Things Ain't What They Used to Be

Great classic jazz tune, and unfortunately a good description of where we stand with Irish football.  I guess the lesson is that every year is different and nothing can be taken for granted.  Consistency is simply lacking for the team and that makes the difference against good teams like Oklahoma.  Hey at least USC lost and Lane Kiffin got canned!  Of course, they got smoked by the very team we face this coming Saturday so no cake walk in this year's Shamrock Series game.

I was looking at our season summary scorecard on Sunday and realized how far our defense has fallen this year.  OK, we cannot count the pick 6 but regardless our defense has yielded a tremendous number of points and lots of yardage this year.  What a difference from last year and what a surprise.  Manti was more than just a great player, he must have been one heck of a great leader as well.  With the offense showing some inconsistency, we have a combination that falls far short of any BCS hopes we might have had. 

Oklahoma looked like the better team on Saturday, no turnovers, made key plays at key moments, responded when we closed the gap.  For the Irish, 3 turnovers were simply too much to overcome though I did admire our perseverance and grit.  We came back several times and actually had momentum going in our favor a few times.  A couple key penalties, a couple blown coverages and a couple poor execution plays on offense kept us from turning the tide.  But again, a good team like Oklahoma will make the opposition pay for short comings like that. 

There was some small bit of good news.  Atkinson looked great, both on his long run and on some tough inside running.  It is still very difficult to run up the middle on the Irish.  We finally threw to the tight end again! 

For a final electric shock to see where we stand, ASU is favored by 5 points in the latest line.  Wow, never thought that would be the case.  But with challenge comes opportunity to right the ship.  Tommy needs to play error free, George continue to run hard, and defense needs to continue its improvement trajectory.  Again, we knew we might be 3-2 at this point so we can get back in the conversation with a string of victories over the next several opponents.  But we have to play better and not be hoping to just get by with a win after another sub-par performance.  ASU and USC will not let us get away with just being OK. 

I am hoping the loss lights a fire under enough of the players to inspire some better play.  Kelly seemed a bit frustrated with the mental mistakes and is seeking some changes (a little Hendrix at QB, differenct players at a few spots).  Maybe we got to the championship too soon and need to reclimb the mountain.  Should be a good week to find out what is on the inside of this team as we face a talented opponent in ASU.

Game Notes:  NBC has demanded that the bands be off the field TWELVE minutes before kickoff now so they can have their sideline pregame talk show.  That means a reworked pre-game sequence and no more "ND" band tunnel for the players.  Great.  Kelly has now decided no Alma Mater at home when we lose.  Anyone remember Digger Phelps trying to orchestrate every element of the Notre Dame experience?  Things change.

We need a victory!

GO IRISH!  BEAT SUN DEVILS!

Godfather