Why? Regression not Progression?
UHND.com - Andrew Amato
10/31/2001
Why? Why do I love the University of Notre Dame? Why do I
care about this football team? Why am I still frustrated about what transpired on Saturday
night?
First of all, Notre Dame seems to be the greatest place in the world in the fall. I've
been to games several times. There is no place I would rather be. I look forward to
Saturdays when I can watch ND games. It's an appointment to sit down and watch. My family
has always loved Notre Dame. No one is an alum, but they're part of the "Subway
Alumni."
Enough about that. I am proud to be a Notre Dame fan through thick and thin. This is
a time when the real fans stand up and continue to support the team, not jump off the
wagon. No matter what, I always support this team. Even at 0-3 and off to the worst start
in ND history, I stood by coach Bob Davie and believed he did not deserve to be
fired. After Saturday's game against Boston College, my opinion is changing. Since the 0-3
start, I knew that Bob Davie was not going to return as head coach next year. I honestly
did not think he deserved to be fired though. The flaws of the coaching staff were left
bare for everyone to see.
Point #1, Bob Davie is more nervous than the fans in critical situations. It was obvious
in the last 2 minutes that he did not know what to do.
Immediately he went to the air. That brings me to my 2nd point. Point #2 is that offensive
coordinator Kevin Rogers was overrated upon his arrival at ND and has consistently
disappointed and failed in accomplishing anything. He was the mentor of Donovan McNabb, a
highly successful quick, option style quarterback at Syracuse. Now, McNabb is the starting
quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles. He's doing great and hasn't had any trouble
adjusting to pro defenses. Kevin Rogers was brought in to establish the run and bring the
option attack back for the Irish. He has failed in both categories miserably. In 1999,
Jarious Jackson threw the ball more times than any QB in ND history, and the Irish
finished 5-7. In 2000, the Irish did not throw the ball very often and mixed little bits
of the option into the attack with QB's Arnaz Battle and Matt Lovecchio.
After closing with a flourish to win the remaining 7 games of the regular season to earn a
BCS berth, the Irish are regressing back to the '99 campaign that saw them finish with a
disappointing 5-7 record. In '99 the Irish struggled right from the start, then hit
an upswing in October to fight back to above .500, then they closed the season losing 5 in
a row. I saw 3 games that season in person. I witnessed two of the greatest
comebacks I have ever seen, and the other was probably one of the most disappointing games
I have ever seen. The Irish staked remarkable comebacks versus Purdue and USC that season.
In the USC game, the Irish trailed 24-3 in the 3rd quarter and rallied to win 25-24. I was
at the final game at Pitt Stadium where the Irish fell 37-27. Yes, it was an
emotional game for the Pittsburgh Panthers, but this team tore apart the Irish defense
like never before.
How unprepared can ND be? Facing the best rusher in the Big East Conference, knowing that
the BC Eagles were going to stuff William Green down their throat, the Irish were still
unable to stop him in any way, shape, or form. In fact, William Green almost
outgained the Irish offense alone! How could Bob Davie not let his defense know that if
the Irish could stop the run, there was no way they could lose to BC. Everyone knows that
BC does not have an air attack. Look back at last season's game with the Eagles. Brian St.
Pierre could not throw the ball more than 10 yards. Not much has changed since then. Bob
Davie should have had his defense prepared to stop the ground game of BC. Why did Matt
Lovecchio look like he had never stepped on a field before? He was very unprepared, and
couldn't throw the ball through the air. He, like Bob Davie and Kevin Rogers,
panicked when he stepped on the field. They changed their offensive formation and had Matt
throwing the ball like mad. Yes, the Irish had zero timeouts left, but they had time on
the clock to run the ball.
The last play of the game was an absolute killer to me. On 4th and 8, Kevin Rogers called
for a rollout pass of all things. First of all, that meant
Matt was leaving his protection and was vulnerable. Second, the running back missed the
key block freeing the rush to pursue. Third, 2 wide receivers could be seen standing along
the sideline as they saw Lovecchio scrambling for his life. Were they not taught to come
back to the ball when they see their QB is in trouble and the play has broken down? This
is Bob Davie's fault, period. To top it all off, Matt didn't even think about throwing the
ball up for grabs at the least. He didn't know what to do. Hasn't he been taking snaps in
practice? Every team should have a 2nd string QB ready to jump into a game at anytime.
Matt was not prepared. It appeared as though Matt didn't even want to get rid of the ball.
Perhaps he didn't realize it was 4th down (haha). He even stopped, braced himself, and
covered the ball tightly so he wouldn't fumble it before he was even hit. I can't even
write what I'm thinking. There is no reason in the world the Irish should've lost that
game.
Now, the Irish face three Top 20 teams. Two of the games are on the road, and the Irish
are 0-3 away from campus. The Volunteers of Tennessee invade South Bend this weekend.
Don't be surprised to see a lot of orange, just as we saw red when the 'Huskers visited
last season. One warning, don't bet against the Irish at home in big games. No explanation
needed.
To close, this column is mostly full of incomplete thoughts and rambles. I honestly
cannot write what I thought about Saturday night and what has occurred within this
program. Everything just baffles me. Do not stop believing in this team. It is one thing
to boo the coaching staff, but not
the players. They leave their hearts on the field everytime they step out there for the ND
fans. This hurts them more than us. There is too much talent for this team to be
3-4. Be a true Blue & Gold fan and continue to root, cheer, and support this team.
They need it. When the best marching band belts out the best fight song, don't be
afraid to stand up and cheer along with the other fans. This is still the best university
and football program in the country. I'm sorry I could not vent all of my frustration in
this column. Go Irish!