USC at ND Breakdown
Image from: AP Photo/Joe Raymond
Overall (Grade D)
I am about to go on a rant. I beg for forgiveness by you and Anhtuan.
Really?? I waited 2 weeks for this! All the hype, all the talking, all the press conferences, the new helmets, for that? All they forgot was the green jerseys to complete this embarrassment. It’s one thing to lose to a superior team with outstanding coaches. It’s another to lose to a team coached by Lane Kiffin, and being out-physicalled by a soft SC team, with no running game.
The debacle was made even worse by the cheap and awkward attempt to pipe music into the stadium, and make the atmosphere more ‘rabid’….Here is a hint: Win consistently, then you will see the atmosphere improve. Guaranteed!
This coaching staff had no game plan, the players looked rusty and intimidated. SC hit them in the mouth, and they flinched. The worst mistake here was the awful preparation by the staff. Instead of relaxing and just cruising, they should have done what was executed last year before the Utah game.
Ok, we are down by 17, but a strong and physical game got us to this point. Why panic and make ND one dimensional? Jonas Gray had 2 carries!!! Really??
B Kelly flat out quit on the 4Q. He left TOs on the table. That is inexcusable. That’s a horrible lesson to teach players and youngsters. He wasn’t the only one, the team quit in the 4Q as well.
To me it seems that ND has lost its ways. It starts with the administration and AD offices. They are after the cash that is the Notre Dame name, but there is nothing behind it. They are living off the past, and they clinging to it, trying to milk it to the end. Maybe they realize that the time is limited, maybe they are unaware that while still profitable, the well will dry up and then what?
Fans keep clamoring for change, for a new coach, blah, blah, blah. The only voice that ND hears is the voice of money. As long as the greens keep flowing in, ND will remain in the status quo. ND does not care about the individual fan or alum. They know that there will be another one to take its place. But with the lack of production on the field, there will be less and less fans.
ND fans can wait for that, and that will take 10 to 20 years or we can accelerate this process. It is up to you.
I am making my stand. I am not going to games and I am withholding any donations to the university. I have stopped purchases of ND merchandise.
Back to football, ND better regroup fast, Navy is coming to town. Hint: Fire up the PS3!!!
Positives:
- Jonas Gray. His ypc was double digits. Why was he given only 2 carries?
- Offensive Line. They gave the QBs time to throw.
- Gold helmets.They looked good.
Negatives:
- Coaches. Just plain lazy
- Artificial music. Just plain cheap
- Coaches. Just plain bad.
Dayne Crist: I feel bad for the kid. Everytime he touched the ball for ND, bad things happened. It started in 2009 against WSU and it ended Saturday night. He is fine representative of the university and does not deserve this. B. Kelly should act with more class and treat Crist better than he has in his press conference.
The Bonehead Call(s) of the Day:
The bye week. What has this coaching staff done the past 2 weeks?
Offense (Grade C):
Tommy Rees (Grade C-): The zone scheme by SC flustered him for the 2nd year in a row. Looked rusty and not in sync with the WRs. His deep ball leaves a lot to be desired, because of that SC focused on the underneath stuff. ND was done. Till Tommy can hit the deep ball, the blueprint is out there.
Andrew Hendrix (No Grade): Not that many series. No impact.
RBs (Grade C): Apparently the coaching staff forgot that teams are allowed to run the football….The fumble is on Wood. I am not going to start on Gray…
O-line (Grade C+): Great pass protection. Gave Tommy time to throw. They were not given the opportunity to run block.
WRs and TEs (Grade C): Looked rusty. Did not have A game, nor B game for that matter. The only one that seemed to want it was T. Eifert. Everyone else, just went through the motions.
Defense (Grade C-):
DL (Grade C+): Did they play? Completely disappeared. No pass rush, no run defense. They looked soft.
LBs (Grade C-): Very disappointing. They got caught in the blocks by the lineman. Took bad angles and awful discipline.
DBs (Grade C-): Soft in coverage and took huge cushions. Safeties looked late in a lot of passes.
Special Teams (Grade C-): Not relevant. Hit the only FG
Coaching (Grade F——): Failed miserably. Game plan was a disaster. Team was not prepared. Time to re-evaluate strategy and plans.
What about GAIII’s return for a TD? That should bump the special teams grade up a bit?
Also, I think the reason ND didn’t call any timeouts at the end was because they were always in 2nd and short. Why call a time-out when they’re about to get a first down?
I forgot about the ko return for a td. Good catch.
On the TOs. As I recall, SC had at least 2 instances where it was 3rd & 5 and 3rd & 6. Not only they did not call the timeout, they stayed in a base defense, with no run blitz. There was not attempt to stop SC.
Are you gonna up the ST grade then?