Right Kinda Cracks

The most important point to be made is that Notre Dame defeated USC, and that always is a good thing.

It might seem odd to have concerns about play calling in a game that featured 308 rushing yards, but two second half drives that could have put the game out of USC’s reach were killed by attempts to trick the Trojans rather than earn first downs with core competency.

Two touchdown drives, 97 yards in the 2nd quarter and 75 yards in the 4th quarter, should be play calling lessons for Chip Long and Brian Kelly. I am not optimistic.

The Irish call a lot of screen passes for a team that sucks at executing them.

I can’t understand underusing Cole Kmet, a guy who is impossible to overuse.

I can’t understand underusing Markese Stepp, either; but I thank Clay Helton for doing so.

I’m going to start calling Tony Jones “Shaft” because he is a bad…

“I’ve always been like this,” Jones said after the game. “Coach let me out the cage a little bit.”

Misunderstanding the “wear green” mandate as a sustainability effort, the ND coaching staff wore coats made of recycled garbage bags Saturday night.

Kelly really ought to wear the color green so he can be harder to notice next time he decides to be on the field during an important play.

I found my Hardin Award (citing a nominally true but worthless statistic) nominee early this weekend. While calling the Notre Dame vs Air Force hockey game Friday night, NBCSN’s Tony Simeone repeatedly told his audience that the Falcons have made college hockey’s elite eight three times in the last 10 years. It’s a 16-team tournament, so a whopping 3 postseason victories in 10 years another way to state the case for Air Force hockey “excellence.”

Jonathan Doerer’s excellent place kicking is the pleasant development I didn’t see coming this season.

Georgia Tech can’t compete with Georgia for football talent, but it’s engineering students ingeniously found a way to feed stupid gas through their rival’s sideline cooling fans.

Louisville beat Wake Forest 62-59. Both teams immediately applied for Big 12 membership.

Why did The Irish play Bowling Green last week? Because Toledo was busy.

My Pinkel nomination goes to Virginia Tech, the 34-17 conqueror of geographically questionable Rhode Island of the Colonial Athletic Association. That’s a game that will get major cable and satellite companies to carry the ACC Network, I tell ya.

After the game Notre Dame announced that it’s celebrating 15 consecutive home wins by taking $15 off tickets to the Virginia Tech game on November 2. Those who will be trying to unload tickets in the Joyce Lot on game day should assume a 50-game home winning streak.

“It’s going to be a long ride home and a lot of heartbreak and sadness,” Helton said after the game. Good.

Kayo