Defense Beats Offense In Annual Blue/Gold Game
April 30, 2000
Frank Vitovitch

Notre Dame, Ind - With a revamped format that awarded points based on different accomplishments, the defense tallied more points than the offense to win the game.  In the game the first team offense went up against the second team defense while the second team offense went up against the first team defense.

First off, before grading the performances that happened today, one must consider that Bob Davie severely limited the game plan.  It was basically simple plays without a lot of fancy stuff.  Notre Dame has been ravaged with injuries the past year and this spring and Davie did not want to risk any more in a intra squad game.  That being said, here's what happened....

Arnaz Battle lead the first team offense and turned in a less than spectacular performance.  He completed just 10 of 23 passes for 117 yards.   This however was with a game plan that doesn't use his talents.  No option was run at all and Battle didn't do a lot of ad libing during the game.  The option will loosen a defense and get Battle in some kind of rhythm and take pressure off of him to make the big passing play.  Battle's forte is not long range passing, its his ability to scramble and make things happy on the run.  He is by no means a "pocket passer" which is one reason his performance wasn't all that great today.

The other quarterback on the team at this time turned in a slightly better performance.  Gary Godsey is not ready to turn in his quarterback position without a fight and he showed that today.  He completed 12 of 23 passes for 148 yards, but did throw an interception that Anthony Denman returned for a touchdown.   He showed a lot of improvement though this spring and has been one of the surprises.  Whether or not he will be able to hold onto the position once the "fab four" show up in August is another story however. 

The running backs didn't set the world on fire either, but then again the main three only saw 12 total carries.  Julius Jones ran the ball five times for 19 yards, Tony Fisher gained 18 yards on four carries, and Terrence Howard gained 9 yards on 3 carries.  The running backs weren't a focus of the spring however since Davie realizes he's got a lot of talent there.  Jones did hit the hole well however and turned one play that should have been stopped at the line into a 10 yard gain.

Dropped passes were an epidemic Saturday.  It was almost like a Philadelphia Eagles game (Eagles fans know the Eagles wide receiving woes).   This could be part of the growing pains associated with getting accustomed to a new quarterback and a new style.  Jarious riffled the ball to the receivers often, and while Battle has a good arm, its not like the cannon Jarious possesses.  Jamaar Taylor showed some play making ability by catching a 28 yard pass and gaining 51 yards on just 2 receptions.  Jabari Holloway was the star of the receiving show however.   caught 4 passes for 58 yards and showed the talent everyone knows he has.   Joey Getherall also added 63 yards on six catches.

On the defensive side of the ball John Owens turned in a nice performance registering three sacks.  The offensive line has been plagued with injuries, but Owens was still impressive coming off the end.  Darrell Campbell also recorded a sack.  As a whole the defensive line turned in an a pretty good performance.  It still needs a lot of work before September 2 however.

Anthony Denman was the only linebacker to really show anything in the game.  He picked off a Gary Godsey pass and ran it back for a touchdown.  Other than that Tyreo Harrison played decent, but Carlos Pierre-Antoine turned in a sub par performance.  Justin Thomas lead the linebackers in tackles with three for the game.

The secondary looked improved from last year.  Shane Walton, Albert Poree, Jason Beckstrom, Clifford Jefferson, and Brock Williams should be more than fine this year and the number of big plays should be down this year.   Poree, Walton, and Beckstrom will be pressing for playing time and could cede Clifford Jefferson for the #2 CB spot.  At safety, Glen Earl looked very good and lead all defenders with 8 tackles on the day.  Gerome Sapp flashed some play making ability at times with some big hits and should be a force in the secondary this year with Tony Driver.

The biggest worry coming out of the game may be the kicking department.  No kicker really stood out and both David Miller and Nick Setta will need to step it up to hold off walk-on Matt McNew.  Setta may still be suffering somewhat from a nagging sprained ankle however.  In the game Miller was 1 of 3 on field goals missing from 29 and 54 yards while Setta missed his only FG attempt from 41 yards. 

Overall, the game was not much to talk about it.  The game plan was very simple so there really weren't any bug plays outside of Denman's touchdown.  Neither offensive unit scored a touchdown which wasn't a good sign, but again they didn't have much to work with. 

This year the Blue/Gold game didn't give too much a clue as to where the team stands which for Notre Dame might be a good thing.  The less opponents know about the Irish's progress the better.  Two things were apparent though, the offensive line needs to get healthy or it could be a long season and the place kicking needs to improve.  As for the running game, or the lack there of, I don't think Irish fans have anything to worry about.  With the trio ND has, the Irish shouldn't have a problem running.  The wide receivers though are going to have to step it up or they could lose their spots to some of the incoming freshman. 

Jovan Witherspoon must have been licking his chops watching the game.  With the number of dropped passes he saw he must be thinking even more so now that he could come in an play early.  One thing is for sure, the wide receivers will be tested by the frosh this summer.