A Look Ahead: Notre Dame vs. Purdue

By Justin Cates

For whatever reason (Blogger sucks) my ND-Michigan preview didn't post last week despite me making an extensive effort to do so in a timely fashion.

Today, I'll reuse bits of that preview and tie it in to what should be a cakewalk for the Irish against Purdue.

The Boilermakers are one of the worst teams on college football. They got absolutely blasted in their opener 42-7 by Cincinnati and barely edged out lower division foe Indiana State 20-14 last week in West Lafayette.

For reference, Indiana State allowed 73 points to Indiana in their first game.

Basically, Purdue can't stop anyone (79th in points allowed) and they can't score themselves (116th in points scored).

This should be an easy win for the Irish, which gives them an opportunity to address some concerns.

Before Michigan, I attempted to say this:

"Touchdown" "Interception" Tommy Rees played almost perfectly in the opener completing 16-of-23 passes for 346 yards and three touchdowns. Against the Wolverines, he and the rest of his offense have to let things come to them and not force the issue.

When I've watched Rees play in the past there seemed to be a tendency to press too much. Now that he isn't battling for a starting job, that may well be a thing of the past.

This proved to be fairly accurate with Tommy reverting to forcing things. Rees played well for the most part but threw two interceptions and was very close to a third. The biggest mistake came on a pass picked off in the endzone. I'm fairly certain it was on first and goal making it a rookie mistake. That ball needs to be in the stands.

Another area I had concerns about was the running game.

One thing I'd like to see from the Irish is one of the running backs stepping up and seizing the bulk of the carries....Even though this can clearly be a pass-heavy offense with Rees at the helm, it's nice to have a go-to-guy at tailback in your back pocket. 

Clearly, the Irish are pass-happy and quite good at it. The problem is the offense is one dimensional.

Notre Dame's leading rusher Amir Carlisle has just 19 carries through two games and right behind him is George Atkinson III with 13 carries. The two have combined for just one rushing touchdown.

That's not sustainable if you want to keep defenses honest.

The good news is Carlisle is averaging 6.9 yards per carry and Atkinson is sitting at 5.5. The Irish need to use this game as an opportunity to establish the run and ideally find a reliable go-to tailback.

I think it's Carlisle based on his more aggressive running, but he needs to grab the job by the throat and make a statement.

The defense struggled against Michigan, but that's perfectly understandable.

All quarterbacks should wear outrageous numbers like Devin Gardner's new 98.

Wolverine quarterback Devin Gardner is an impressive talent—even if he did throw the dumbest pass in the history of organized football—and the Irish defense won't have to worry about stopping anyone quite as dynamic the rest of the season.

Based on that variable, I tend to think this performance was an outlier. The defense can go a long way to putting any fears to rest by dominating a very poor Purdue offense.

There are clearly flaws with Notre Dame, but it's still very early in the season and we've seen nothing that can't be fixed.

No one likes losing, but I'm sure Brian Kelly enjoys being able to so easily get his team's attention regarding their flaws. Now it's time to fix them.  

Boiler(s) Down

After a disappointing loss last week to the Michigan State Spartans the Notre Dame Fighting Irish got back on track with a convincing 38-21 win over the Purdue Boilermakers. While the Boilermakers aren't exactly a juggernaut it was the way that the Irish took care of them that brings a smile to all ND fans.

For much of the season the ND rushing game has been nonexistent, if not downright awful. The Irish entered the game averaging 78 yards rushing. This Saturday, however, they eclipsed that mark in the 3rd quarter alone, gaining 90 yards from the contributions of Armando Allen, James Aldridge, and Robert Hughes. In all, Allen finished with 134, Aldridge with 34, and Hughes with 26.

Aside from the resurgent running game, Jimmy Clausen and the Irish receivers connected for a great day statistically. Statistically speaking, Clausen had his best day in an Irish uniform. He completed 20 of 35 passing attempts for 275 yards and 3 TDs and 0 INTs. True freshman Michael Floyd, who has been on fire all year, snagged 6 six catches for 100 yards. Tight end Kyle Rudolph, another true freshman, hauled in his first career TD on a 5 yard pass from Clausen in the third quarter. Senior David Grimes also scored a TD on a 30 yard pass from Clausen in the third quarter. Golden Tate made a few spectacular catches en route a 64 yard, 1 TD performance. Duval Kamara would have had a TD, but the officials ruled him out of bounds.

On the defensive side of the ball, true freshman CB Robert Blanton provided a much needed spark when the Irish were down early to the Boilermakers. Blanton intercepted a pass from Curtis Painted and took it 47 yards to the house. The rest of the Irish D played for the better part of the game, although they need to work on wrapping up players in the open field.

The kick game continues to create headaches as Brandon Walker missed a FG in the first quarter. Moreover, the Irish failed to notch a touchback or even get the ball close to the goal line on kickoffs. At least the kickoff coverage unit managed to hold Purdue's return men to their lowest output of the season.

All in all this game proved that the Irish are not about to give up on the running game just yet. If ND can repeat its success from this past weekend in future endeavors they have the chance to be a legitimately decent football team by the end of the year. Was Purdue's defense really that bad or did the Irish o-line overachieve? Only time will tell.

Next up: Stanford.