Irish out to stun USC
Trojans face a danger game
vs. upset-minded Notre Dame
Michael Conroy / AP fileNotre Dame's Darius Walker, a true freshman, needs to have a busy day running the ball at USC on Saturday if the Irish are to have a shot at upsetting the Trojans, says Pat Haden of NBCSports.com.
COMMENTARY
By Pat Haden
msnbc.com contributor
updated 10:35 p.m. ET Nov. 25, 2004
Despite Notre Dame being a huge underdog to unbeaten and No.1 ranked USC, I think the game between these two teams on Saturday night in Los Angeles will be a close one -- and I'm not ruling out the possibility of an upset.
Match up
matters
I don't think this is a blowout game by any stretch of the imaginaton.
The Irish (6-4) have played inconsistently this season, but they do have wins over Michigan and Tennessee, both of whom were in the top-10 at the time they played Notre Dame.
I've said it before, Notre Dame can upset USC, but the Irish will have to play their best game of the season to have a shot at pulling off a shocker.
One thing that would likely end any bid for an upset is if Notre Dame turned the ball over, and USC capitalized.
One thing that would certainly aid the Irish chances at a win is if their defense produced some points off turnovers.
Considering some other factors, I think there is just as much pressure on USC as on Notre Dame, maybe even more.
And as for being on the road, Notre Dame plays in packed visiting stadiums all the time, and while it's a sellout at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, I'll bet around 30,000 of those fans will be rooting for the Irish.
So the L.A. Memorial Coliseum I don't feel is an extremely difficult place to play for the Irish.
As for all the media attention, I don't see that as affecting the Irish, since when you play for Notre Dame, you get used to the spotlight being on your team every game.
Put Walker on the run
The Irish have been striving all year for a balanced attack, but finding one has been hard to come by --at least on a consistent basis.
I think against USC, the Irish have to make a commitment to run freshman tailback Darius Walker.
As much as I think senior runing back Ryan Grant is a great leader and terrific player, Walker's the future, and he's a back who's capable of getting the Irish 10, 20, 30 yards or more on a carry.
This game at USC closes out the regular-season slate for the Irish, and I still don't believe they have shown me a complete game -- one where they can play balanced football for both halves, and not turn the ball over.
In some games, they have had flashes of real solid offensive play, but that's something that really has not been sustained.
If they come up with a complete game against USC, it will be a happy plane ride home.
A passing proposition
The Irish passing game has improved over last season.
A year ago, the team's passing offense ranked 92nd.
It's currently ranked 47th, but the Notre Dame coaches were looking for even more improvement this season.
Notre Dame's two starting wide receivers, Maurice Stovall and Rhema McKnight, have only three touchdown catches between them.
Reserve Matt Shelton, a senior who caught only four balls over his first three seasons, leads the Irish with six scoring receptions.
Against Pittsburgh two weeks ago, I think that for the first time this season, Notre Dame ran a pass play where the 6-foot-5 Stovall got to utliize his height and out-jump a defender for a touchdown.
That's what a lot of opponents have done to Notre Dame this season -- throw the ball up and let their receivers try to out-jump the Irish cornerbacks.
With Stovall's outstanding height, and McKnight being 6-foot-2 and strong, against USC I would give these two receivers a few more chances to try and out-jump defenders, especially in the end zone.
Trio of top objectives
There are three things I feel are the biggest keys for the Irish in their bid to defeat USC for the first time since 2001.
All these goals are easier said than done.
The Irish defense has to slow down the USC attack, which is No. 7 in the country in scoring offense, averaging 37.1 points.
Notre Dame defensive backs have to do a much better job of preventing touchdowns and big plays off of just plain old jump balls -- as I touched on earlier in this column.
Another aim for the Irish is to clamp down on tight end Dominique Byrd, an emerging star who is coming on strong after recovering from a knee injury.
In USC's last game two weeks ago against Arizona, Byrd caught eight passes.
Byrd I believe will eventually be a first-round NFL draft pick.
He's a big tight end (6-foot-3, 255 pounds), who can get up the field and create mismatches, and he needs to draw constant attention from Notre Dame defenders.
A third must is for Notre Dame not to give up a big special teams play.
USC is pretty dynamic in the return game, so the Irish, particularly punter and kicker D.J. Fitzpatrick, who for the most part has been marvelous all season, have to have their best special teams game of the year.
An Irish boost
When Ryan Grant was asked about the Irish possibly pulling off a stunner in L.A., he said he and his teammates weren't motivated by the chance to ruin USC's season, but rather they are driven by the opportunity to build on their own season.
And a win over USC certainly builds up the Irish for a bowl game as Notre Dame's confidence and pride will be sky high.
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