Georgia Tech vs. Notre Dame: Game Grades, Analysis for the Fighting Irish

If you only look at the final score from today's game, you might think that the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets' visit to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish involved a tough, back-and-forth battle. And you'd be completely wrong.

From the get go, it was clear that Notre Dame's defense was not only well-prepared for Georgia Tech's spread triple option, but outplayed the Yellow Jacket's offense for the entire afternoon, minus the final minute of the game.

We'll go over all of the good and the bad (what little there was for Notre Dame) in our game grades for the Fighting Irish.

Here is the box score from today's game, via NCAA.com.

Position	First Half Grade	Final Grade
Pass Offense	A-	A-
Run Offense	A-	A
Pass Defense	B+	B
Run Defense	B	A
Special Teams	C	B-
Coaching	B+	A

Notre Dame Pass Offense

Quarterback DeShone Kizer got his first start today, and it was one heckuva start.

There were some worries about how the redshirt freshman would handle himself in his first start in his first appearance at Notre Dame Stadium with a full week's worth of preparation and time to think it over. But the 19-year-old showed no signs of getting into his own head, even after throwing his first interception in the first half.

Kizer finished with 242 yards on 21-of-30 passing with a touchdown and an interception.

Notre Dame Run Offense

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

There were four different Irish players credited with a carry in today's game, but you really only need to know about one: C.J. Prosise. He carried the football 22 times for a whopping 198 yards and three touchdowns, including a Notre Dame Stadium-record 91-yard touchdown scamper in the fourth quarter.

Notre Dame might need to be careful moving forward, as the depth chart gets a bit thin behind Prosise. But as long as he's healthy and able to perform at or near his capabilities, no one should be worried about the state of Notre Dame's run game.

Notre Dame Pass Defense

If you really want to test a pass defense and find out where you stand, a game against Georgia Tech probably isn't the best measuring stick.

Georgia Tech got a bit desperate late, and Notre Dame got a little soft in the final minute (for which we are going to dock a few percentage points). But still, the Irish held Justin Thomas to 121 passing yards on an 8-of-24 effort.

Solid, sure.  But not spectacular.

It's also worth noting that Notre Dame lost Drue Tranquill to a potentially season-ending knee injury, which came during a celebration after a big stop.

Notre Dame Run Defense

If you want to know where Notre Dame truly shined today, this is it. No team has been able to handle a spread-option attack from a power conference team as well as Notre Dame handled it today.

RVR Photos-USA TODAY Sports

Georgia Tech came into today's game as the nation's top rushing offense, putting together nearly 1,000 combined yards over the first two weeks. The Irish held the Jackets to just 216 yards on 47 carries and a lone touchdown.

The key to defending the triple option is discipline and attention to detail. Strength and speed also help, and it's clear that Notre Dame has some smart, physically talented athletes on the defensive side of the football.

With today's great performance, there's little reason to give the Irish run defense anything less than a solid "A."

Notre Dame Special Teams

Notre Dame's special teams can be shaky at times, and today was no different.

Justin Yoon was a perfect 1-of-1 on field goals but missed an extra point. Almost every kick Yoon made today was sailing to the right, and there's clearly an issue in the mechanics that need to be worked out before the season gets too much older.

Notre Dame Coaching

One of the things many noticed today is how Brian Kelly handled his freshman quarterback during his first start.

Kelly typically has a fair amount to say to his quarterbacks as they come off of the field. We've seen it for years, from Tommy Rees to Everett Golson to Malik Zaire. But today, Kelly had only a brief "well done" or handshake or pat on the helmet for Kizer.

Granted, Kizer wasn't prone to making huge mistakes today, but when he did, Kelly didn't spend much time on explaining what went wrong. Kizer shows his ability to easily forget his past mistakes, and Kelly is clearly fostering that ability moving forward.

Beyond that, Kelly and his staff had the perfect defensive game plan for Georgia Tech today, and the coaches deserve a great deal of credit for today's solid win over the Yellow Jackets.

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