Instant Analysis: Notre Dame-Georgia Tech

If you had told Chan Gailey--and his new offensive play caller, Patrick Nix--that Notre Dame would score just 14 points in the 2006 season opener, the Georgia Tech braintrust would have expected victory.

That's not an illogical expectation, but nevertheless, it turned out to be a faulty one Saturday night in Atlanta, as the Fighting Irish--a great close-game team--barely turned back the Yellow Jackets, who once again snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. The difference between these two programs was only four points on the scoreboard, but it was miles apart when you consider the fine line between the mindset of a successful team and the mental makeup of an also-ran.

Notre Dame was anything but elegant in Bobby Dodd Stadium. Brady Quinn had happy feet, Notre Dame's offensive line got outplayed, and Charlie Weis' offense had tough sledding all night long. Even the Irish's two touchdown drives didn't come easily, as the Golden Domers had to nudge the ball up the field in short chunks, some of them brought about by devastating and (un)timely Georgia Tech penalties. After the breakthrough last season--when a long-dormant Irish offense found life under Weis' strategic vision and Quinn's on-field leadership--this was not the kind of performance most of America expected from the unit whose assignment was to put the touchdown in "Touchdown Jesus." Notre Dame clearly performed below expected standards.

The greatness of the Irish, then, is that they fought and scratched and clawed to make sure that their technically deficient performance wouldn't prevent them from attaining final victory. They sure lacked the style points, but whenever they absolutely had to make a play, they made it. That's the mark of a team (and a program) that has legitimate national championship aspirations, warts and all.

Then turn to Tech, where the story is exactly the opposite.

The homestanding Yellow Jackets flashed some awesome defense at the Irish, delivering a superb performance that only enhanced the already-enormous repuation of defensive coordinator Jon Tenuta, who should have his hot little hands on a head coaching gig pretty soon... at least, if this world is to have a little more fairness than it currently does. But for all Tech did on defense, and for all that Calvin Johnson did in a customarily tremendous effort, the Jackets fell short. Against a suspect Irish secondary, Reggie Ball couldn't make enough plays, and more specifically, he couldn't get the ball to Johnson enough times. No one else on Tech's offense was there to answer the bell. As a result, the defense-first mentality of the Jackets--however conceptually sound it might have been--didn't get the "W," and in big, defining games, failing to win has been a nasty and chronic habit of the Tech program over the years.

The key to this game was painfully simple: Notre Dame made the timely plays and seized momentum when it was waiting to be taken. Tech made timely mistakes while also refusing to grab hold of the game's emotional energy. Three sequences defined these realities.

The first sequence came in the first half, with Tech in the Irish red zone and leading 7-0. With Calvin Johnson in the lineup, it seemed to be a no-brainer to throw a jump ball to No. 21 at least once, if not twice or thrice. After all, that very same play netted the first touchdown for the Jackets. But then a tragically ironic thing (for Tech, anyway) happened: Patrick Nix got scared.

Nix, the first-year play caller for Tech, was--you might remember--the swashbuckling quarterback of the 1994 Auburn team that strode into Gainesville and knocked off No. 1 Florida, 36-33. It was Nix who fearlessly threw a ball just inside the left pylon of the goal line to Frank Sanders, whose touchdown catch wound up giving Steve Spurrier his first home SEC loss in the Swamp. Nix was a gamer who was bold in the clutch.

But on Saturday night in Atlanta, Nix--now wearing a headset instead of a helmet--lost his nerve. He plainly settled for three points at a time when a touchdown could have knocked the Irish back on their heels. When you look at the 14-10 final score, that field goal turned out to be a fatal one for Tech.

The Irish, given new momentum, proceeded to score a late touchdown just before halftime to creep within three points. This kept the game much closer than it ever should have been, setting the stage for the second big sequence of this contest.

With the Irish seemingly stopped on a 3rd and long play inside the Tech red zone in the third quarter, Notre Dame gained new life when the Yellow Jackets' Philip Wheeler, who had an otherwise stellar ballgame, hit Quinn with his helmet to draw a drive-continuing personal foul. However, after a blocking penalty wiped out a Darius Walker touchdown, it seemed that the Irish might have had to settle for a field goal, anyway. Momentum that swung to the Irish had swung right back to Tech in a heartbeat. Once again, Tech had a chance to consolidate momentum and seize the upper hand.

But just when you thought Tech had gotten a reprieve, Walker--on a draw--darted to the pylon past some Tech defenders whose legs were stuck in syrup. With one timely play under duress, the Irish--with Walker's legs and without much of anything from Quinn, the Heisman candidate who got knocked down several pegs--managed to get a nose in front. This set the stage for the third big moment of the night.

Now down by four with 2:56 left in the third quarter, Tech--in need of fresh momentum--faced a 4th and 1 just past midfield. Yes, defense was the strong suit for Chan Gailey's team, and yes, his team was still competitive. Yes, one can't criticize a coach that much when he and his staff are philosophically consistent; a coach does deserve some points for having a plan and sticking to it. But to win--instead of settling for a nice, cosmetic and close loss in which his team battled valiantly--it sure seemed that Gailey needed to go for the brass ring and attempt to get the first down. But in a trend started by Nix's paralyzed play selection late in the first half, Gailey failed to pull the trigger. He punted, and Tech never seriously threatened again.

Georgia Tech complained bitterly about having to go to the Emerald Bowl last December, and then the Jackets pouted their way through a lopsided loss to Utah that won the Jackets no extra fans in the college football world. After another close-but-not-quite performance in yet another big game, it is appropriate to politely applaud the Jackets for a hard, workanlike effort, but it is equally appropriate to say that the Jackets have only themselves to blame for not putting away a vulnerable and inefficient Notre Dame team when they had multiple chances to do so.