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After the first drive Saturday night in Yankee Stadium, it looked like deja vu for the Irish faithful, as Tommy Rees led the Irish down the field, only to be intercepted in the end zone, staring down Michael Floyd and throwing into coverage. Then the Army Offense marched 17 plays for 77 yards, chewing up almost 9 minutes of the first quarter, before settling for a field goal. The frustration was already mounting for Irish fans, as they’d seen this story before just 4 short weeks ago.
But the Offense quickly got itself back on track, including a long catch and run from Michael Floyd, and PK David Ruffer continued his perfection on the year, hitting on a 47 yard field goal, tying the game at 3.
Then the Notre Dame Defense took the game over.
Army had 10 possessions the rest of the game, of which only 2 of those drives resulted in more than 3 plays. Only 3 drives did they give up a first down, and only 2 drives did Army gain more than 8 yards before punting the ball away. It was complete and utter domination.
The Irish defense held Army QBs to only 2/8 passing, in which one of them was a 27 yard play on the very first play from scrimmage. Army QB Trent Steelman completed as many passes to his receivers as he did to Irish defenders, including a 42 yard INT return for a touchdown by Darrin Walls, and a great read by LB Brian Smith on a misdirection pass. They also held the potent Black Knight rushing attack to only 135 yards total in the game, and 61 came on that first drive.
The ND Offense had its moments as well, but wasn’t quite as consistent as the defense. TE Tyler Eifert made a pair of excellent catches over 30 yards down the field, on great passes by Tommy Rees. The first was initially ruled a touchdown, but was reviewed and placed on the 1 yard line, where Robert Hughes scored on the next play to give the Irish the lead for good. Eifert’s second catch was also really nice, going up between two defenders and pulling it in at the goal line. He totaled 77 yards receiving on the night.
The Rushing attack, who outgained Army 155 – 135, was led by Cierre Wood, who had 14 carries for 88 yards. Both Robert Hughes and Jonas Gray each had 9 carries as well.
This is the first time since November of 1988 that Notre Dame has not allowed a touchdown in consecutive games, and the defense has now gone 11 full quarters without giving up a touchdown.
Notre Dame heads to Los Angeles to take on USC next Saturday night, where they look to beat the Trojans for the first time since 2001.
CB Darren Walls returned a Trent Steelman pass for a TD early in the 3rd Quarter, and David Ruffer added a 39 yard FG to make it 27 – 3. LB Brian Smith added another interception, where he handed off to Gary Gray, who returned it for 14 yards.
TE Tyler Eifert returned to the game, making one catch for 8 yards on a 3rd down. Manti Te’o also potentially suffered a broken nose on a 3rd down tackle. He was seen with cotton stuck in his nose.
The Irish Defense has learned how to stop the option offense. After a clock chewing 17 play, 77 yard drive on their opening possession that resulted in a field goal, the Black Knight offense only ran 12 plays on four possessions in the 2nd quarter, accounting for only 26 yards.
QB Tommy Rees is 8/13 for 169 yards, with 1 TD and 1 INT. Cierre Wood had 9 carries for 68 yards, and Tyler Eifert leads all receivers with 3 catches for 69 yards and a TD. Eifert left the game late in the 2nd quarter, and you could see him mouth “my arm”. He was a key part of the offense in the first half, and is already an injury replacement for All American candidate Kyle Rudolph.
Army will get the ball to start the 2nd half.
TE Tyler Eifert nearly had a touchdown on a 35 yard diving catch, but the call was reviewed and rightly placed at the 1 yard line, where Robert Hughes punched it in to put Notre Dame up 10 – 3.
Then, on their next possession, Tommy Rees found Eifert on another perfectly placed pass, and an equally good catch from 31 yards out, lengthening the lead to 17 -3. Notre Dame has 221 total yards on their 4 drives so far.
The Irish defense has quickly learned from their mistakes on the first drive, as they’ve forced 3 consecutive Three-and-outs for the Black Knights. Manti Te’o seems to be in on every play.
Army intercepted a Tommy Rees pass in the end zone, then held the ball for 8:45 before settling for a 20 yard FG by Alex Carlton to take the lead 3-0. Notre Dame’s defense continued its struggle against the option, letting the Army offense convert 4 third downs on the drive.
Notre Dame then drove down the field, but stalled on the Army 30, where David Ruffer nailed a 47 yard FG to tie the game up at 3.
Notre Dame, Army Rekindle Historic Rivalry In Yankee Stadium
While Saturday won't have the same national appeal as it would have back in the '30s and '40s, the match-up between Notre Dame and Army has some special significance, as they'll play the first football game in the new Yankee Stadium in New York City. They'll keep the football field up for another month and a half as well, as the New Era Pinstripe Bowl is set to be played there on December 30. Army is also scheduled to play four more games in Yankee Stadium over the next 5 years.
Notre Dame and Army last played in 2006, a 41-9 win on Senior Day. The last time the two teams met in New York was in 1995, when CB Ivory Covington stoned Army TE Dan Leshinski inside the one yard line on a 2 Point try, preserving a 28-27 Notre Dame victory. The rivalry, however, dates back to 1913, when the Irish, looking to play anybody, headed to New York to play the best team in the country, Army. In that era, passing was only done when down by multiple scores, just to get back in the game. On that day, though, Notre Dame came out passing the ball from the start, stunning Army 35-13. None other than Knute Rockne played a key role in the Irish victory that day.
The two teams played every year from 1919 - 1947, almost exclusively in Yankee Stadium. Notre Dame wanted the exposure in New York, so they were more than happy to make an annual trip out there. Other historic games between Notre Dame and Army in Yankee Stadium included the "Win One For The Gipper" game, where Rockne gave an impassioned speech at halftime about winning the game for HB George Gipp, who had come down with pneumonia, and a 0 - 0 tie in 1946, one of the several "Games of the Century".
The 2010 renewal of the rivalry will be one of redemption for the Irish coaching staff. Four weeks ago, Notre Dame got pounded mercilessly by the Navy triple option offense, a game that Defensive Coordinator Bob Diaco said they had no secondary options if their game plan didn't work, and it certainly showed. Navy ran for over 6 yards / carry, and 367 yards total, on a day it looked like they could have put up 50 points if they wanted to. Army runs a very similar option offense, and will look to capitalize on any of the same mistakes made by the ND defense. FB Jared Hassin leads the rushing attack for the Black Knights, rushing for 858 yards this season, with a 5.7 average. He'll be the first option on most plays, and was the weakest aspect of the Irish defending the option against Navy. For Army to win, he'll need to have a big day. QB Trent Steelman has almost 600 yards rushing on the season, as well as 800 yards passing, and only throwing 1 interception on the season. If Notre Dame can force the Black Knights into passing situations, it'll be a good day for the Irish.
ND Freshman Tommy Rees makes his second start of the season, after a very successful first one last week against 14th ranked Utah, a 28 - 3 victory. Rees threw for only 129 yards, but had 3 touchdown passes, and didn't throw an interception. Head Coach Brian Kelly called a great game as well, not putting his inexperienced QB in bad situations, and letting the game come to him. He also ran the "power" set, a 2 TE set, 18 times against Utah. Kelly said he had only run that formation 5 times the previous 9 games. It's a very good sign of Kelly adapting his offensive philosophies to fit the personnel, and the opponent, something he was hesitant to do before the Bye week. Look for a heavy dose of running yet again today with Cierre Wood, Robert Hughes, and Jonas Gray. The Irish should also be getting T.J. Jones back from injury, helping out Michael Floyd down the field.
For the Irish to win on Saturday night, the defense must perform a complete 180 from their previous showing against the option. Kelly has said they know where they screwed up, and have fixed it. They also will be adjusting on the fly this week, something they did not do against Navy. The team got a major confidence boost last week blasting Utah, and look to keep the momentum going. A win for Notre Dame will make them bowl eligible, something Kelly desperately wants for his team. It'll also give them a nice head of steam when they travel to the other coast next weekend to take on Southern Cal.
Nov 21 9:50a by Matt Grecco - 0 comments