Print Edition of the Irish Insider for Friday, September 8, 2017

Georgia clash is critical for 2017 success

Tobias Hoonhout Associate sports editor

As the saying goes, it’s out of the frying pan and into the fire.

The Irish were able to overcome all of their offseason question marks last weekend in convincing fashion, as n otre d ame dominated Temple on both sides of the ball in a performance reminiscent of the home games of 2015. The run game was unstoppable, the defense didn’t have any major hiccups and b randon Wimbush looked like the real deal.

b ut before anyone jumps to ordain the Irish as a bonafide, dark horse playoff contender, Team 129 has a major hurdle to clear: Georgia comes to town this weekend as the representative of the big, bad sec (remember Alabama in 2012?), and it presents a huge test.

Georgia is the makeor-break gauge for n otre d ame’s season.

Win, and the ghosts from b rian Kelly’s haunted season last year are finally gone. b ut lose, and the Irish are right back to where they started.

If you look at the numbers last season, you could make the argument that the Irish were very unlucky: n otre d ame was 1-7 in one-score games, and if some things had gone differently, maybe that record could’ve been reversed.

b ut the reality is, n otre d ame lost a number of key contributors from the 2015 Fiesta b owl team, particularly on defense. The season started on a sour note with the arrests of m ax r edfield and co., and the Irish failed to make n otre d ame s tadium the bastion it was in 2015. The Irish only went 2-4 on their home turf last season, after going undefeated in the same capacity the year before.

For b rian Kelly’s teams, the key to a successful season is protecting home field. In the three seasons n otre d ame has finished ranked under b rian Kelly — 2012, 2013 and 2015 — n otre d ame’s combined record at home is 17-1. That’s right — 17 wins, one loss. And while a home win against Temple is a great start to the season, the Irish, to be frank, have bigger fish to fry.

Games against teams like Georgia are the ones where n otre d ame has the opportunity to prove it has the ability to make a run at the playoff. And placed in the context of a home game,

n otre d ame needs to win. h istory has shown it to be a co-requisite for success under b rian Kelly, and this early in the season, a loss would sweep any momentum the Irish have right out the door.

A quick glance reveals another interesting point. Assuming the Irish beat Georgia, four games stand between the Irish and U sc Four games that, on paper, n otre d ame can win. While undoubtedly difficult, it’s feasible that the Irish could finish a run of away at b oston c ollege, away to m ichigan s tate, home to m iami ( oh ) and away to n orth c arolina a perfect 4-0. c ombined with two wins against Temple and Georgia, and the Irish are suddenly 6-0, welcoming U sc to town in a potential top-10 matchup.

That’s why this game is so important. Win, and n otre d ame can circle the U sc game on the calendar. The mentality for the four games can shift from one of having to go to war every week to one of taking care of business.

s ure, the Irish would be foolish to take any game lightly. b ut to be among the best, n otre d ame needs to be in a position where there aren’t question marks about games that the Irish can and should win. Look at o hio

s tate-Indiana last week. For all the huffing and puffing the h oosiers did, the b uckeyes stood firm, stayed cool, calm and collected, and eventually dispatched their opponent with a ruthlessness only the great

programs can show.

Georgia is the prequel to U sc n otre d ame needs to prove that last season was a fluke, and that to predict an Irish win takes more than just a coin flip. b rian Kelly and his team need

consistency, and there’s no greater measure of consistency than being able to beat good teams at home. A win against the b ulldogs would go a long way to fill that need, and it can perhaps vault the Irish into a season few will forget.

PAId AdverTIsemen T

Contact Tobias Hoonhout at thoonhou@nd.edu

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

bULLDOGS pASSING

This week, all eyes have been on Georgia’s quarterback situation. s ophomore starter Jacob e ason had high expectations heading into the season. b ut those expectations will be put on hold, as e ason suffered a sprained ligament in his left knee against Appalachian s tate and will sit out s aturday’s contest.

In his place, freshman Jake Fromm will make his first career start. o n paper, the change benefits notre d ame, but Fromm looked just as effective, if not moreso, as e ason in the limited time he received last week.

however, the last time a true freshman quarterback won a game at notre d ame s tadium was in 2014 when r eggie b onnafon led Louisville to a 31-28 victory.

The Irish secondary looked passable against Temple, but there were still many cases of open receivers. The o wls weren’t able to capitalize on those chances, but a top-15 team like Georgia will.

s enior corner n ick Watkins looked solid and his sophomore counterpart Julian Love did as well, but the safety play from d evin s tudstill, Jalen e lliott and n ick c oleman seemed suspect.

While Fromm is a freshman, the Irish defensive backs cannot afford to get overconfident.

eDGe : e V eN

bULLDOGS RUSHING

The Irish held Temple to just 85 rushing yards on 37 carries in their season opener, but the o wls did not have n ick c hubb or s ony m ichel in their backfield.

Georgia’s offensive line lacks experience, but c hubb and m ichel have rushed for nearly 6,000 yards between them over the course of their college careers and combined for 183 yards against Appalachian s tate’s stout run defense. If c hubb and m ichel get worn out, the b ulldogs can call on four-star sophomore e lijah holyfield or five-star freshman d’Andre s wift to continue to move the ball on the ground.

The Irish showed a surprising amount of front-seven depth against Temple,

with 10 different players recording a tackle for loss, including freshman defensive linemen Khalid Kareem and m yron Tagovailoa-Amosa, but they haven’t seen a pair of backs like this before.

e DGe : GeORGIA

bULLDOGS OFFe NSIV e COACHING

Georgia head coach Kirby s mart is much better known for his work on the defensive side of the ball, where he led Alabama’s dominant defense from 20082015. o ffensive decisions mostly come back to Jim c haney, who joined the b ulldogs alongside s mart after stints with Purdue, Tennessee, Arkansas, Pittsburgh and in the n FL with the s t. Louis r ams.

Georgia finished 11th in the sec last year in points, offensive yardage and yards per play, all despite two elite running backs.

m ike e lko was one of the most soughtafter defensive coordinators in the nation this offseason for a reason, and his scheme proved effective against Temple.

e DGe : NOt R e DA me

bULLDOGS SpeCIAL te A mS

one of notre dame’s glaring flaws from 2016 was kick coverage on special teams. special teams coordinator brian Polian is an upgrade to the position so far, and the coverage units showed no blatant mistakes versus the owls.

Georgia redshirt sophomore rodrigo blankenship returns as the bulldogs’ starting placekicker. blankenship went 14-of-18 on field goals in 2016.

e DGe : e V e N

bULLDOGS SCHeDULe (1-0)

sept. 2 Appalachian State (W 31-10)

sept. 9 @ Notre Dame

sept. 16 Samford

sept. 23 Mississippi State

sept. 30 @ Tennessee

oct. 7 @ Vanderbilt

oct. 14 Missouri

oct. 28 Florida

nov. 4 South Carolina

nov. 11 @ Auburn

nov. 18 Kentucky

nov. 25 @ Georgia Tech

notre dame looked good against Temple on saturday. The offense ran for 422 yards en route to a 49-point outburst, and the defense didn’t break too much, holding the owls to 16 points.

but some of that has to be attributed to how poor the owls looked as well. The secondary had its fair share of hiccups the owls couldn’t capitalize on, and Justin Yoon’s inability to put a field goal through the uprights was concerning. Georgia, meanwhile, returns its entire front seven from last year and perhaps the best backfield tandem in college football. The Irish offense against the bulldogs defense will be a true test of strength against strength. With all things being equal, it will come down to coaching. brian Kelly’s record against top-15 squads in the last five seasons? 4-10.

FINAL SCORE: Georgia 28, notre dame 24

He A d

editor

As the famous saying goes, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting a different result.

That definition applies to brian Kelly in matchups against ranked opponents. Kelly is 4-10 against top15 opponents in the past five seasons. If notre dame wants to get back to the glory days of 1988, its performance in big matchups is the most glaring overall issue it must rectify.

s eeing is believing, and Kelly has to prove he can win the big matchups before fans should get their hopes up.

Watch for Georgia to dominate the time of possession with an excellent backfield and grind out a close win.

FINAL SCORE: Georgia 31, notre dame 24

notre dame will ride the momentum from last week’s win into the Georgia matchup without issue. sure, Georgia is one of the strongest teams the Irish will face this season — it has two of the best running backs in the country and one of the top, most experienced front sevens you’ll ever see. but the Irish have one of the best, if not the best, offensive lines in the nc AA, and their running game was stellar against the o wls.

Granted, Temple was not a good team, and the bulldogs might be a great one. but this is notre dame’s chance to prove it has left last year in the past — and it will do so. It will be a close one, with inexperienced, but talented, quarterbacks on either side of the ball — and the

will come out on top.

HEAD O

NOTRE Da ME ON NBC

IRISH PASSING

Much of the hype surrounding Notre Dame in the offseason has revolved around junior quarterback Brandon Wimbush. And in his first start against Temple, he looked good. Wimbush went 17-of-30 for 184 yards and two touchdowns. In addition, Wimbush rushed for 106 yards and another touchdown to boot.

Aside from a few drops, the Irish receivers looked solid as well. Four different tight ends saw playing time, and junior Equanimeous St. Brown again showed why he has a bright future in college and in the NFL.

In the secondary, Georgia has heady, experienced backs. There isn’t a ton of NFL-level talent, but Wimbush will have to be smart with his reads to avoid turnovers (he threw one interception against the Owls).

If the Bulldogs’ pass rush hits home, the Irish offense could be in for a rough day, but the Georgia secondary could very well be facing the most talented group of receivers it plays all year.

Wimbush will be forced to make plays through the air against Georgia, but he is fully capable of doing so.

EDGE: NOTRE DAME

IRISH RUSHING

422 yards on the ground certainly silences a lot of critics who claim Kelly doesn’t committ enough to the running game. The stat is gaudy, but how good is the Irish ground game really? Temple won’t win 10 games like it did the last two years, and Georgia returns each member of its front seven from last year.

A lot will rest on the shoulders of the Irish offensive line and captains Mike McGlinchey and Quenton Nelson, and if the Irish can rely on junior Josh Adams to convert in short-yardage situations, then the complexion of the game changes.

But the front seven, and defensive grit in general, has been the bread and butter of Georgia football in the recent past. Graduate student nose tackle John Atkins, especially, is a force to be reckoned with, putting up eight tackles and three sacks in last year’s Liberty Bowl.

Tobias Hoonhout Associate Sports Editor

Yes, Georgia has two incredible running backs. Yes, its defense is deep and talented. But there are still cracks in the Bulldog’s facade. Georgia will field a relatively inexperienced offensive line and a quarterback making his first career start in arguably the biggest game at Notre Dame Stadium in the last year-and-a -half.

This is the perfect chance for the Irish to prove they’ve finally escaped their demons. A loss, however, and suddenly the subsequent two-game road trip looks a lot more treacherous. While I have no doubt this one will be a nail-biter, I just have a feeling that Team 129 is itching to prove that Notre Dame is back.

FINAL SCORE: Notre Dame 31, Georgia 30

Against Temple, the Irish proved that they were far from last year’s disaster.

The Irish offense looked great in junior quarterback Brandon Wimbush’s first start, and the defense was vastly improved from 2016.

But Georgia is a great team too, with the best tandem of running backs in the country, a vastly experienced front seven and a quarterback who looked impressive in his first game. A return to form for the Irish doesn’t necessarily mean they’re better than the Bulldogs, even with home-field advantage on their side.

While both teams bring strong run games, Georgia’s looks just a little more reliable for consistent firstdown pickups than Notre Dame’s big-play-threatening attack.

make the difference.

How well Tommy Kraemer and Robert Hainsey hold up at the right tackle position will also be a key matchup to watch.

EDGE: EVEN

IRISH OFFENSIVE COACHING

Brian Kelly and offensive coordinator Chip Long had Notre Dame’s offense running like a well-oiled machine last Saturday against Temple. The Irish scored just 33 seconds into the game on two plays and the Irish scored when they needed to in order to put, and then keep, the game out of reach for the Owls.

How well Kelly and quarterbacks coach Tom Rees prepare Wimbush for the Bulldogs’ defensive looks will be a telling factor in the game.

Kirby Smart is no stranger to facing big-time offenses. After winning championships as the defensive coordinator at Alabama under Nick Saban, Smart has seen some of the best offenses college football has to offer over the years. With an experienced defense in the second year of Smart’s system, nothing will come easy for the Irish on Saturday.

EDGE: EVEN

IRISH SPECIAL TEAMS

The most worrying part of Notre Dame’s blowout victory was the fact that junior kicker Justin Yoon missed two field goals from inside 48 yards. Yoon’s confidence, and his range, will be something Kelly has to factor in when his team gets into Georgia’s side of the field.

The Irish return game did appear to be improved versus the Owls, but Georgia’s special teams unit poses a stiffer challenge.

EDGE: GEORGIA

IRISH SCHEDULE (1-0)

Sept. 2 Temple (W 49-16)

Sept. 9 Georgia

Sept. 16 @ Boston College

Sept. 23 @ Michigan State

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

ND O-line ready to duel Georgia’s front seven

By ELIZABETH GREASON sports editor

earlier this week, Georgia head coach Kirby smart referred to the irish offensive line as “as good looking of an o-line as you’ll play ever.”

after leading the irish (1-0) to 422 rushing yards against Temple on saturday, one of the best offensive lines in the country is hoping to keep up the strong performance against one of the top front-sevens in the country.

irish senior left guard Quenton nelson said the offensive line’s success against the owls, and potential continued success throughout the season, can be attributed to a stubbornness offensive coordinator chip Long has instilled in the offense this season.

“We started out pretty strong [against Temple], our first run was a touchdown, so we started out strong,” nelson said. “but we had some runs that weren’t too successful and coach Long stuck with it, and that’s what you’ve got to do. You’re not going to get 10 yards or a breakout play, but if you stick with it, and with this offensive line, i think you will. i think we’ve got five guys that are working very hard every day in practice and it’s transferring to the game is what it looks like.”

however, this weekend’s matchup will not exactly be against an opponent of the same caliber as Temple. The bulldogs (1-0) have one of the best and most experienced defenses in the country, which will test the notre dame ground game, on which there was a heavy emphasis saturday. nelson noted there are definite improvement the offensive line needs to make over the course of the week to prepare for Georgia.

“The o-line, we had some things that wouldn’t [be] good enough against Georgia, when

looking at the Temple film,” nelson said. “We’re working our best to make those slight adjustments or sometimes corrections. Georgia plays a totally different defense as well. They’ve got their three down with a two-four rise.”

irish graduate student left tackle mike mcGlinchey said the squad’s success against the owls does not guarantee the same result against the bulldogs, although he feels he and his coworkers on the line have put in the preparation to put up a strong performance.

“[The Temple game] was awesome. it was a lot of fun,” mcGlinchey said. “You know, that’s the kind of game we like to play, we want to play. Four hundred some yards is no small feat, but we had a lot of mistakes that we need to clean up, and if we don’t clean them up, it’s going to be a longer saturday against Georgia. it’s just one of those things that, yeah, we had a great job on saturday, we rushed for whatever many yards, we had three guys [rush for 100 yards], whatever. but it doesn’t guarantee anything against Georgia, and we’ve just got to go back and try and do it again.”

mcGlinchey said in order to protect his teammates from the Georgia defense, each member of the offensive line will need to keep on his man.

“They’re big, they’re strong, they’re fast and they play sound football,” mcGlinchey said. “They’re going to do a great job of using their hands, getting off blocks and we just have to do our job to stay on them. They’re going to be a group that plays real hard and a group that plays real fast and they’re just going to bring it on saturday and we’ve got to do the same.”

despite the hype surrounding the talent of notre dame’s offensive line, the five players up front are not completely set for the year — as there is still competition at

the right tackle position between sophomore Tommy Kraemer and freshman robert hainsey. although Kraemer got the start against Temple, hainsey also saw the field and mcGlinchey said he was pleased with the progress he has seen both of the underclassmen make.

“i see a lot of myself in those two,” mcGlinchey said. “They’re at that point where — in your career with [offensive line coach harry] hiestand, it’s kind of the make-or-break point. They’re getting thrown into the starting lineup. They’re the youngest guy on the line … they take their lumps for sure each and every day at practice. but it’s about

how you respond to that, and i joked with them before the game because Tommy and rob both asked me last week, like ‘what’s it like, man, what’s this going to be like on saturday?’, and i said, ‘to be honest with you, it’s a lot easier than Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, because the stress that you’re dealing with isn’t really hard-nosed stress that we deal with throughout the week.’

“but it’s easy because you’re free. You can play on saturdays, and the two of them, i see a lot of myself, and not necessarily my game, but definitely the things that they’re experiencing right now for sure.”

irish junior running back

dexter Williams had nothing but praise for the offensive line — especially after the 124 yards and two touchdowns he rushed for against Temple.

“if you give me that size of a hole, it just really opens everything up for me,” Williams said. “Just seeing those holes being made, i could tell the progress of the offensive line and coach hiestand working with them day in and day out. i could see how they’re getting better. The chemistry is just getting better, they’re getting stronger and each and every day they’re giving their all.”

Contact Elizabeth Greason at egreason@nd.edu

total tackles and also had one tackle for loss. The

for three sacks and one forced fumble in the