The Irish dominated a top ten opponent on the road in the national spotlight, silencing critics and analysts and wowing media pollsters. The final score of 30-13, might not tell the whole story as the Irish tacked on 17 points in the final four minutes of the game, and Oklahoma had 14 points removed from the board due to penalties.
HEISMAN BABY
MANTI TE'O - 11 tackles, INT, Sack - Te'o racked up all his tackles in the first half, but saved his INT for the defining moments. The fourth quarter diving interception by Te'o led to an Irish FG that put ND up two scores with just over three minutes to play, virtually sealing the victory.
ROCK SOLID
FOUR HORSEMEN - 37 rushes for 212 yards, 3 TDs - Lacking the fourth member for the second straight week, the Irish rushing attack still managed to be dominant. Cierre Wood (7 rushes for 74 yards, TD) set the tone early on his 62-yard TD scamper. Everett Golson (11 rushes for 64 yards) proved effective scrambling out of the pocket and avoiding sacks. Theo Riddick (19 rushes for 74 yards) provided the exclamation point scoring a late tack on touchdown.
EVERETT GOLSON - 13 of 25 for 177 yards - The only statistic that jumps out is the fact that Golson had zero turnovers. There was all this hype going into the game about Golson turning the ball over and Oklahoma having the best pass defense the Irish will see all season, etc. Golson silenced his doubters and really matured through out the game. He was on target all night and made the right decisions.
CHRIS BROWN - 1 reception, 50 yards - Brown proved not once, but twice the dangerous deep threat he can be. I thought he should have caught the first ball, but made up for it the second time around. It's a great weapon for Kelly to have in his arsenal.
KYLE BRINDZA - 3 for 4 FGs, 3 for 3 XPs - Brindza rallied after his first miss, keeping the lead in Irish hands, and eventually putting the game away in the 4th quarter.
GET HIM OUTTA THERE
Big win all around = no complaints.
WAIT, WHAT
I couldn't help but laugh at the how the final minute of the game transpired. Not only did we win, but Oklahoma embarrassed themselves. Oklahoma drives down the field for the touchdown. But wait! He was correctly called out at the one yard line. So Oklahoma scores on the next play. But wait! An upset Kenny Stills clearly pushes off and flagged for 15 yards. And on the final play, Shembo sacks Landry for a 7 yard loss and Oklahoma stands around confused as to what just transpired watching the final seconds tick away.
