Winners and losers from Notre Dame’s ugly victory against the Boston College Eagles to keep their CFB Playoff hopes alive
Highlighting the Notre Dame players who dominated against Boston College, and others who had games to forget.
Head coach Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame football were able to continue their winning ways on Saturday against the Boston College Eagles, coming away with a 25 to 10 road victory. That is now six victories in a row for the Fighting Irish after beginning the year with a 0-2 record. There is a clear path to 10-2 on the year, and the Irish will need it to have any chance at qualifying for the College Football Playoffs.
For those who watched the game, you know that Notre Dame didn’t play overly well during the victory against the Eagles. It was a very up and down performance, and there was a lot more down than you should be comfortable with. As always, some players put together stellar performances, while others struggled throughout the contest.
Winners
Several Notre Dame standouts turned in key performances during the Irish victory. Here were the biggest winners during the contest.
The linebackers
The duo of Drayk Bowen and Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa played their best game as a pairing in the blue and gold on Saturday. Between the two linebackers, they combined for 23 total tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, and a pass breakup. Jaiden Ausberry and Jaylen Sneed each made some flash plays as well. Outside of the stupid late hit by Sneed, that unit was nearly flawless against the Eagles.
They are a big reason why the Notre Dame defense held Boston College to 12 yards rushing on 33 carries.
It was an incredibly inefficient day as a rushing attack for Notre Dame. The lone excitement was brought to you by the junior superstar, taking a carry 94 yards for a touchdown in the second half. Outside of that long run, the Irish managed to rush for just 65 yards on 28 carries as a team. Love had 136 of the 159 rushing yards for the Irish.
Safety duo
We are seeing redshirt freshman safety Tae Johnson become a star before our very eyes. Adon Shuler is one of your captains, and he continues to play like one. During the contest, that duo managed to record nine total tackles, three interceptions, and two pass breakups. With all due respect to Jalen Stroman and Luke Talich, this pairing needs to play the majority of the snaps.
Losers
“Everyone is a winner.” Well no, not everyone. Some players didn’t play well, and it’s okay to say that. Some need to play a lot better, and it’s also okay to say that.
Offensive line
Sullivan Absher started his first game inside at left guard for the injured Billy Schrauth and it was a very up and down performance for him. Absher was far from the only problem on Saturday up front. The rest of the offensive line had a lackluster performance as well, and hopefully things get better as the unit becomes more cohesive.
Jadarian Price
Price has been receiving a ton of national notoriety in recent weeks, and for good reason. The redshirt junior running back has been very good, but he turned in his worst game of the season by a landslide. He rushed for just 12 yards on nine carries while also fumbling inside the five yard line. It was a game to forget, and game film to burn.
The kicking game
Between Noah Burnette, Erik Schmidt, and Marcello Diomede, Notre Dame kickers made just one of four kicks during the contests, and each had a miss. The impact goes well beyond leaving five points off of the board against Boston College. Without any dependability with their ability to convert field goals and extra points, Coach Freeman may have to be forced to make more aggressive decisions in the future.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish News
Crucial changes that Notre Dame and HC Marcus Freeman need to make following an ugly victory over the Boston College Eagles
Something needs to change for Notre Dame, and quickly.
