Notre Dame’s 36-7 victory over NC State was a solid win going into the USC game, as long as you don’t make me watch the first half again.
The Fighting Irish were up 10-7 at the half in a game that should’ve been more like 24-7 in the first 30 minutes.
But the second half was more of what Marcus Freeman expected on both sides of the ball.
Takeaways:
First Half Offense:
Notre Dame wasted too many opportunities in the first half. There was the turnover on downs after a 5+ minute drive on a rollout pass play that I still can understand why Mike Denbrock called it. It took away more than half of the field from CJ Carr and allowed the Wolfpack defense to only worry about half the field.
There was also the interception in the end zone near the end of the half.
Notre Dame was the wrong end of a few calls in the first 30 minutes, but believe me, no one outside of South Bend wants to hear Notre Dame complain, no matter how valid it was.
Give Denbrock some credit. The adjustments made at halftime had the offense rolling in the final 30 minutes.
Run Defense:
If NC State wanted to have a chance to win this game, Hollywood Smothers needed to have an explosive game.
Smothers came to South Bend having rushed for over 120 yards in four out of six games. Notre Dame didn’t give him a chance at number five.
When the game was close in the first half, the Fighting Irish never let Smothers get going. He finished the first half with 25 yards on eight carries, with his longest run being six yards.
Smothers finished the game with 46 yards rushing and 21 receiving.
Spreading the Wealth
Every Saturday, Jordan Faison has been CJ Carr’s security down the field.
Against NC State, it was nice to see Eli Raridon and Will Pauling with both producing big days.
The Wolfpack’s priority was to take away the run, and unlike against Miami (FL) on opening night, Carr constantly looked downfield. Of course, that comes with experience, and Carr is getting more comfortable with his surroundings.
Raridon had a perfect 7 targets-7 receptions with four of the seven producing 14 yards or more.
Notre Dame has been Tight End U, but fans haven’t seen it as much this season with the Fighting Irish finally going with a young quarterback.
Pauling had seven targets with four receptions, and his “make the most out of my last season” approach is starting to pay off for the offense. All of Pauling’s receptions were 12+ yards, and that 12-yarder was a touchdown.
At some point in the season, Notre Dame had to be able to throw the ball down the field. It might be a “different guy every week” approach, but that’s fine because stopping Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price is going to be at the top of the scouting report every week.
With USC coming to South Bend this weekend, Carr’s ability to see the field is just what the doctor ordered.
