Game Observations - Defense: Notre Dame Beats Boston College
Notre Dame earned a convincing 45-31 win over Boston College, but it wasn't always pretty for the Irish defense. The bye week is coming at the right time for the Irish defense, which has given up over 30 points in back-to-back games, but at the end of the day the defense battled and made the plays it needed to make to contribute to the win.
Here's the post-game analysis of the Irish defense:
*** Schematically there was a lot to like about this performance. Defensive coordinator Clark Lea was clearly gearing the game plan towards harassing and stopping quarterback Phil Jurkovec. Jurkovec made a lot of plays early, but it didn't take the defense long to start hitting home and making more plays against the BC offense.
*** Lea did a good job mixing up looks, which had Jurkovec guessing about what he was going to see, which resulted in turnovers, incompletions and a number of batted passes. Notre Dame kept Jurkovec from ever really getting into rhythm. The young QB made big plays, but the efficiency and consistency wasn't there, which is why Notre Dame controlled the game for the final two and a half quarters.
*** Notre Dame's run defense was even better than the numbers show. The Irish held BC to 85 rushing yards, but almost half of that came in the second half when the Irish were clearly playing the pass with a big lead, and BC had a couple of gash runs that took advantage of that.
*** Senior ends Adetokunbo Ogundeji and Daelin Hayes didn't make as many flash plays as they did a week ago, and like the rest of the defense they had a hard time bringing Jurkovec down in the backfield. They were disruptive against the run and Ogundeji had two quality pressures in the win.
*** BC tried to beat Notre Dame with a reverse early in the game but Hayes read it perfectly and made the stop for a loss. On the next play he had a pressure that resulted in a hit that forced an errant pass on a play where the BC tight end was open.
*** Senior DT Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa had a strong performance for the Irish, and it went beyond his great penetration to stone a 4th-and-1 on the opening drive of the third quarter. That play, of course, was huge for Notre Dame. If BC converts that 4th-down and ends up with a touchdown (the play ended a drive that reached the 9-yard line), that would have made it a 31-23 game in the second half. Instead, Tagovailoa-Amosa's stop changed the entire look of the game.
*** Senior DT Kurt Hinish had another quality game up the middle. He got a good push against the run, shot gaps effectively and played with a lot of attitude.
*** Freshman DT Rylie Mills had a silly and pointless roughing penalty in the fourth quarter, but other than that I felt he played well on the snaps I evaluated him. His quickness gave the BC interior blockers problems.
*** Senior LB Drew White had a strong bounce back performance for the Irish defense. White was used as a force against the run game, with Lea turning him loose to play a very aggressive, downhill game. White responded with his best game of the season.
*** White was physical, but he also played with speed. He beat BC blockers to the point of attack on a number of runs. His performance was a key factor in Notre Dame's strong run game performance. On the 4th-and-1 stop by Tagovailoa-Amosa, White was also right there in the gap to help make the stop.
*** Junior LB Shayne Simon could not build on his strong performance against Clemson. He struggled against Boston College, and it was evident right away. He had a poor backside fill on an inside zone play that made him easily blockable and opened up a 22-yard run. On the next series he blew a coverage on a tight end drag route, and the only reason it didn't go for a big play (possibly a touchdown) was due to a bad ball.
*** Simon played hard in the game, and I didn't see as much tentativeness as in past games, but he was not assignment sounds in this game against the run or pass.
*** Sophomore LB Jack Kiser didn't play as much as Simon, but he was far more productive. Kiser played the backside gaps well and had a crucial interception in the win.
*** Junior LB Bo Bauer performed extremely well in the dime package. He perfectly read and blew up a third-down screen on the second drive of the game to end a BC drive. Bauer had another third-down pressure that forced an incompletion and ultimately a punt. Bauer later ended another drive with a third-down pass break up where he read the quarterback's eyes and got his hands up on the throw.
*** Sophomore safety Kyle Hamilton was all over the field for Notre Dame. He bit up on a second quarter Jurkovec scramble that resulted in the ball getting thrown over his head, but other than that I thought the only "miss" for Hamilton was him dropping what would have been a pick six in the second half.
*** Hamilton was used to cover tight end Hunter Long at times, and when he did he was effective.
*** Veteran safety Shaun Crawford had a couple of big misses in the game, including getting played by Jurkovec on a deep post route. But Crawford also had some outstanding plays in the win. He had a big first quarter sack on a well-designed and perfectly-timed blitz call by Lea. Crawford was also active coming downhill and tackled well in space.
*** Freshman cornerback Clarence Lewis blew a coverage on the second play of the game, giving up a 20-yard gain, but he settled in well after that. BC tried to beat him on a post-snap switch route, but Lewis read it perfectly and forced an incompletion.
*** Senior CB Nick McCloud was only beat once from what I have in my notes, and even on that play he was in perfect position. The only reason he got beat for that early touchdown was due to a great throw and catch on a play that otherwise McCloud had great position.
*** McCloud had multiple break ups and blanketed the BC wide receivers all game long. He played confidently all game long, and just as important he played the ball without grabbing and drawing penalties.
*** I didn't see much of CB TaRiq Bracy, but when I did see him he was in good coverage.
Note: Video highlights are courtesy of the Atlantic Coast Conference
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