Allen Pinkett

A lopsided loss to Michigan erased thoughts of an unbeaten season for Notre Dame.

It also brought into focus areas on both offense and defense where the Irish have to improve if they are to make a run at BCS bid.

Losing 47-21 to the Wolverines at Notre Dame Stadium didn't wake up any echoes, but it did wake up anyone wearing Blue and Gold who didn't think challenges would arise in coach Charlie Weis' second season leading the Irish.

The remainder of the season is a test for Notre Dame as to how much it can better its play, and work its way back up in the rankings. And the test starts Saturday night on the road against Michigan State -- a nemesis of the Irish over the last nine years.

A trio of offensive priorities
While the Irish are playing hard and have talent and ability, they are in need of better execution in several areas of their offense.

Notre Dame definitely has to work on pass protection. Against Michigan, quarterback Brady Quinn got hit way too much, and faced way to much pressure, and they certainly compromised his effectiveness.

"If Ohio State beats Michigan on Nov. 18, then they will hand the Heisman Trophy to Troy Smith. But if OSU loses to Michigan, and Notre Dame beats USC on Nov. 25, then Brady Quinn will be the frontrunner for the award." — NDFootball FROM NOTRE DAME CENTRAL: MSNBC.com contributor John Tamanaha believes that even if Ohio State loses to Michigan, Smith still takes the 25-pound Heisman home if he merely puts up numbers in the neighborhood of his current season averages -- 15.8-of-23.7 for 200.6 yards and 2.2 touchdowns.   Click, comment on Heisman race

Why is the offensive line not doing a better job in this area?

Well, I think it comes down to execution, but keep in mind Michigan and other Irish opponents have some real talent up front on defense, making the job of pass protecting Quinn all the more challenging and difficult. Still, with better execution will come better protection for Quinn, and the more time he has to throw the more dangerous he becomes.

The Irish have to develop a more effective running game to balance their passing attack, and make their offense that much more potent. Against Michigan, the Irish weren't able to generate a ground game, and that in turn hurt their aerial attack.

I would like to see tailback Darius Walker be a lot more decisive in his running, and he can help himself by learning to trust in and go with his first read of an opposing defense on any given play.

Even if a running back is wrong with his first read, if he goes about it aggressively, he's likely to gain at least few yards. But when a running back hesitates, and second-guesses his first read, he plays right into the hands of the defense.

When Walker is decisive, he's an electrifying runner. The defense knows if it makes one misstep, Walker could be gone for a big gain or a touchdown.

Weis has also underscored the priority of his offense doing a lot better job converting on third downs. They have not had a good percentage in this area, especially on third and long. Through the first three games of the season, Notre Dame was just 14-for-44 (.318) on third-down conversions.

A big key to improving in this area is what happens on first down. On first down the Irish need to gain at least four yards, and thus create at least a manageable third-down situation. This way come third down, a conversion to a first down is not such a tall mountain to climb.

With Quinn, I think it's just a matter of more consistency in his game. The senior has made some throws this season where he has put the ball in locations that a lot of NFL quarterbacks couldn't, but at other times he's been a little out of sync with his passes.

It's natural to press when your team falls behind, but Quinn is good enough that he has to stay relaxed and composed if the Irish are trailing, and let the game come to him to be at his most effective.

Defense, front and back
The defensive line and the defensive backs at Notre Dame have to improve on getting their jobs done. There must be greater pressure put on opposing quarterbacks, and tighter coverage applied to enemy receivers.

Notre Dame at Navy      THE BUZZ on NAVY... Irish rush defense faces another test Last week UCLA managed only 26 yards rushing against Notre Dame after entering the game averaging 143.6 yards rushing per game. This week Navy comes into its meeting with the Irish second in the NCAA in rushing, averaging 316.5 yards per game. But Navy's leading rusher, quarterback Brian Hampton, suffered a knee injury last week and is out for the season. Last year Navy rushed for 239 yards against the Irish, but the Midshipmen might find running the ball against the Irish tougher this time around as the Notre Dame defense has held each of its last three opponents under 72 yards rushing.   Click, comment on ND's O-line Game: Saturday, 12:00 PM ET (CBS)

Last season, Notre Dame was 103rd in the nation in pass defense, allowing 264.6 yards per game. That's been improved upon, but there is still plenty of room for more improvement.

In their loss to Michigan, the Irish did a subpar job on their pass rush and pass coverage, and they paid the price as Wolverines quarterback Chad Henne threw for 220 yards and three touchdowns.

The Irish cornerbacks have to consistently get a bump and a press on the top receivers they face. They have to knock receivers off their routes or at least mess up the timing of the plays such that the quarterback has to hold the ball a little bit longer, and that's when bad things can happen to him.

The defensive backs must have very short memories -- their position is one where this is a must. If they get into situations where their confidence gets shaken, they must be able to quickly shake off the memory of being beaten on a play, and respond on the next play.

If the starters in the Irish secondary look at the overall season so far, they've had more success than failure, and they must use that to build on their positives and flush away their negatives. From what I've seen, every one of the mistakes they have made is correctable.

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