Notre Dame vs. Stanford: 5 Things We Learned About the Irish's Loss vs. Cardinal

The result was what was expected, but that does not mean it is any less easy to swallow. Stanford, in Andrew Luck's final game as a Cardinal, threw for four touchdowns as Stanford was able to pull ahead early and hold on to their 28-14 win over the Irish. 

While this game started off strong for the Irish, they made too many mistakes and missed too many opportunities (specifically at the end of the first half) that cost them momentum and ultimately the game. 

Give Stanford the credit for finding the mismatches that Notre Dame could not control (6'8" versus 6'1" is just not fair), but this game was not the as bad as it seems. 

There are some good things and some bad things that have come out of this game, but regardless, these are the five things we all learned in this loss: 

The Quarterback Situation Needs to Be Addressed

Notre Dame looked dead in the first half. Brain Kelly was not alone in his displeasure with the early quarterback play of the Irish, and as a result, a change was made and the Irish were suddenly explosive. 

Andrew Hendrix relieved Tommy Rees of his duties and everyone was pleasantly surprised. Hendrix, only a sophomore, was a recruit from Kelly's old stomping ground of Cincinnati and he looks, potentially, like the quarterback of the future. 

He played with poise and aggressiveness and, more importantly, the team followed his lead. The real question now is, will Hendrix be the quarterback moving forward? Brian Kelly should either finish out with Rees or commit to Hendrix now—with the way Hendrix played today, we should expect to see No. 12 behind center from now on. 

Tyler Eifert Is a Pro-Ready Player

While Hendrix is the player of the future of the Irish, Eifert is the best player right now. The Mackey Award finalist was imposing and out-matched all of the Stanford secondary, and was a key reason Hendrix was able to settle in when he took over.

Eifert finished the game with four catches for 79 yards, averaging 19 per catch, showing how much of an impact he can have when he is able to catch the ball. The tight end really showed off his skill set in this game, and looks like a potential starting tight end for an NFL team looking to add a key piece to their passing attack. 

Watch for Eifert to be a constant target for Hendrix if he becomes the starter, as this huge consistent tight end is exactly what a young quarterback needs in order to have success in big games. 

Defense Is Slowly Improving

Under Charlie Weis, this game would have allowed Andrew Luck to put up Case Keenum numbers. This time around, while Luck passed for four touchdowns, his 233 yards and the Cardinal's 198 yards rushing does not look so bad considering how well Notre Dame was able to control the scoreboard. 

The Notre Dame secondary was beat several times, but there is not much you can do to cover superior athletes or players who are simply that much bigger. 

The Notre Dame defense did force turnovers and force Andrew Luck into a few mistakes, something that has been very difficult to do all year. If the defense continues to make this kind of incremental improvements coupled with more offensive consistency, then expect the Irish to be competitive. Speaking of which... 

Just a Few Pieces Away from Returning to Glory

Games like this are difficult because they show that a team is not at the "elite" level, but have the potential to be so with a few tweaks and star players.

Notre Dame was never truly "in" this game because of the offensive struggles early, but never were "out" of it as they were able to frustrate the Cardinal just enough to stay within striking distance for a good portion of the game. 

If Hendrix ends up being the future at quarterback, Notre Dame can really add some talent at the playmaking positions on offense to ensure offensive production. Throw in a defense that can continue to force turnovers and hold teams like they held Stanford tonight (looking at points to yards given up) and the Irish could very well make it back into a BCS bowl under Kelly in the near future. 

This Team Has Heart

Keeping up with the intangibles, this team could have very well given up and phoned this game in as a blowout loss to a great player in his final moments of glory. 

Instead, the Irish decided to fight hard the entire time, consistently attempting to score and stop Andrew Luck's offensive machine. The reason this is so important: this heart is often what can win games. 

The Irish need this heart as they continue to rebuild, as there will be setbacks in the road and not every season will go as planned. There will be USF games that leave everyone frustrated. There will be games like these where the talent level just simply does not match up. But if Kelly can keep this team motivated and fighting, they can win tight games and continue to rebuild the reputation of the Notre Dame program.