2006 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Season, Game Recaps, Scores and Reviews
Jan. 3
Sugar Bowl
LSU 41 ... Notre Dame 14
LSU rolled up 577 yards of total offense and scored 27
unanswered points on the way to a blowout. The Tigers got up 14-0 in the
first quarter on a three-yard touchdown run from Keiland Williams and an
11-yard scoring grab from Dwayne Bowe, but Notre Dame got back in it
with a perfectly thrown 24-yard pass to David Grimes and a ten-yard
pitch to Jeff Samardzija. The Tigers answered by going 82 yards in five
plays ending the first half with a five-yard JaMarcus Russell run, and
the rout was on. After two long drives finished with Colt David field
goals, the Tigers put it away on a 58-yard pass to Brandon LaFell.
Williams scored on a 20-yard run to finish off the Irish. Player of the game ... LSU QB JaMarcus Russell completed 21 of 34 passes
for 332 yards and two touchdowns and an interception and ran for 16
yards and a score Stat Leaders: LSU- Passing: JaMarcus Russell, 21-34, 332
yds, 2 TD, 1 INT Rushing:
Keiland Williams,
14-107, 2 TDReceiving:
Early Doucet, 8-115 Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 15-35, 148 yds,
2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Darius Walker, 22-128 Receiving: Jeff Samardzija, 8-59, 1
TD Notes & Thoughts ... Quarter by quarter
game notes ... LSU seemed like it could turn it on at
any time and put the game away. The Notre Dame defense did nothing
special against anything the Tigers wanted to do, and JaMarcus Russell
was nothing short of extraordinary. ... Brady Quinn wasn't anything
special only completing 15 of 35 passes even though the Tigers didn't
blitz as often as expected. ... 31 first downs, 245 rushing yards, and
332 passing yards for LSU. Notre Dame's defense still has a long way to
go and still hasn't improved to a near-elite level since the 2006 Fiesta
Bowl. ... Where were the deep balls to Jeff Samardzija and Rhema
McKnight? Where was the running from Darius Walker in the second half?
... Russell's decision has been made; he has to go off to the NFL now.
His stock will never be higher.
Nov. 25
USC 44 ... Notre Dame 24
Dwayne Jarrett caught three touchdown passes scoring from nine
and five yards out for a 14-0 lead and effectively putting the game away
with a 43-yard score with just over eight minutes to play. Notre Dame
tried to keep up with Brady Quinn throwing three touchdown passes, but
was playing catchup all game long with the offense going for it six
times on fourth downs, converting twice. After a two-yard touchdown pass
to Jeff Samardzija in the fourth quarter, USC got a score of its own
with Brian Cushing taking the onside kickoff attempt 42 yards for a
touchdown. The two teams each gained 402 yards. Player of the game ... USC WR Dwayne Jarrett caught
seven passes for 132 yards and three touchdowns Stat Leaders: USC- Passing: John David
Booty, 17-28, 265 yds, 3 TD, 2 INT Rushing: C.J. Gable, 20-107. Receiving:
Dwayne Jarrett, 7-132, 3 TD Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 22-45,
274 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Brady Quinn, 11-74 Receiving:
Rhema McKnight, 6-109, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
Once again, when it came time to play an offense with a pulse, the
secondary couldn't keep up, while offensive line couldn't handle USC's
quickness or pass rushing abilities hitting Brady Quinn over and over
and over again. Charlie Weis coached like he knew his defense couldn't
keep up with the Trojans blowing off the kicking game and field goal
chances, even though it was the right move in several cases considering
the team's shaky kicking situation, while strangely enough, not going to
the two-minute, hurry up mode fast enough. Quinn gave it his all, but
was plagued by drops and not enough help from the rest of the offense.
Nov. 18
Notre Dame 41 ... Army 9
Notre Dame had few problems after a slow start cranking out 41
straight points in the blowout. Army gained just 150 yards of total
offense starting out the scoring with a 27-yard Austin Miller field
goal and ending with a 12-yard Tim Dunn catch as time expired. In
between, Brady Quinn threw three touchdown passes, including two to
Rhema McKnight, Darius Walker ran for scores from Ten and seven
yards out and David Grimes recovered a fumble for a touchdown. Player of the
game ... Notre Dame RB
Darius Walker carried 24 times for 162 yards and two touchdowns to
go along with five catches for 25 yards. Stat Leaders: Army - Passing: David Pevoto,
7-13, 76 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT Rushing: Wesley McMahand, 11-41 Receiving: Jeremy
Trimble, 3-33 Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 22-30, 218
yds, 3 TDs, 1 INT
Rushing: Darius Walker, 24-162, 2 TDs Receiving: Jeff
Samardzija, 9-87, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... It took a
little while for the machine to get rolling, but then it had no
problems with Army thanks to a great day from the offensive line.
Brady Quinn had all the time he wanted to throw, while Darius Walker
ran wild with several big holes allowing him to crank out yards in
chunks. Now the tune ups are over with the game with USC finally
here. The team is humming on a seven-game winning streak and Quinn
as sharp as he can possibly be. Has the defense improved enough to
pull off the win? That remains to be seen since it hasn't been
tested in weeks.
Nov. 11
Notre Dame 39 ... Air Force 17
Notre Dame got up early and coasted with Jeff Samardzija
catching a 51-yard score on the second play of the game as part of
three first quarter Brady Quinn touchdown passes. The hits kept on
coming as the Irish had a 33-3 lead late in the third quarter on a
blocked field goal return for a touchdown by Terrail Lambert and a
23-yard Marcus Freeman scoring grab. Air Force put up nice numbers
with Shaun Carney completing 14 of 17 passes with two late second
half touchdown passes, but it was way too little, too late. Player of the game ... Notre Dame RB Darius Walker ran
15 times for 153 yards and a touchdown Stat Leaders: Air Force- Passing: Shaun
Carney, 14-17, 205 yds, 2 TD Rushing: Chad Hall, 20-67. Receiving:
Mark Root, 5-110 Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 14-19,
207 yds, 4 TD
Rushing: Darius Walker, 15-153, 1 TD. Receiving:
Jeff Samardzija, 6-106, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... While
teams are stumbling left and right with upsets the story of the
Saturday, ho hum. Notre Dame went out and blasted Air Force in an
easy road win with Brady Quinn playing so well it's become
unappreciated. He's leading a machine of an Irish offense that's not
taking a week off. Can everyone stay focused for one more game
before USC? Army has no prayer of staying with the Irish unless
there are a slew of turnovers.
Quinn won’t let that happen.
Nov. 4
Notre Dame 45 ... North Carolina 26
Notre Dame got four Brady Quinn touchdown passes with two to
Rhema McKnight in the first half and a brilliant 42-yard play to
Jeff Samardzija. The special teams got in the act as Tom Zbikowski
returned a punt 52 yards for a score late in the first half. North
Carolina stayed in the game early on a 90-yard kickoff return for a
score from Brandon Tate and three Joe Dailey touchdown passes
including two to Hakeem Nicks in the second half from 13 and 72
yards out. Just when it seemed like the Tar Heels had a shot to get
in the game, Notre Dame went on a ten-play, 61-yard drive leading to
a one-yard Darius Walker touchdown run. Player of the game ... Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn
completed 23 of 35 passes for 346 yards and four touchdowns Stat Leaders: North Carolina- Passing:
Joe Dailey, 14-22, 213 yds, 3 TD Rushing: Ronnie McGill, 13-61. Receiving:
Hakeem Nicks, 6-171, 2 TD Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 23-35,
346 yds, 4 TD
Rushing: Darius Walker, 20-86, 1 TD. Receiving:
John Carlson, 8-91, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Yeah,
yeah, yeah, the Irish can bomb away on the lousy defenses like North
Carolina's, and Brady Quinn and his arsenal of weapons are great.
However, the secondary once again had a lousy day making Joe Dailey
and the Tar Heel passing game look like it was Peyton Manning and
the Indianapolis Colts out there at times. The D did the job against
Ronnie McGill and the running game and the offense came up with the
scores needed to keep this out of reach from the start, but the
questions still weren't answered. The Irish secondary, with Air
Force and army up next, won't see a passing game until the USC
showdown.
Oct. 28
Notre Dame 38 ... Navy 14
Notre Dame rolled for a season-high 471 yards and got a Brady
Quinn touchdown run, along with three scoring passes, in the 43rd
win in a row over the Midshipmen. The Irish got out to a 10-0 lead
helped by a 36-yard pass to David Grimes, but Navy held tough with
two Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada touchdown runs to get within 17-14 lat
in the first half. The Irish scored the final 21 points of the game
and held Navy's rushing offense to just 60 second half yards Player of the game ... Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn
completed 18 of 25 passes for 295 yards and three touchdowns and ran
four times for 29 yards and a touchdown. Stat Leaders: Navy- Passing: Kaipo-Noa
Kaheaku-Enhada, 2-5, 24 yds Rushing: Reggie Campbell, 14-80. Receiving:
Jason Tomlinson, 1-18 Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 18-25,
295 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Darius Walker, 20-103. Receiving: Rhema
McKnight, 6-92, 2 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... There was
never any threat of Navy beating Notre Dame after David Grimes'
wonderful 36-yard touchdown catch late in the first half. The
coaching staff adjusted well to keep the Navy running game from
getting anything going on the outside, while the offense was
balanced with enough big plays from the passing game to keep the
Midshipmen defense on it heels. Give Brady Quinn time and he'll
carve up anyone.
Oct. 21
Notre Dame 20 ... UCLA 17
Jeff Samardzija took a pass 45 yards for a touchdown with :35
to play to complete an improbable three-play, 80-yard drive to get
the win. UCLA used a stifling pass rush, with five sacks of Brady
Quinn, and two second quarter touchdown passes to seemingly have the
game in hand, but the offense couldn't run out the clock and
couldn't get any pressure on Quinn in the final Irish drive. The
Bruins scored twice in the second quarter on a 54-yard Marcus
Everett touchdown grab and a tackle-breaking 36-yard score from
William Snead. Notre Dame scored first on a two-yard scoring catch
from Samardzija. Player of the game ... Notre Dame WR Jeff Samardzija
caught eight passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns. Stat Leaders: UCLA- Passing: Patrick
Cowan, 16-32, 217 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT Rushing: Chris Markey, 19-32. Receiving:
Marcus Everett, 6-102, 1 TD Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 27-45,
304 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Darius Walker, 21-53. Receiving:
Jeff Samardzija, 8-118, 2 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... This is a
tremendously flawed team with no pass protection, no one who can
cover in the secondary, and a a one-bullet running game, but it
finds ways to win and it doesn't believe its ever out of a game.
UCLA had the Irish beat if it could've just done a little bit of
anything on its second-to-last possession, but the Irish D came up
big to give Brady Quinn and Jeff Samardzija one final shot. The line
might have had an awful game, but it gave Quinn time on his final
three passes to keep national title hopes alive.
Oct. 7
Notre Dame 31 ... Stanford 10
Notre Dame had few problems putting away the struggling
Cardinal getting three Brady Quinn touchdown passes and a 32-yard
Darius Walker touchdown run. Sanford didn't get into the end zone
until the fourth quarter on a 57-yard touchdown pass to Kelton Lynn,
but the Irish answered with a one-yard John Carlson scoring run. The
Irish outgained the Cardinal 436 yards to 226. Player of the game ... Notre Dame RB Darius Walker ran
25 times for 153 yards and a touchdown and caught six passes for 45
yards. Stat Leaders: Stanford- Passing: Trent
Edwards, 7-13, 68 yds Rushing: Anthony Kimble, 15-63. Receiving:
Kelton Lynn, 4-86, 1 TD Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 27-37,
232 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Darius Walker, 25-153, 1 TD. Receiving:
Jeff Samardzija, 7-50, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... While the
win over Stanford wasn't the team's most polished performance of the
year, all the parts were clicking with Darius Walker having a second
straight fantastic performance and Brady Quinn playing like Brady
Quinn. The only way Stanford was going to have a shot was if the
Irish self destructed, but there were no turnovers and only four
penalties. Going into a bye week before getting UCLA, the coaching
staff will have to be pleased there wasn't a letdown.
Sept. 30
Notre Dame 35 ... Purdue 21
Notre Dame survived a driving rain storm and a 238-yard
receiving day from Purdue's Selwyn Lymon thanks to two touchdown
passes from Brady Quinn to Rhema McKight and a five-yard Jeff
Samardzija touchdown run. Darius Walker provided the offensive
balance with 219 yards of total offense and a 14-yard touchdown run.
Down 28-7 late in the final minute of the first half, and then PU QB
Curtis Painter found Lymon for an 88-yard touchdown pass to make
turn the momentum. The rain, and the Notre Dame offense, turned it
back around holding it for 10:40 in the third quarter. Player of the game ... Notre Dame RB Darius Walker ran
31 times for 146 yards and a touchdown and caught nine passes for 73
yards. Stat Leaders: Purdue- Passing: Curtis
Painter, 23-46, 398 yds, 2 TD Rushing: Kory Sheets, 7-47, 1 TD. Receiving:
Selwyn Lymon, 8-238, 2 TD Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 29-38,
316 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Darius Walker, 31-146, 1 TD. Receiving:
Rhema McKnight, 10-120, 2 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Now
there's the offensive balance that's been missing. Against Purdue,
Notre Dame showed a commitment to the running game giving it to
Darius Walker over and over again. While the Irish only averaged 3.2
yards per carry, there was at least as some decent production.
However, once again the Notre Dame defense came under fire with the
secondary getting torched by Curtis Painter and Selwyn Lymon
allowing 17.3 yards per completion. Don't expect any problems
against Stanford next week, but UCLA should be able to bomb away on
the 21st. Simply put, the Irish corners can't stay with even the
most mediocre of receivers.
Sept. 23
Notre Dame 40 ... Michigan State 37
With a stunning comeback scoring 19 points in the final 8:18,
Notre Dame kept hopes for a BCS slot and a possible national
championship alive thanks to two Brady Quinn touchdown passes and a
27-yard interception return for a touchdown from Terrail Lambert with
2:53 to play. Quinn threw five scoring strikes on the day highlighted by
a 43-yard play to Jeff Samardzija on fourth down to spark the comeback.
Samardzija caught two touchdown passes and Rhema McKnight caught scoring
passes from 32 and 14 yards out. Michigan State got out to a 31-14 lead
with two Drew Stanton touchdown passes and a 19-yard interception return
for a touchdown from Ervin Baldwin, but the offense turned it over three
times in the fourth quarter finishing off with a strange interception by
Lambert off a ricocheted pass that sat on the back of a Spartan receiver
Kerry Reed. Player of the game ... Notre Dame WR Jeff Samardzija
caught seven passes for 113 yards and two touchdowns and led the way to
the comeback with a 43-yard catch-and-run for a score on a fourth down
play in the fourth quarter. Stat Leaders: Michigan State- Passing:
Drew Stanton, 10-22, 114 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT Rushing: Jehuu Caulcrick, 8-111, 1 TD. Receiving:
Javon Ringer, 3-32, 1 TD Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 20-36,
319 yds, 5 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Darius Walker, 11-47. Receiving: Jeff
Samardzija, 7-113, 2 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
Many are going to point to Michigan State
choking the fourth quarter away, which is true, but Notre Dame deserves
credit for showing all heart for the second time this year. It slugged
it out in a street-fight with Georgia Tech to start the season, and it
overcame the weather and an explosive Spartan offense to come up with
the epic victory. Also give the Irish credit for making Drew Stanton, a
top five-caliber draft pick, look average. Now it should be smooth
sailing up until the USC game, but the team has to avoid being told by
everyone that it's smooth sailing up until the USC game.
Sept. 16
Michigan 47 ... Notre Dame 21
Michigan's defense held Notre Dame to 245 yards and picked off
Brady Quinn three times with a 31-yard Preston Burgess pick six
kicking off the scoring. The Irish soon responded with a three-yard
Ashley McConnell touchdown catch following an interception by
Chinedum Ndukwe, but the roof soon caved in as Michigan went on a
27-point run on three Mario Manningham touchdown catches and a
two-yard Mike Hart touchdown run. The Wolverine D sealed the blowout
with a 54-yard fumble return for a score by LaMarr Woodley. Jeff
Samardzija and Rhema McKnight each caught a touchdown pass, but they
came way too late. Player of the game ... Michigan WR Mario Manningham
caught four passes for 137 yards and three touchdowns Stat Leaders: Michigan- Passing: Chad
Henne, 13-22, 220 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT Rushing: Mike Hart, 31-124, 1 TD. Receiving:
Steve Breaston, 6-42 Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 24-48,
234 yds, 3 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Darius Walker, 10-25. Receiving: Darius
Walker, 7-35 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... A blowout
like the one against Michigan was due to happen. The offensive line
wasn't keeping Brady Quinn clean and the corners were still a bit
untested with Georgia Tech not throwing to Calvin Johnson enough and
Penn State unable to find its weapons. Now the test will be how well the
team can focus for the dangerous road trip to Michigan State. The
penalties have to stop and there has to be better pass protection. As
good as Quinn is, he can't make plays if he's under any sort of
pressure. The NFL scouts have to be taking note.
Sept. 9
Notre Dame 41 ... Penn State 17
Notre Dame's offense put up 397 yards and took advantage of
every opportunity to blow out Penn State in a game that wasn't as close
as the final score might indicate. The Irish scored the first 27 points
highlighted by two Brady Quinn touchdown passes and a 25-yard Tom
Zbikowski fumble return for a score. Quinn connected with Darius Walker
for a 15-yard score and Travis Thomas ran for a one-yard touchdown after
running 43 yards on a fake punt. The Nittany Lions scored 14 points in
the final six minutes on a two-yard Deon Butler touchdown catch and a
five-yard Daryll Clark run. Player of the game ... Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn
completed 25 of 36 passes for 287 yards and three touchdowns. Stat Leaders: Notre Dame- Passing: Brady
Quinn, 25-36, 287 yds, 3 TD Rushing: Darius Walker, 20-56. Receiving:
Darius Walker, 7-72, 1 TD Penn State - Passing: Anthony Morelli,
21-33, 189 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Tony Hunt, 12-74. Receiving: Jordan
Norwood, 6-91 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Penn
State's offense isn't all that potent at the moment, so there's still a
question about just how good the Irish defense really is, but at the
very least this group hits like a ton of bricks. Are there two
harder hitting defensive backs in college football at the moment than
Tom Zbikowski and Chinedum Ndukwe? If the Irish can come up with a good
defensive performance against Michigan, then it'll truly be time to say
the D is up to national title snuff. The offense was more than fine
against a great Penn State defense with Brady Quinn looking every bit
the number-one-over-pick that he might be. Overall, this was a fantastic
performance that should move the Irish up the polls.
Sept. 2
Notre Dame 14 ... Georgia Tech 10
Notre Dame won an entertaining, defensive slugfest with a
five-yard touchdown run from Brady Quinn with 11 seconds to play at the
end of the first half and a 13-yard scoring run from Darius Walker in
the third quarter. Georgia Tech jumped out to a 7-0 lead on a four-yard
touchdown catch from Calvin Johnson and later got a 30-yard field goal
from Travis Bell, but the Irish defense stiffened and only allowed 259
yards for the game. With Tech driving late, the Irish got a key third
down sack of Reggie Ball allowing the offense to run out the clock
helped by a Quinn sneak on fourth-and-one. In the battle of All-America
receivers, Johnson caught seven passes for 111 yards and a touchdown and
ND's Jeff Samardzija caught six passes for 74 yards. Player of the game ... Notre Dame RB Darius Walker ran
22 times for 99 yards and a touchdown and caught four passes for 18
yards Stat Leaders: Notre Dame- Passing: Brady
Quinn, 23-38, 246 yds Rushing: Darius Walker, 22-99, 1 TD. Receiving:
Rhema McKnight, 8-108 Georgia Tech - Passing: Reggie Ball,
12-24, 140 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Reggie Ball, 11-55. Receiving: Calvin
Johnson, 7-111, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Many will think this was a
disappointing performance, but this was a big trap game on the road and
the Irish came away with the win. This was more impressive than it might
appear in the morning paper, but no, the D didn't prove itself yet. The
GT offense is mediocre at best. ...
Brady Quinn gets all the national publicity,
and he showed his toughness against Georgia Tech, but Darius Walker is
almost as vital to the offense. When the Irish offense needed a spark
against the Yellow Jackets, Walker made it happen. His quickness and
versatility kept the Tech D on its heels. ... Charlie Weis showed why
he's such a superstar. The play calling was fearless and confident. Who
runs
a quarterback draw for a
touchdown with time running out in the first half and no time outs left?
How many coaches go for it on fourth-and-one from midfield to try to
seal the win instead of punting it away?
9-3 isn't good enough ... 9-3 isn't good enough ... 9-3
isn't good enough ... 9-3 isn't good enough ... 9-3 isn't good
enough ... 9-3 isn't good enough ... 9-3 isn't good enough ... 9-3
isn't good enough ... Literally, that's the writing on the wall.
No matter what your feelings are about Notre Dame football, deep
down, you have to wish Charlie Weis was your head coach for no other
reason than for his attitude.
You want to feel like your head coach cares more than you do. You
want to feel like your head coach will accept nothing less than
winning. You want to feel like your head coach understands that a
moral victory means nothing when your obnoxious
fan-of-another-superpower friend calls you to laugh at your team's loss.
Weis appears to get that more than any other recent head coach, and
his attitude marches step for step with the beliefs of the Irish
nation.
The issue under former head coach Ty Willingham wasn't
necessarily his record, it wasn't his mediocre recruiting classes,
and it sure as shoot had nothing to do with skin color. The issue,
for many Irish fans, appeared to be that the program wasn't headed
in the right direction and was starting to slip further and further
from being a superpower. Real or imagined, the perceptions meant a
change had to be made to get someone like Weis, who with his Super
Bowl background, understood that either you win, or you don't;
there's no middle ground.
Now, Notre Dame fans are already figuring out flight schedules to
Arizona for the BCS Championship game assuming that if Weis could do
that in one year, the next logical step is a national title, right?
(thhhtweeep ... sound of a whistle blowing) Time out. Everyone
take a deep breath, pop a Ritalin, and relax for a little bit.
Last year proved that the team, problems and all, can get by on great
coaching, a phenomenal set of offensive players, and, as cliché as this
might sound, plenty of heart. However, there's a reality to face about
last year.
It's not Notre Dame's fault, but Pitt, Michigan, Purdue and Tennessee
weren't nearly as good as they were expected to be, and the two games
against the really, really big boys, USC and Ohio State, were losses. As
harsh as it might sound, Notre Dame might not have really accomplished
anything quite yet. The person who'd agree with that more than anyone
else is Weis.
This is a tremendously flawed team with average corners, a limited pass
rush from the front four, and no developed depth anywhere meaning the
machine might quickly grind to a halt if injuries hit the skill
positions. The secondary didn't get any faster in the off-season, and
the overall athleticism and talent level, which was exposed in the
Fiesta Bowl by Ohio State, is a year or two away from being up-to-snuff
for a national title-caliber powerhouse. There's a whole boatload of
talent on the way, but not all of the stars are in South Bend quite yet.
Does that mean the Irish can't play for the national title? Not
necessarily. And why? ...
The
Schedule: ... If you want to play for a national championship, this
is a good schedule to do it with thanks to a great mix of high profile
games and winnable home dates that not only sets up well for a big run,
but also is strong enough to mean one-loss might still not crush title
hopes. At Georgia Tech isn't going to be a walk in the park to start the
season, but a team looking to play for all the marbles has to win a game
like that. Penn State, Michigan, Purdue (who's better this year), and
UCLA all have to come to South Bend. The only road trip to worry about
between September 2nd and the finale at USC is at Michigan State (who's
a lot better this year). An elite, national-title level team goes 11-0
before the showdown in L.A.
Best Offensive Player: Senior QB Brady Quinn. He went from being a
nice passer who put up big numbers to an oh-my-goodness pro prospect who
might go number one in the 2007 NFL Draft and likely would've gone in
the top ten this year. He has always had the size, mobility, and arm,
and now he has the coaching and the proof that his decision-making
ability can be Super Bowl caliber.
Best
Defensive Player: Senior FS Tom Zbikowski. He might not be the
prettiest defensive back around, but he's tough-as-nails and is the type
of college playmaker who changes games with one play. He can be a
difference maker both as a defender and a punt returner.
Key player
to a successful season: Outside linebackers Steve Quinn and Anthony
Vernaglie. Throw Joe Brockington, Mitchell Thomas and Kevin Washington
in the mix. The Irish have to replace 172 tackles, 11 sacks, and 29
tackles for loss worth of production from Brandon Hoyte and Corey Mays.
Maurice Crum, Jr. will move to the middle to take over for Mays meaning
immediate production will be needed on the outside.
The season
will be a success if ... Notre Dame plays for the national title. If 9-3 isn't good
enough for Charlie Weis, then it's not good enough to hope for anything
less than a shot at the championship. Setting the bar a bit too high
isn't a bad thing.
Key game:
November 25th at USC. Notre Dame could lose to Georgia Tech in the
opener and still end up playing for the national title. It can't lose in
the regular season finale to USC and hope to have a shot at the big
prize. Lost in the magnificence of last year's classic is that the Irish
have lost its last four to the Trojans.
2005 Fun
Stats:
- Third down conversions: Notre Dame 90 of 184 (49%) - Opponents 58 of
165 (35%)
- Second quarter scoring: Notre Dame 145 - Opponents 47
- Punt returns: Notre Dame 14.1 yards per return - Opponents 6.4 yards
per return
The
Last Time Notre Dame…
…played in a bowl game…2005 (Fiesta Bowl vs. Ohio State)
…missed a bowl game…2003
…pitched a shutout…2002 (Rutgers)
…was shutout…2003 (Florida State)
…scored 50 points…2003 (Stanford)
…went undefeated…1988
…won a conference title…never
…had a 3,000-yard passer…2005 (Brady Quinn)
…had a 1,000-yard rusher…2005 (Darius Walker)
…had a 1,000-yard receiver…2005 (Jeff Samardzija and Maurice Stovall)
…had a first-round draft choice…2003 (C Jeff Faine)
