Game Observations - Offense: Notre Dame Beats Clemson

Notre Dame battled, and it wasn't always pretty in the second half, but the Irish offense showed tremendous poise and heart as they rallied back and ultimately pull out the 47-40 win over Clemson

The inability of the offense to put points on the board in the second half almost cost the Irish, as did a blown third-down call late in the game, but when Notre Dame got one final chance in regular the Irish got the job done.

I'll have plenty of analysis and criticisms in my grades on Monday and in my Key Takeaways on Sunday, but right now the focus will be on how the team played and the heart this squad showed.

One criticism I will throw out now is the red zone offense. If the Irish can figure out a way to improve their red zone offense the unit will be much, much better, and the Irish might have won this game more convincingly and in regulation.

Now on to my analysis:

*** Notre Dame came out early and established the ground attack, rushing for 144 yards in the first half. In the second quarter, Clemson made adjustments in an attempt to combat the run game, and the Irish offense did not respond well to it.

*** Notre Dame ran the ball just eight times in the second half for 26 yards prior to the final drive, all but abandoning the run. To make the situation worse, Notre Dame didn't make the necessary adjustments to attack what Clemson was doing to take away the run, which was a heavy dose of inside stunts and run blitzes. Outside of a few crossing routes, there wasn't anything to make Clemson pay for its aggressive play.

*** Clemson was able to force the ball outside, and the Irish pass offense just wasn't good enough to get the job done, until the final drive of regulation.

*** I'll have some critiques and criticisms of Ian Book's play in the grades on Monday, but I'll hold off on those for now because the Irish quarterback deserved to be celebrated right now. Book absolutely competed his butt off in this game, and when the Irish were backed up deep and it looked as though they were going to drop the game, he made some of the biggest throws of his life to send this game into overtime.

*** His mistakes in this game weren't out of the moment being too big, they were all coachable and correctable. His poise in this game was outstanding, and when he got one final chance to salvage the season he stepped up.

*** Book competed for 60 minutes, and he played even harder in overtime. Book made plays with his legs in overtime, both as a runner and scrambler, hitting tight end Michael Mayer for a 15-yard gain on a scramble.

*** Book made some big time throws in the game. On one particular third-down play, he actually didn't read out the play the way I would want, but he threw a perfect strike to Tommy Tremble to move the chains. When he did attack downfield he did so effectively, and his red zone throwing was much better in the second half.

*** Running back Kyren Williams carried the offense early, with his 65-yard touchdown run giving the Irish the early lead. Williams ran with authority and maximized yards. His pass blocking was where he took the most vicious hits. Clemson blitzed all game long, and Williams had to step into the pocket constantly and take on hard charging linebackers. His pick ups resulted in Book having time to make a couple of crucial downfield throws.

*** Senior wide receiver Javon McKinley played an outstanding game for the Irish. Not only did he made a lot of plays in the pass game, McKinley also blocked extremely well and had multiple pancake blocks.

*** Notre Dame needed offensive players to step up and make big-time plays, and McKinley made two of the biggest for the Irish. His 28-yard gain on a back shoulder throw in the first quarter set up a field goal that made it 10-0 in favor of the Irish. He also made a brilliant diving catch for a 45-yard gain, but that drive ended with a fumble into the end zone.

*** Senior Avery Davis had the best game of his career as well, and he picked the perfect time for it. Davis played well all game, but he was especially good on the series that tied the game late in the fourth quarter. Davis showed good sideline awareness on an out cut that was reviewed and ruled a catch, and his post route technique was brilliant on the 53-yard gain. He widened the safety outside, got him thinking corner and then smoked him inside on the post. Davis also did a tremendous job working back inside to find an opening on the touchdown reception that tied the game.

*** Veteran Ben Skowronek battled and played hard, but his drop in the fourth quarter was a big blow. The ball from Book was a tad high, but that's a very catchable ball, and it was a money play that Notre Dame needed and he did not come down with the catch.

*** Freshman tight end Michael Mayer had some big mistakes early in the game, including dropping a pass in the red zone that might have gone for six if he held onto it. His blocking was also inconsistent early on, and he had a false start on an early 4th-and-1 that forced the Irish to settle for a field goal.

*** As the game wore on, the talented tight end started to make more and more plays. Mayer worked the middle of the field effectively and his ability to make plays after the catch played a big part in the Irish victory.

*** OC Tommy Rees made tight end Tommy Tremble a key part of the Irish offense. His numbers (3 catches, 32 yards) don't do justice to how well he played in this game. When he was targeted Tremble stepped up and made big plays, and he was open a lot more than this numbers reflect. In the run game the junior tight end did what he's done all year, blocked extremely well both technically and from a physicality standpoint.

*** Up front, the Irish line had a lot thrown at it and they held up. The ability to push Clemson off the ball early in the game set the tone for this contest. Clemson was forced to overload the box in an attempt to slow down the run game, and even then the Irish were still able to get movement at times. It wasn't always perfect, but the Irish line played outstanding football against the Tigers.

*** Clemson also heated Notre Dame up with a lot of second and third level pressures, and for the most part the pass protection was sound. The tackles had a few losses on the edge in pass protection, but they weren't free rusher bad losses.

*** Late in the game the pass protection was especially good, and the ability to keep a body on a body against overload pressures was a big reason Book was able to get out of the pocket and make plays with his legs.

*** I'll dive deeper into the film this weekend to get a better overall feel for individual performances, but as a unit this was an impressive performance against a very good defense.

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