for the year with a torn labrum, and Kelly announced he will redshirt sophomore Javon McKinley. The status of sophomore Kevin Stepherson is unknown heading into Saturday, as his supposed suspension (originally reported by WNDU) should be over after four games.

Miami (OH) comes into Saturday allowing under 200 passing yards per game, and six RedHawks defender have recorded an interception in 2017.

EDGE: NOTRE DAME

IRISH RUSHING

The bread and butter of Notre Dame’s offense in 2017 has been the ground game. The Irish tallied 422 rushing yards in the season’s opening match versus Temple and then topped that with a 515-yard performance against Boston College.

Tobias Hoonhout Associate Sports Editor

From the outside looking in, Notre Dame just keeps getting better and better.

The offense answered its critics by delivering the most balanced attack so far this season this past weekend, as Brandon Wimbush looked as accurate as he’s been for the Irish, and the defense continued forging its identity as a unit that doesn’t give up big plays and forces turnovers.

Notre Dame stadium will be rocking Saturday after two straight road games, and it’s tough to see the Irish not using the atmosphere to their advantage. The Redhawks haven’t played anyone in the same realm as Notre Dame, and a blowout is in the cards.

FINAL SCORE: Notre Dame 48, Miami (OH) 10

Daniel

Sports Writer

Junior Josh Adams leads Notre Dame’s rushing attack, averaging 124 yards per game. Adams leads the team with seven rushing touchdowns with junior Dexter Williams not far behind at four. Wimbush is also a formidable runner in the open field, and he has the secondmost rushing yards on the team through four contests. With third-string sophomore back Tony Jones Jr. sitting out of the Michigan State game with an ankle injury, fourth-string running back Deon McIntosh picked up his first career touchdown for the Irish on a nine-yard scamper.

As far as annual “cupcake” opponents go, Notre Dame’s are consistently among the strongest in the country, and this year should be no exception. Miami (OH) may have struggled more when the Irish agreed to host the RedHawks, but head coach Chuck Martin turned this team into one that could go toe-to-toe with Mississippi State in the St. Petersburg Bowl last year and should be contenders to win the MAC in 2017. In fact, Temple appears to be the true weakest team on the Irish schedule this year.

But the Irish eased past Michigan State last week, and a strong MAC team is still a MAC team. Miami (OH) is too good to be dominated completely, but

challenged.

Miami’s run defense has let up 118 yards per game, but expect that average to go up, as Notre Dame will run early and often behind its elite offensive line.

EDGE: NOTRE DAME

IRISH OFFENSIVE COACHING

As the cries for Ian Book came in on Twitter during the Boston College game, Irish offensive coordinator Chip Long went to what was working: the run game. After Wimbush’s shaky afternoon passing against the Eagles, Long and Brian Kelly deserve credit for Wimbush’s more-settled showing in East Lansing, Michigan. Wimbush didn’t throw for 300 yards, but he didn’t need to.

After the 38-18 win over the Spartans, Notre Dame’s offense looks well-balanced, with a strong run game and a short screen-game setting up longer passes downfield. How good the Irish offense can be will largely depend on Long, Kelly and quarterback coach Tom Rees’ ability to coach Wimbush through his growing pains.

EDGE: NOTRE DAME

IRISH SPECIAL TEAMS

Notre Dame’s kickoffs looked suspect once again at Michigan State. Freshman Jonathan Doerer has had trouble keeping the ball in-bounds, and junior Justin Yoon doesn’t have the strongest leg in college football.

On field goals, Yoon has largely succeeded this year. Yoon missed two attempts versus Temple, but since then has hit all five of his tries, including a 46-yarder versus Michigan State.

EDGE: EVEN

IRISH SCHEDULE (3-1)

Sept. 2 Temple (W 49-16)

Sept. 9 Georgia (L 20-19)

Sept. 16 @ Boston College (W 49-20)

Sept. 23 @ Michigan State (W 38-18)

Sept. 30 Miami (OH)

Oct. 7 @ North Carolina

Oct. 21 USC

Oct. 28 North Carolina State

Nov. 4 Wake Forest

Nov. 11 @ Miami (FL)

Nov. 18 Navy

Nov. 25 @ Stanford

Martin returns to South Bend to face Irish

By DANIEL O’BOYLE sports Writer

o n o ctober 6, 2014, when notre d ame announced that they would host m iami ( oh ) in 2017, r ed h awks head coach c huck m artin didn’t think he’d have to adjust to the idea of hoping the i rish lose.

Yes, he spent four years at notre d ame (3-1) as a coach, including a two-year spell as offensive coordinator that saw the i rish reach the bcs national c hampionship Game.

Yes, he had worked under i rish head coach b rian Kelly at Grand valley state as well, eventually taking over as head coach when Kelly left for c incinnati.

Yes, he grew up as an i rish fan.

b ut it wouldn’t be a problem. it never really occurred to m artin that beating the i rish was an option.

“i didn’t think about it,” m artin said. “i wanted m iami University to experience notre d ame.”

a fter all, losing football games wasn’t something m iami ( oh )’s opponents did. it was reserved for the r ed h awks (2-2, 1-0 mac ).

t hey were good at it. t he best, in fact.

o r they had been, a week before the game was announced.

t hen, two days before it was announced his team would come to notre d ame stadium, m artin won his first game.

it was against lowly U m ass, but it was a win — the first since 2012 for the r ed h awks. When m artin left the i rish and took the r edhawks job — taking a $200,000 pay cut to do so — ending that losing streak, then at 16 games, was the first goal.

t hat ended an F bs -leading 21-game losing streak: the first step in a rebuilding process.

m artin won another game that year, then three in 2015. Last year, a young r ed h awks team seemed like it had taken a step back towards its 2013 self with an 0-6 start.

t hen sophomore quarterback Gus r agland took over the team.

r agland proved masterful at protecting the ball, throwing no interceptions during the regular season. much like m artin’s 2012 offense, the r agland-led r ed h awks avoided mistakes while a talented defense did the rest. notre d ame senior linebacker Greer m artini said r agland’s decision-making should make him a difficult quarterback to play against.

“i think that he’s a smart kid,” m artini said. “he can run the ball, is athletic, and i think he makes a lot of really good decisions.”

t he r ed h awks started winning games again, not two or three this time, but all six

of their remaining regularseason contests. a t 6-6, they earned an achievement the i rish did not: a place in a bowl game. m iami ( oh ) couldn’t beat the sec ’s m ississippi state, but proved they were capable of matching up with Power-Five opposition in a 17-16 defeat. i rish head coach

b rian Kelly said his team is well-prepared for m iami ( oh ), not simply because of their success last season but because he has put a focus on not overlooking any opponents.

“We’ve only built one mindset,” Kelly said. “it’s to dominate our opponent. i don’t know that there’s any way for us to turn back from what we’ve been building this since January. t here’s only one kind of performance that is acceptable, and only one kind of form of preparation that we’re going to begin with this

team each and every week. We reset on monday, and we go back to work on how we want to approach this week. t his is really about inner focus on how we prepare for our next opponent, whether it’s m iami University or the University of m iami.”

t his year, the r ed h awks, who returned 17 starters from last year, opened up with a 2-2 start, beating a ustin Peay and c entral m ichigan and losing to c incinnati after giving up 18 points in fourth quarter, including a pick-six with a little over a minute left.

a lthough the r ed h awks defense has been a highlight in 2017, recording nine turnovers including six interceptions in its opening four games and giving up only 19 points per game, r agland’s efficiency has decreased. t he junior quarterback has already thrown two

interceptions, both returned for touchdowns, this year and his completion percentage has plummeted from 64.2 percent to 52.6 percent. however, i rish senior linebacker n yles morgan said he would continue to take morgan seriously.

“i think anybody who plays d ivision i football is a threat,” morgan said. “We don’t take anybody lightly. We’re not that team that thinks, ‘øh, yeah, he’s okay.’ We take everybody seriously. he’s very accurate. he’s very athletic, as well, and he’s, i’ll say, one of the better players on their team from an offensive standpoint.”

d espite m artin’s many connections to notre d ame, there is one that m artin has a sentimental attachment to above the rest: the late a ra Parseghian, who coached at his alma mater, m iami ( oh ) before winning three national

championships with the i rish. “ t he one keepsake i have in my entire career is a letter from a ra Parseghian,” m artin said. “i’m not a memorabilia guy. i’m not a guy that’s very sentimental at all. i don’t have anything in my office. b ut there was a note from a ra when i took this job, that he wanted to see me get ‘ t he c radle of c oaches’ turned around.”

“Last year, when we had a historic run, when we went from 0-6 to 6-6, he wrote me another note about how proud he was and getting m iami football back to where it belongs,” m artin said.

“it means a lot to me, not because i knew a ra very well, but just because he was my childhood idol.”

Contact Daniel O’Boyle at doboyle1@nd.edu

Notre Dame’s strong start boosts recruiting

By ELIZABETH GREASON sports e ditor

all eyes were on both the irish and the spartans on saturday as both squads looked to prove they had left last season in the past — especially to recruits. but it was notre dame that came out on top in that battle, leaving michigan state fans fleeing spartan stadium as early as the second quarter.

notre dame (3-1) took another step back into the good graces of prospective recruits with its resounding win at michigan state (2-1), according to blue and Gold recruiting analyst david mcKinney.

“i think a dominant win like that over a big-name team like michigan state will catch people’s eye,” mcKinney said. “Kalon Gervin was there, a cornerback visiting michigan state who was formerly committed to notre dame and visited notre dame for the Georgia game unofficially.

“i don’t know what specific impact it will have, if any, but it’s always good to go out on the road and put on a performance like that. i mentioned last week that [irish defensive coordinator] mike elko’s defense has really caught the eye of a lot of defensive guys, Kalon Gervin and houston Griffith included, so again,

specific repercussions, i’m not entirely sure. but it’s always good to get a dominant win like that and show that the program is headed in the right direction.”

notre dame will take a bit of a break from the heat of the recruiting season this weekend, as miami (oh) gives the irish a gap from the top-tier, marquee matchups that headlines their schedule, such as Georgia and, on the road, michigan state.

mcKinney said the irish will focus their interest on a few main prospective student-athletes this weekend, as opposed to the long lists of recruits they have been hosting so far this season, mostly due to the caliber of the opponent.

“it’s not going to be a huge weekend in terms of recruiting, it’s not looked at as a huge game like Georgia or Usc or michigan state, last year, with these big lists of guys coming in,” mcKinney said. “There is one guy, a safety … from alexandria, virginia, his name is Litchfield ajavon. he’s a 2019 guy, three-star, a really, really talented guy in the junior class. he’ll be in town.

“There’s a class of 2020 wide receiver guy named Gee scott coming to town. he’s getting a lot of early hype. he’s got early offers from a lot of schools. at this point,

it’s not a huge week in recruiting because they like to center themselves around the bigger games like Georgia and Usc and the like.”

While there may only be two main recruits on campus this weekend when the irish take on the redhawks, mcKinney noted there will be no lack of attention on notre dame from the rest of the country and the rest of notre dame’s prospective recruits. The irish cannot let saturday turn into a trap game if they want to keep up the momentum they have been building with recruits so far this season, mcKinney noted.

“it’s miami of ohio, so they need to do what a team like notre dame is supposed to do with a team like miami of ohio,” mcKinney said. “obviously, a big win and another step in the right direction for the program. and even the guys that aren’t on campus — there are guys that are watching notre dame every week, the home games are all broadcasted on nbc, so they’re easily accessible. so, every win that notre dame gets is a step in the right direction for the team and another chance to impress recruits out there, whether they’re on campus or not.”

Contact Elizabeth Greason at egreason@nd.edu

cautious optimism is in order for nd

Marek Mazurek a ssistant managing e ditor

o ver the past year, this weekly i nsider column has been negative more often than not.

That’s what a 4-8 season will do.

but after a 38-18 win over michigan state in which every unit played extremely well with good coaching, there’s really nothing negative to say.

a big win in a rivalry game tends to breed excessive optimism and it’s not hard to see why.

The irish are now 3-1 and many, including this columnist, expect them to be 4-1 after saturday’s contest versus miami (oh) (2-2, 1-0 mac). a nd next week’s game against a struggling 1-3 north carolina team looks easily winnable as well.

national polls only added to the optimism, with the a P poll slotting notre dame in at no. 22 in the country.

none of this is to say that there shouldn’t be some sense of optimism for irish fans. The michigan state victory was dominant and notre dame hasn’t had that type of notable road win in a long time.

but there’s a word irish fans should put in front of their optimism: “cautious.”

because for all the talent the irish have, and for how well they played in the second half against boston college and against michigan state, playing at that level against a marquee opponent for a full four quarters has been a struggle.

Just three games ago, the irish just couldn’t quite get over that hump against Georgia. a nd while the irish should be 5-1 going into their matchup against Usc, expecting them to upset the currently-no. 5 Trojans is not in line with the “cautious” part of cautious optimism.

The last time notre dame beat a ranked opponent was halloween of 2015. For context, barack obama still had over a year left in his presidency the last time brian Kelly and notre dame beat then-no. 21 Temple.

The irish will be heavy favorites in their next two games, but even if they handily defeat miami (oh) and north carolina, we may not learn much about Kelly’s team in the coming weeks.

beyond notre dame’s propensity to lose versus marquee opponents, the 2017 irish still have some question marks.

The suggestions that junior quarterback brandon Wimbush should be benched for sophomore ian book are silly. but questioning how well Wimbush will perform when the irish absolutely need to throw the ball to win is fair. however, it’s hard to imagine Wimbush will be called on to win the game through the air versus the redhawks.

The secondary played admirably against the spartans with a pick-six and a key forced fumble and recovery, but since the boston college game, opposing teams have had extended success throwing the ball over the middle of the field. again, the quarterbacks and receivers on the miami (oh) and north carolina rosters shouldn’t present too big of a challenge, but sam darnold and Usc will. With all that being said, cautious optimism isn’t a bad place to be, especially considering last year’s 4-8 fiasco. it’s unreasonable to expect a program to go from 4-8 one year to beating every ranked team on its schedule the next, no matter how much tradition notre dame has. To become a championship contender, a culture of success has to be built and the first step on that staircase is dominating lesser teams consistently. so far in 2017, notre dame has done that.

For the first time since 2015, irish fans should expect the team to win if vegas says so. in the boston college game, the irish blew open a game that was close at halftime by making key plays and showing grit for the first time since facing syracuse in october of 2016. a nd for the first time since nov. 14, 2016, notre dame won a game against a Power-5 opponent by 20 or more points. if you’re an irish fan, enjoy the michigan state win. enjoy the expected miami (oh) win too. Just don’t let the 3-1, 4-1 or even 5-1 record blind you to the uphill battle notre dame faces in getting back to a playoff contender.

Contact Marek Mazurek at mmazurek@nd.edu

The opinions in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.