That's More Like It

The IRISH dominated in every way on Saturday in a 44-20 thrashing of Western Michigan to move above .500 since the season opening victory, standing at 4-3. It was a boring game that reminded me why Notre Dame prefers a tougher schedule. Nonetheless, the Irish rocketed out of the gate with an 80-yd TD pass from Crist to Floyd on the first play from scrimmage. While one could say the Irish never looked back after that play, the reality is the score was 27-17 at half after the defense relinquished a late score in the final two minutes.


HEISMAN BABY

MICHAEL FLOYD - 9 rec for 157 yds - 3 TDs - Western Michigan did not have the size or speed to match up with Floyd, who took advantage with a big day. Floyd's TD receptions were from 80, 32, and 2 yards out, proving he's a threat from all over the field.


ROCK SOLID

CIERRE WOOD - 11 carries for 94 yds - TD - Almost non-existent in the first half, the IRISH run game exploded in the 2nd half for over 150 yards with Wood leading the way. Wood's 39-yard TD scamper in the 3rd broke the game open. It's nice to see Wood finally starting to get comfortable in the IRISH offense, especially with the injury to Allen.

DARIUS FLEMING - 2 tackles, .5 sack, INT - While the stats do not jump off the sheet, the impact hit me hard. The pick by Fleming was not only a great read, but could not have come at a better time, as Western Michigan was getting the ball back having tied the game at 7 in their last possession. Furthermore, the Irish immediately capitalized off the turnover with a John Goodman 32-yard TD pass to Floyd to put the Irish up seven and in the driver's seat.


GET HIM OUTTA THERE

DAYNE CRIST - 18 of 28 for 255 yards - 3TD, INT, Rush TD - While the stats seem impressive, Crist's performance left a sour taste in my mouth. His 80-yard TD bomb to Floyd was underthrown and went the distance as a result of poor tackling. His 39-yard TD pass to Eifert was way late and Crist barely got the ball off before being sacked. And speaking of sacked, Crist got canned three times, all of which I felt he could have avoided and/or thrown the ball away. This, along with some poor throws, makes me feel a little uneasy about the progress of the Irish signal-caller moving forward.

MIKE RAGONE -1 rec for 12 yds - Ragone reached for a Crist pass only to knock it up in the air for the easy interception by Western Michigan. There's no player I have more sympathy for than Ragone, but with Rudolph out for the season, it's the perfect opportunity to step up.


WAIT WHAT?

4TH DOWN CONVERSIONS - Up 34-17 midway through the 3rd quarter, the Irish were facing a 4th and 2 at the 2. With a chance to put the game away, Kelly decided to go for it, resulting in a 2-yard TD pass to Floyd on a brilliant play. I love the gutsy call and the hit-em-while-their-down mentality. It is great to develop amongst guys that have struggled in win in their careers.


-DH