Notre Dame's Newfound Level of Offensive Efficiency Is Key to Making Playoff

With its 42-30 victory over Pittsburgh on Saturday afternoon, Notre Dame football accomplished part one of the four-stage sequence standing between the Irish and a playoff berth after they debuted at No. 5 in this week’s College Football Playoff ranking.

“We need to win three more games,” Irish head coach Brian Kelly answered succinctly when asked what Notre Dame needs to do to solidify playoff positioning.

And on Saturday in the Steel City, Notre Dame turned in a thorough offensive performance en route to the victory. The Irish chalked up 437 yards of total offense and committed just one turnover—backup quarterback Brandon Wimbush’s fumble with less than two minutes to play in regulation.

“We needed to be very efficient on offense today, and we were,” Kelly told reporters after the game. “I think that was the difference today. … I think that was the best performance of our offensive line to date this year—most consistent, I would say, probably the most consistent performance for four quarters.”

Irish quarterback DeShone Kizer completed 19 of 26 passes for 262 yards and five touchdowns through the air, plus a two-yard rumble in the fourth quarter to stretch Notre Dame’s lead to 42-17 at the time. ESPN Stats & Info (h/t Matt Fortuna of ESPN) noted Shizer's scoring stats had record-setting significance: 

The Panthers entered Saturday tied for 37th in the country in scoring defense (22.1 points per game) and tied for 26th in total defense 325.3 (yards allowed per game).

But the Irish throttled Pittsburgh, as freshman running back Josh Adams collected 147 rushing yards on 20 attempts (7.3 yards per carry) with starter C.J. Prosise only playing the first quarter due to what Kelly later called an upper-body issue.

Star wide receiver Will Fuller hauled in three touchdowns in a seven-catch, 152-yard afternoon. Notre Dame, which began the day 85th in the country in red-zone touchdown percentage (57.6 percent), scored four touchdowns on four trips inside the Pittsburgh 20-yard line.

“As a unit we wanted them to be more alert and recognize play calls in that area and just a heightened awareness of where we were, when we were making these calls and more of a sense that we had to be more efficient in there,” Kelly said.

Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

That efficiency helped Notre Dame to an 8-1 record, with regular-season games against Wake Forest, Boston College and Stanford remaining. While the Demon Deacons and Eagles are two of the 12 worst scoring offenses in the FBS, Stanford pairs a stout offense (36.4 points per game entering Saturday) with a strong defense (21.5 points per game).

The Cardinal, led by do-everything running back Christian McCaffrey, have the firepower to expose Notre Dame’s defense, which continues to show holes, especially on the back end of the unit. Against the Panthers, Notre Dame allowed plays of 37, 26, 27, 27, 21, 37, 20, 24, 21 and 51 yards.

But an increasingly efficient offense can help support a hit-or-miss defense. So can Notre Dame sustain its offensive efficiency over these final three weeks of the regular season? The Irish will be tested against three units—Wake Forest (45th in scoring defense), Boston College (third) and Stanford (33rd)—that rank among the better defenses in the country.

One down. Three to go.

All quotes were obtained firsthand and all stats courtesy of CFBStats.com unless otherwise noted.

Mike Monaco is the lead Notre Dame writer for Bleacher Report. Follow @MikeMonaco_ on Twitter.