Notre Dame snatched defeat from the jaws of victory a week ago. Tonight, the Irish flipped the script by beating Duke, thanks in large part to a Sam Hartman 4th and 16 conversion in the final minutes. The Irish defense bottled up Duke for most of the night, but the Irish offense sputtered as they were undermanned at receiver and hampered by a questionable game plan. There was a whole lot that did not go right for the Irish in this one, but at the end of the day, they pulled out a victory to save their season.
Follow on X 
All the pre-snap penalties on the O/Line had the Kelly/Rees/Hiestand Stink all over it.
And whatever the fuck was Tyree thinking on that muffed punt. He needs to be drug tested.
I’ll say this again, ND does not have elite WRs
Even when all are healthy they are just a little above average. Lacking speed.
If you want to feel a bit better about ND’s struggles with pre-snap penalties, go watch the LSU-Arkansas game from last week….Razorbacks totally imploded in the 4th quarter taking 7 or 8 of them, and handed that game to LSU because of it.
At least ND still won.
It is hard to go to bed after games like this. Win or not win.
Next week Gametime is 730 pm .
I would love to see a huge jump of a lead and FINISH the possessions with a score.
Then exhaust the defense by being on the field for as long as possible.
The OL tightens up. Defense don’t miss tackles and do smash mouth fb with 3 yds and a pile of dust, eat clock and put the harpoon in the whale and don’t rest on your heels and play ‘ not to lose” —This is yet another undefeated team.
Let’s do this.
FOR ALL THE COMPLAINING ON HERE –SAM HARTMAN DESERVES ACCOLADES FOR HIS CLASS ACT OF GENUINE CONCERN AFTER THE GAME LAST NIGHT. GOING TO THE DUKE BENCH AND ASSISTANTS AND INQUIRING. HIS ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS.
CAN WE FORGET ABOUT THE IMPERFECTIONS FOR A BIT AND RECOGNIZE THIS?
ND AND DUKE ARE BOTH SUPERB CLASS ACT UNIVERSITITES WITH CLASS ACT PEOPLE.
LET US ALL FOLLOW SAM’S EXAMPLE .
Duke–I hope you win the ACC!!
EAse up on the screaming caps, brah.
Yes, Sam is clearlty a good dude.
Duke is just a 90 minute drive from Wake Forest, and they undoubtedly know each other pretty well.
Ease up yourself . Go Irish!
“CAN WE FORGET ABOUT THE IMPERFECTIONS FOR A BIT..” ?
A mediocre West Virginia team didn’t even want Gerad Parker as their offensive coordinator. Now he is calling plays for a supposedly Top 15 team. For next season, either demote Parker back to his old coaching position, just like WVA did, or fire him. No more bing the empathic team that keeps useless coaches who clearly aren’t good enough.
Wow…okay.
Tom Brady was drafted in the 6th round.
30 teams passed. Dozens of very highly paid, experienced scouts, coaches and highly egotistical owners.
Your thoughts?
This team is talented and good enough to go 11 and 1 but these coaches Freeman and Parker specifically need to reexamine and fast this whole offensive operation. They need to get Braylon James and Jordan Faison in the game. They need their speed. Notredames receivers are not getting open enough. Need to see less of Tyree and Merriweather. Also find another punt returner and let’s look at some other kickers. Cant keep missing field goals after drives. These next 2 games will determine Notredame’s final record imo. They win both I think they get to 11 and 1. Split you are probably looking at 9 and 3.
If the reason that the coaches are not calling more passing plays is becasue they realize the limitations they have at receiver, then it can be defended as valid.
But it’s also a damn shame…because ND finally has, for just one season, a guy that has all the tools to put the ball anywhere he intends.
Because no one is perfect, passing the ball more might result in some more interceptions. But ND’s defense has shown it’s pretty stout, and I’d think tht mitigates the risk a lot.
Finally, if ND won’t pass the ball more with a QB of THIS calibre, what blue-chip high school receiver prospect is going to want to sign up for this offense?
A win is a win. It appears to me. We are winning tonight. with the tactic of “playing to lose. “
We have way too many missed tackles, and a lack of discipline with fall starts, and offsides is not acceptable given the quantity of these calls.
Duke is well coached and ready. I say this with all sincerity.z I hope Duke QB will be OK. I would love to see Duke when the ACC championship and not Florida State and not Clemson but duke not in basketball but in football.
Although this is a conversation for another time, I think it’s best that Notre Dame joins the ACC when that time comes. That’s another conversation, but with Clemson and their potential recent move, Notre Dame needs to step in..
I LOVE ND with all my heart! Let’s make this program a superb one no matter where we are. We have the athletes and we can get even better athletes. We have the money and we can get any coach we need it’s time it’s time to show USC Michigan and Ohio State and Texas and Oklahoma and Florida state and the idiots come of Miami, Florida, and Georgia and Penn State that Notre Dame is a champion off the field and on the field !!!!
Hartman was off target on his passes all night. OL played mediocre to poor. Defense played well most of game
Terrible play calling, however. Why can’t we develop some innovation in our run game? Estime up the middle time after time – Duke stuffed the middle all night and stopped it until they foolishly went into a prevent on that last ND drive. It cost Duke the Game. – Anyway we’ll take it.
However, ND looks like a 3 or 4 loss team. Ceiling for this team, I think, this year is 9-3
Or perhaps the depleted receiving corps….which was described as a real liability going into the game….performed as poorly as feared.
Example: Merriweather was flagged for offensive PI to make it ist and 25 on that final drive (…yet still had a perfectly placed ball go through his hands anyway).
And Hartman saved that drive with a helluva gutsy 4th and 16 run.
But you criticize Hartman. Because you’re one of the whiny idiots who I said before the season that doesn’t deserve to see him in an ND uniform.
You deserve Buchner. Or Pine. And to whine about THAT for yet another year.