Notre Dame Football: Irish Pound Purdue as Critical Part of Schedule Approaches

Heading into this week, I predicted a difficult night for the Irish as they ventured to Ross-Ade Stadium to face the Purdue Boilermakers.  Although I thought the Irish would win I expected, a difficult battle on Saturday played out similar to Notre Dame's last trip to Purdue.  The Irish needed a touchdown on a fourth down play to dispatch an inferior Purdue ball club.

I based this premise on the fact that I thought Purdue would be able to run the ball behind a veteran offensive line and the fact the Irish have played so inconsistently this season.  The Irish started fast and soundly defeated the Boilermakers by a count of 38-10.

First Half Analysis:

The Irish took a commanding 21-3 lead into the break.  Following, a Gary Gray interception Notre Dame took just two plays to hit paydirt as Tommy Rees and Michael Floyd hooked up for a 35-yard-touchdown pass and a 7-0 lead just 24 seconds into the game.

The Irish would extend the lead to 21-0 before Purdue finally got on the scoreboard.  After being shut down by the Pittsburgh defense, wide receiver Michael Floyd came up with eight first half receptions for 112 yards and a touchdown.  It was obvious the Irish devoted a great deal of their game plan to getting Michael Floyd the ball early and often.

The Irish also ran the ball effectively in the first half as Jonas Gray and Cierre Wood combined for 158 yards and two touchdowns.  Statistically the Irish dominated as they piled up 314 yards in the first half compared to just 122 for Purdue.  The Irish defense was also excellent.  At the half, Purdue was averaging just 2.1 yards per rush and the Irish put a great deal of pressure on Purdue quarterbacks Caleb Terbush and Robert Marve. 

Despite the excellent start, some recurring problems continued to surface for Notre Dame.  Tommy Rees nearly had another red zone interception however, his hustle averted an Irish turnover after Purdue had cut the lead to 21-3.  Special Teams continue to perform below average.  David Ruffer had a short field goal blocked and also missed a 49-yard attempt.

In addition, the kickoff team nearly yielded a touchdown as Raheem Mostert returned a kickoff close to midfield.  The punt return game continued to struggle.  A bright was the continued improvement of Ben Turk in the punt game. 

Finally, in a game that featured chippy play from both sides, the Irish were whistled for five penalties.  Despite a big lead at the half, the Irish actually could have led by a much larger margin were it not for failure to capitalize on offense, special teams and some costly penalties.

Second Half Analysis:

The Irish opened the third quarter with a nice drive, mixing the pass and run nicely to improve their lead to 28-3 following a Rees TD pass to Tyler Eifert.  Watching the first drive of the second half I couldn't help but shake my head at the notion that this was probably going to be a 3-2 football team at the end of the night.

The Irish continued to dominate an outmanned and poorly disciplined Purdue team during the third quarter.  With all the positives there were still some minor issues.  Rees missed an open Robby Toma for an easy touchdown, then followed this miss with an ill-advised pass that was nearly picked off in the end zone. 

In a game Notre Dame dominated from start to finish I feel I'm searching for errors a little, however, those types of plays are the very ones that bit the Irish early in the season and are a large reason why they are 3-2. 

Looking Ahead:

For many fans the Purdue game provided a respite from an otherwise chaotic start to the 2011 Notre Dame football season.  What can we take from it?  For starters I grossly overestimated the Boilermakers. 

Purdue is a football team that is poorly disciplined and likely to struggle in the Big Ten.  They feature few weapons on offense and lack consistency at the quarterback position.  That being said, Notre Dame completely dismantled them.

This is what good football teams do when they play a bad team.  Watching Air Force play earlier today a couple of things occurred to me.  The Irish should beat the Falcons.  The have better overall personnel and a defense capable of slowing down the option.  The operative phrase is slowing down the option. 

Air Force will be able to run it against Notre Dame.  Earlier this year they ran for almost 250 yards versus TCU.  They are going to get yardage and be able to score some points.  The Irish are also going to be able to move the ball and score on Air Force.  In order to win the Irish will have to minimize turnovers and penalties, and convert in the red zone. 

One thing I hate about playing service academies is they possess the ball so effectively.  By shortening the game, you have to score on almost every chance you get.  Perhaps the biggest key to beating Air Force will be red zone efficiency both offensively and defensively for the Irish.