Game Observations - Offense: Notre Dame Beats Boston College
Notre Dame's offense overcame a sloppy start and turnovers to put together what outside of that was a dominant performance.
Here is my immediately post-game analysis of the offense:
*** This was by far the best gameplan and play-calling performance by offensive coordinator Tommy Rees. Rees did a masterful job mixing up the tempo early on, and also using a variety of personnel groupings and alignments to get BC out of rhythm on defense. We've seen that early on in past games, but the difference today was Rees kept that going throughout the game, even beyond the script.
*** Boston College was keying on the run early, and Rees used that against them. An early bootleg allowed Avery Davis to get behind the linebackers for a 22-yard gain, and Rees used the backs effectively to make plays as well. We saw jet sweeps to get outside the defense, we saw designed quarterback runs and the play-action and movement throws were effective as well.
*** Using the read zone plays was also a big part of the run game success for Notre Dame. I was impressed that Rees stuck with it, because the first fumble of the game was a miscommunication on a read play. Rees didn't let that mistake take him off his game, and we saw a number of big runs on quarterback keeps on the backside of read plays, which exploited BC's aggressiveness.
*** Notre Dame used empty formations and free releases from the backs effectively in this game as well, which was a welcome adjustment.
*** The first red zone series was a same-old-same-old situation, but after that the red zone offense got much better. The execution was better and there were more effectively called red zone pass plays.
*** Of course, the big draw back from the game were the three turnovers, all by fumbles. Notre Dame has put the ball on the ground a bit too much this season, and that was most evident in this game. The defense bailed them out twice, but this will need to get addressed during the bye week.
*** QB Ian Book followed up his strong performance against Clemson with an outstanding game against Boston College. Book threw for 283 yards and led the offense with 85 rushing yards, accounting for four touchdowns. This performance might not get as much recognition as his game against Clemson last week, but I believe if you evaluate Book's performance on a snap-by-snap basis this was the best game of his career.
*** Last week, Book made a lot of big plays and he was clutch late, but there were a lot of missed opportunities and plays that I talked post-game that needed to get cleaned up. Those plays were largely cleaned up against Boston College, and Book played an outstanding game.
*** Book was decisive in the pass game and made a number of impressive throws on the move, both on designed plays and on scrambles. His ability to use his legs to make plays in this game was huge for the Irish. Not just on scrambles and designed runs, but also his ability to avoid pressure. Boston College actually got good pressure on Book at times, but he was able to avoid sacks all game long.
*** A perfect example came in the second quarter with Notre Dame trailing 13-10. The RB was beat on a blitz and Book was almost sacked, but he was able to get free and throw the ball away. Instead of it being third-down and almost 20 with the sack, it was 3rd-and-10, and on the next play Book found Davis free over the middle against the BC zone for a 48-yard gain to set up a go-ahead touchdown.
Notre Dame never trailed again.
*** We didn't see Notre Dame attack down the field as much, but that had to do with struggles of the wideouts to get free against the BC man coverage. When BC went to zone looks the Irish quarterback picked them apart.
*** RB Kyren Williams ran hard in the game, but he wasn't nearly as sharp or as effective as he was against Clemson. He had a great early read on a counter play, but Williams wasn't as effective as a runner, often getting downhill a bit too quickly. His pass protection was more erratic this week, but he did make a big impact in the pass game.
*** The issue, however, was that he lost his third fumble of the season. This is way too much for a running back for an entire season, much less through eight games. Williams and position coach Lance Taylor must clean this up immediately.
*** Freshman RB Chris Tyree didn't get much action early, but he played more in the second half, and he played well. He got a bit too far ahead of the track on a couple of runs, but overall he was crisp and decision as a runner. Tyree does a good job setting up his blockers, especially on perimeter runs.
*** What I don't know is if the fumble between him and Book was on Tyree or Book. It was a read play and Book thought it was a give and Tyree though Book was keeping it. My guess would be it was on Tyree, but I can't say that for certain until I go back and look at the play and get a better idea of who Book was reading on that run.
*** Tyree's fourth-down conversion in the second quarter set up the final touchdown, which put the Irish up 31-16.
*** Junior RB C'Bo Flemister ran HARD in this game. His physicality is impressive, but when you consider his lack of size it only adds to how impressive his toughness is as a runner. Flemister ran through arm tackles, ran over defenders and maximized every yard he could get.
*** For the second game in a row we saw veteran WR Ben Skowronek make a huge mistake that cost the offense. He made up for it with three touchdowns in this game, including two very impressive contested throws. Book put them in a good place, but Skowronek still had to make strong catches. Next step is making those plays without the big mistakes.
*** Senior WR Javon McKinley wasn't given the downfield throws he thrived on last week, but against BC he did a lot of dirty work. He blocked extremely well, but he made his presence felt on chain-moving, drive-continuing type of throws.
*** Senior Avery Davis has been a much greater part of the offense in the last five quarters (and two overtime periods), and he is rewarding the coaches for making him a bigger focal point. Davis once again made money plays in the game, which included working free behind the zone coverage to get free over the middle to convert a 3rd-and-10, ending the play with a 48-yard gain to get the Irish in the red zone.
*** Davis also had a good run on a 29-yard reverse and did a good job getting depth behind the linebackers on an early bootleg to create a 22-yard gain. Davis also had a strong block in the slot to spring Book free for a 20-yard run on a keep in the first half.
*** The Irish tight ends weren't used much in the pass game, and there were a couple of snaps where a tight end was open but didn't get the ball. But we saw the unit as a whole still make an impact, as four different tight ends played and performed well in the run game. Junior Tommy Tremble was especially dominant in the run game.
*** I'll need to dive into the film room to get a better feel for the play of the line. BC threw a lot at Notre Dame, but the line battled and got good movement in the run game. I thought LT Liam Eichenberg was especially good in the run game, executing multiple effective edge blocks. I saw him get a good stretch on a pair of perimeter runs and he had a seal block that sprung another big run.
*** BC got more pressure against the line than I would have liked. What I did like about how the OL performed in these instances was they did a good job staying engaged even when they gained ground, which allowed Book to avoid sacks and make plays.
Note: Video highlights are courtesy of the Atlantic Coast Conference
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