Notre Dame is now 6-1 and ranked No. 4 in the AP Top 25 after a weird, wild, and controversial loss to the BYU Cougars. Yes, I think the Irish got hosed out of one final play, but none of that matters now. We saw 59 minutes and 59 seconds of football, and there are some things we learned.
Boubacar Traore, Most Important Man
Last week Boomer called Boubacar Traore a renaissance man, and he was absolutely right. This week… we got five plays out of Traore before he was ejected for targeting Bear Bachmeier on a late hit. Despite Notre Dame’s
depth at the position, the loss of Traore was massive for the Irish in the game —particularly in the first half when the defense was on its heels and needed better play up front to slow down what BYU was doing. The loss of Traore might very well be the essence of the full reason for Notre Dame’s loss.
The Lack of Offensive Rotation is Brutal
This second thing was supposed to be about Jonaz Walton and I went looking for snap counts. While the entire deal about Walton is valid and should be talked about after only getting 10 of the 81 snaps after rushing for 181 yards last week… the wide receiver situation might be the most heinous thing about the offense. On a night where Notre Dame’s receivers couldn’t get much separation from Cougar defenders, maybe they were gassed? The elevation was well over 5000 feet and Notre Dame only used 4 wide receivers all night. Jordan Faison, Micah Gilbert, and Jaden Greathouse were out there for almost every snap, and the fourth… well that was Mylan Graham with a whopping two snaps for the night.
Defensive Confusion is Still a Thing
For a good part of the first half, Notre Dame’s defense didn’t just play poorly — they looked confused. Presnap lineups and adjustments had several defenders running to the spot they were supposed to be, and BYU was snapping the ball before they got there. It looked very much like the Miami game last year, and some of that confusion led to slow and soft play. This, of course, is a Chris Ash problem and they made the proper adjustments at halftime to hold BYU to just 126 yards and 7 points in the final 29 minutes and 59 seconds of play. But… this is still a thing and will kill the Irish in a few weeks against Miami if it’s not fixed for a full 59 minutes and 59 seconds — or do we play 60 minute games now?
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