USC 34 Notre Dame 27: So Close, Yet So Far Away

Can a loss really be a win? Can failing to achieve a long standing goal serve to elevate the purpose? Can coming up short eventually drive you further in the long run?

Well, maybe.

Notre Dame's heart-stopping last second loss to the Trojans of Southern California Saturday managed to at least temporarily silence critics. Commentators who had lampooned the Irish for close wins in recent weeks praised Notre Dame for a close loss against USC.

Coming from behind two weeks in a row to beat a scrappy Purdue team that beat Ohio State (USC's "big" win) and a pretty good Washington team (who beat USC) earned Notre Dame no respect. Conversely they were criticized for not pulling away sooner, and for having to gut out tough wins.

Now, following "more-of-the-same" game for Irish fans, the Irish are being praised by even their harshest critic.

"I'm proud of how this team fought back," Mark May said Saturday night. "Jimmy Clausen should be recognized, he is a competitor." May did credit USC with allowing Notre Dame back, but continued to say that this team is better than he thought they were, and that he was impressed.

Probably the highest praise Notre Dame could have earned from the ESPN commentator. And following a loss.

So for Notre Dame simply not getting blown out proves that they are headed in the right direction. I guess.

The final score would lead you to believe that Notre Dame is close to re-emerging as a National power.

Offensively, no one could argue. Give me Michael Floyd, and I may be recapping an Irish victory. Golden Tate proved that he cannot be covered by even the best secondary. Jimmy Clausen showed that if you give him more than two seconds he will kill you. Armando Allen and Robert Hughes even looked as though they could play in Cardinal and Gold.

Clausen's stats were far and away the best any QB has recorded against USC this year, as the junior QB emerged from a dismal first half to cement his name in the Heisman talks.

His third quarter touchdown pass to Tate was an absolute thing of beauty. A perfectly placed ball to hit Tate on the far shoulder away from very tight double coverage from 55 yards away shows that Clausen is not only athletically gifted, but possess the accuracy and confidence to excel at any level.

To highlight his stellar right arm, he is showing great leadership with this string of comebacks, as well as the ability to play through serious pain.

As far as quarterbacks go, there is not much more you could ask.

Notre Dame gave the USC defense everything it could handle.

Notre Dame's defense however, showed exactly why Clausen has to morph into Joe Montana every Saturday, and why Notre Dame is not ready to beat teams like USC.

For the fourth time in six games, the Notre Dame defense surrendered more than 30 points, and had trouble making tackles.

On many of USC Freshman QB Matt Barlkey's completions, a Notre Dame defender should have made an open field tackle for little gain. Instead the Irish defender tried to dance with the Trojan who swiftly juked him to the ground and sprinted up field.

Also notable was the inability of the Irish front four to control the line of scrimmage. USC dominated Notre Dame in the trenches, forcing Notre Dame to blitz constantly (which John Tenuda gleefully obliged to to do) and leave huge openings in coverage that Barkley and his big athletic receivers exploited constantly.

Many times, even when the Irish pass rush seemed close to pinning Barkley for big drive ending sacks, he would flip the ball up to a hopelessly wide-open Anthony McCoy who murdered the Irish secondary for 153 yards on just five catches.

Notre Dame has recruited well at the skilled positions, as they can play with USC at QB, RB, WR, TE, and safety. The talent gap that still exists is entirely at the line of scrimmage.

USC man handled the Irish at the point of attack on both sides of the football. They easily pressured Clausen with only a four man (sometimes only three) rush leaving seven or weight defenders in coverage.

The Irish did manage to rush for 110 yards on 31 carries, but it was clear that the Trojans were too fast up front for the Irish to handle.

On the other side of the ball, it was no where the miss-match that existed the last thee years, but still the Trojans offense was little slowed by the under-sized Irish defense.

Notre Dame took a massive step back into respectability, but also showed that Weis still has work to do on the recruiting trail. He has to continue to increase Notre Dame's team speed. He has done remarkable work on the offensive side of the ball, and needs to produce an equal unit on defense.

Close only counts for so long, but this "close" loss certainly shows that strides have been made and should for now reduce the heat on Weis's seat.

Much will be determined on how Notre Dame responds from here. They've just seen the most talented squad they will face this year, and came a missed extra point and 4 yards away from beating them.

Win out, and Notre Dame is back.

Struggle down the stretch a la 2008 and Notre Dame will again be surrounded in turmoil and doubt in 2010.

The stretch run begins against rival Boston College, who also holds a long win streak versus Notre Dame and is coming off of a 52-20 route of NC State. respect may begin to turn to accolade with a win over the Eagles, which has just become the next of many "must win" games for the Irish.