Notre Dame’s biggest Achilles’ heel pulled through in a massive Sugar Bowl victory over the Georgia Bulldogs
Going into the Sugar Bowl battle between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Georgia Bulldogs, one headline that wasn’t talked about enough was the Irish field goal kicking operation. Hidden behind a long string of blowout victories, placekicker Mitch Jeter had had a ton of struggles this season. Kicking in a potentially close game could […]
Going into the Sugar Bowl battle between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Georgia Bulldogs, one headline that wasn’t talked about enough was the Irish field goal kicking operation. Hidden behind a long string of blowout victories, placekicker Mitch Jeter had had a ton of struggles this season. Kicking in a potentially close game could be the difference, and fans all felt uneasy seeing the unit trot onto the field.
Heading into the contest, Jeter was just 8-15 on fields while dealing with a groin injury for the better part of the season. Even with those struggles, there wasn’t a better option on the roster. Zac Yoakam was just 2-5 on his attempts, Marcello Diomede missed his only opportunity, and even Eric Goins missed his only extra point attempt as well. That group was a combined 10-21 on field goal tries coming into the Sugar Bowl.
Not only was Jeter solid during the game, it was the best we have seen him in the blue and gold. He made all three of his attempts on the day, and they weren’t easy ones. The distances on the attempts were 44, 47, and 48 yards, and Jeter made them all with relative ease.
When you add in the two extra points that Jeter made, he ended up being responsible for 11 points on the day. Which means, he outscored Georgia all by himself. After the frustration the field goal unit had brought this season, Notre Dame fans can sleep a little easier after this massive victory.
Will Jeter make a big one when it matters most? There’s no way to answer that question right now, but you certainly feel better about it after the contest. While quarterback Riley Leonard and the Notre Dame defense will get most of the headlines, the importance of Jeter can’t be understated. He was an unsung hero in this upset of the Bulldogs.
Notre Dame football silenced the most outdated and misguided narrative in their victory against the Georgia Bulldogs
Silence the tired narratives.
