With a little break from ND football this weekend I thought it might be fun to look back at my pre-season ranting and reflect on the season so far.
My five big questions are listed again with updated thoughts. Feel free to chime in.
1. Will the Irish be better this year?
A: My answer was yes and happily I was correct. The team is much better and much more fun to watch. I think we will end the season in the top 25 which is a pretty healthy turnaround from where we were. Most encouraging is how bright the future looks. I expect top 10 teams the next two years and hopefully a run at the national title in that timeframe.
2. Is Charlie in trouble?
A: Charlie has turned things around and is not going to be in trouble. An encouraging sign for me is that the team is gradually improving. They also seem to adjust during games and play with more confidence. Perhaps this is due in part to Charlie's style changes but it is also due to more mature kids on the field.
3. Will we go to a bowl game?
A: I predicted a minor bowl like the Sun Bowl and that still looks like a good scenario for us if we finish up at 8-4. Going against a similarly talented team will be nice because in reality we were in over our head against OSU and LSU the last two BCS bowls. I see the bowl game as the start to a bright 2009 season so I will be watching how we perform and whether we can finally end the drought in post-season games.
4. Will offense or defense look best?
A: I was wrong about the offense showing marked improvement in the ground game; we still look pretty lousy. The passing game has exceeded all expectations and it is gratifying to see Jimmy and the corps of receivers firing on all cylinders. Defense is better as I had hoped and is not getting burned on too many long plays. They are still far short of a dominant squad but they have contributed some important turnovers that set up the offense to score points.
5. What will be our record?
A: I predicted 7-5 and we are exactly where I thought we would be at this point though I was wrong about Michigan. With the UNC loss behind us, I feel better about getting to 8-4, particularly if we continue to improve. Pitt looks pretty good this year but we play them at home which should help. Can we beat BC or USC? No way we beat USC unless half of their players have to sit out the game for some reason. Just too much talent on their side though we will be there cheering for the upset. MAYBE things go our way with BC this year but it would be a stretch. I do think we will give them a game. Washington and Syracuse are horrible so we should win those two. And it is payback time for us against Navy.
What do you think?
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2 comments:
I'll agree with you on almost all of your assessment, Don. The one major thing I'll take issue is with your statement about making adjustments during games. The last two games really concern me with respect to flat second halfs. We had a three touchdown lead over Stanford and had to hold on. We were in control at halftime in Chapel Hill and got blown out in the second half.
That being said, am I happy with 4-2 at the break? You betcha. Hopefully we can begin a road win streak tomorrow in Seattle.
8-4 is definitely still in the realm of the very possible. Glad Pitt is at home, becuase BC and USC will obviously be uphill battles to say the least.
I think I actually get to watch the game, vice listening on the radio this week. Oh happy day!
Since the game is late tomorrow, I'll hold off on pregame analysis for now.
Good weekend, all!
The Colonel
I didn't say they were GOOD adjustments! Kidding aside, though the flow of the games went against us as you noted, my view is we made some changes and tried different things. This was most evident to me in the Purdue game when I was watching the defensive coverage scheme carefully for some reason. In the past I felt Charlie would stubbornly stick to the game plan even when it was not working. Sometimes you still get out-coached or out-played but I see more flexibility this year.
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