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Any changes you’d make?
Notre Dame’s hopes for a return trip to the College Football Playoff came to an end Saturday with a 24-13 home loss at the hands of the Cincinnati Bearcats. The Irish now have to quickly pick up the pieces before making the trip to Blacksburg and Virginia Tech this Saturday night.
On Monday, Notre Dame released their updated depth chart for the Virginia Tech game. This is how it looks:
Another tumble for the Irish
The loss to Cincinnati is going to be looked back upon as a potential turning point for the Irish as it dropped them down to No. 13 in the latest USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll. Many of us, myself included, wondered why Brian Kelly and offensive coordinator Tommy Rees didn’t turn to Drew Pyne earlier, as they opted not to play him at all in the first half.
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It was a true tale of two halves, as the Irish were blanked in first two quarters and took a 17-0 deficit against the Bearcats into halftime. They would win the second half, 13-7, but it wasn’t enough as the first half hole was too deep to dig out of.
As Nick Shepkowski said last night, it’s time to turn the reigns over to Pyne, after both Jack Coan and Tyler Buchner were ineffective in the first half.
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The first loss of the season will sting for a while, as the Irish seemed like the better team, but mistakes, mainly turnovers in their own territory, ultimately doomed them.
It does help that multiple other Top-25 teams lost, including No. 2 Georgia blanking No. 11 Arkansas, No. 3 Oregon getting upset against Stanford in overtime, No. 9 Florida falling to Kentucky, No. 13 Texas A&M losing at home to Mississippi State and No. 21 Fresno State lost to host Hawaii.
That means there was plenty of movement in this weeks newest Coaches Poll. Below are the updated rankings along with last weeks in parenthesis.
1 – Alabama (1)
2 – Georgia (2)
3 – Iowa (5)
4 – Penn State (6)
5 – Oklahoma (4)
6 – Cincinnati (8)
7 – Ohio State (10)
8 – Michigan (14)
9 – Oregon (3)
10 – BYU (15)
11 – Michigan State (16)
12 – Oklahoma State (18)
13 – Notre Dame (7)
14 – Kentucky (23)
15 – Coastal Carolina (16)
16 – Arkansas (11)
17 – Ole Miss (17)
18 – Florida (9)
19 – Auburn (22)
20 – Wake Forest (25)
21 – Clemson (19)
22 – North Carolina State (NR)
23 – Texas (NR)
24 – Southern Miss (NR)
25 – Arizona State (NR)
Enough is enough and it’s time for a change!
It wasn’t just a drive to flip field position against Wisconsin when Notre Dame’s backs were up against it. It wasn’t just a touchdown drive against the Badgers last week that stretched the lead to 24-13 and made things a lot easier.
And it wasn’t being called upon to bail Notre Dame out in the second half against Cincinnati after Jack Coan and Tyler Buchner were both bad. Sure it was against a very good team and defense in Cincinnati but neither were effective.
Related:
Notre Dame falls to No. 7 Cincinnati: 5 instant takeaways
5 Stars: best and worst of Notre Dame’s home loss to Cincinnati
Cincinnati athletics troll Brian Kelly extra hard after handing Irish home loss
But somehow, for the second week in a row, Notre Dame’s offense came to life when Drew Pyne entered the contest just after halftime. He immediately marched the Irish down to the Cincinnati 35, only to be replaced for a first down run by Tyler Buchner that did nothing. Without much surprise the offense sputtered the rest of the drive.
Brian Kelly wouldn’t commit to any quarterback after the game, instead stating the coaching staff has to get the position figured out. He also didn’t come out and declare Jack Coan the starter like he did after last week’s victory. I’m fairly sure he knows.
If he doesn’t something worth considering is the fact the rest of the offense has had more of a bounce in its step when Pyne is in compared to Coan or Buchner.
Perhaps one could consider that crazy thing called results and see who actually gives Notre Dame the best chance to move the football.
I have a feeling Kelly and company will make the obvious choice next week at Virginia Tech but until it’s actually official we’re still left to wonder.
Who played well? Who didn’t?
It was a disastrous first half, even though the Irish looked like the better team. They went into the half down 17-0 and early in the third quarter it looked like the Bearcats were about to pull away. The Irish battled back to 17-13, but Cincinnati responded with a touchdown and that’s was the end of the Notre Dame comeback attempt. It wasn’t all bad for the Irish and here are the best, 5 stars, and worst, 1 star, performances during Notre Dame 24-13 loss to Cincinnati.
What is your instant takeaway from the loss?
Notre Dame survived scares the first three weeks of the season and overpowered Wisconsin in a slugfest for the final quarter last week but if it was good fortune, luck, or anything of the sort, it all ran out on Saturday afternoon as No. 7 Cincinnati gave the Irish a taste of their own medicine in a 24-13 win.
Cincinnati’s secondary is as good as advertised and took advantage of the opportunities they created and with a little help, may just be headed to the College Football Playoff in a few months.
We’re here to talk about Notre Dame’s side of things though on afternoon that so much went wrong. Here are our five instant takeaways:
And that’s all she wrote.
Notre Dame had a nice run of 26 consecutive home wins, but all good things must come to an end. It happened Saturday with a 24-13 loss to Cincinnati, and the Irish’s College Football Playoff hopes likely died along with the aforementioned streak. Meanwhile, the Bearcats’ playoff hopes remain alive, and they have their revenge against Brian Kelly and Marcus Freeman.
The Bearcats (4-0) looked to be in business early in the fourth quarter when Desmond Ridder completed a 44-yard pass to Alec Pierce to get to the 25-yard line of the Irish (4-1). They barely got into the red zone, prompting a call to Cole Smith to attempt a 37-yard field goal. Smith missed his second field goal of the half, and the score remained 17-7.
Drew Pyne came on to lead a drive that included completions of 14 yards to Lorenzo Styles and 20 yards to Michael Mayer. It culminated in a 32-yard touchdown pass to Braden Lenzy, putting the Irish within an extra point of a three-point deficit. Instead, Jonathan Doerer picked a bad time to miss his first extra-point kick since Oct. 2018, meaning the Irish would need another touchdown without giving one up to take the lead.
The Bearcats’ offense went right back to work. Jerome Ford ran for 16 yards on one play, and Leonard Taylor had a 36-yard reception on the other. After another Ford run that went for 11 yards, Ridder took the ball himself to earn a 6-yard touchdown run. Notre Dame Stadium was silent once again except for the large contingent of Bearcats fans in attendance.
Pyne did his best to manufacture a response with time running out, getting the offense to the Bearcats’ 41. That’s where Jabari Taylor and Malik Vann sacked Pyne on second down, and the Irish’s last flickering hopes went out with the back-to-back incomplete passes that followed. Let the party begin in Ohio for the Bearcats’ biggest win ever.
The comeback continues
The Irish needed a spark to their offense after putting up a big zero in the first half. Head coach Brian Kelly and offensive coordinator Tommy Rees looked to Drew Pyne, who didn’t get a snap in the first half. The move has worked out wonderfully for the Irish.
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Pyne, like last week against Wisconsin, has sparked the whole team, giving the Irish a sense that they can win any game where he gets an opportunity. The quarterback found wide receiver Braden Lenzy for a 32-yard scoring strike to creep the Irish closer to the Bearcats 17-13. If you’re not watching this game, you’re missing out on a very entertains football game.
WE HAVE A BALL GAME!
What a beautiful 32-yard TD for @NDFootball! 🤩
Watch now on NBC and @peacockTV pic.twitter.com/HaaTmIf8qH
— Notre Dame on NBC (@NDonNBC) October 2, 2021
This one’s not over yet.
If Notre Dame is going to come back against Cincinnati, time remains for it to happen. The third quarter showed a few signs that a miracle is in the cards. We might be having a big celebration 15 minutes from now. At the moment, the Irish trail, 17-7.
Right out of halftime, the Bearcats went for the kill. On the third play of the quarter’s first drive, Desmond Ridder completed a 45-yard pass to Alec Pierce to get to the Irish’s 17-yard line. The Irish’s defense held firm on the next series, not allowing another first down. Cole Smith came on to salvage the drive with a 30-yard field goal, but it sailed left, opening the door for the Irish.
Drew Pyne came on as the Irish’s third quarterback of the afternoon. Other than a Tyler Buchner run that went nowhere, Pyne was able to navigate a drive that went down to the Bearcats’ 30. The Irish got no further as Pyne threw an incomplete pass to Braden Lenzy on fourth-and-5.
The Bearcats chose to run to get into Irish territory, and Ridder’s 24-yard completion to Michael Young set them up at the 24. That’s when Isaiah Foskey sacked Ridder to force a fumble and allow Drew White to scoop it up for a 28-yard gain. Yet another opening for the Irish, and with excellent field position to boot this time.
Pyne needed only four plays and just over two minutes to get the Irish their first points. A 16-yard completion to Michael Mayer and an 11-yard of his own gave the Irish a first-and-goal. Pyne handed the ball off to Kyren Williams, who leaped into the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown. Hope indeed is alive at Notre Dame Stadium.
Sometimes having a quarterback controversy isn’t great, but for the Fighting Irish, it’s not a bad sign this season.
Although it may seem like a difficult situation for the Irish with having a quarterback controversy, it might not be the worst problem for Brian Kelly and offensive coordinator Tommy Rees to have.
Who should start at QB vs. Cincinnati? https://t.co/ArWGIEsNaM
— Fighting Irish Wire (@IrishWireND) September 27, 2021
We are all awaiting the word as to who will take the first snaps under center against the Bearcats, but it could be worse. Find out below why having multiple quarterbacks who could get the job done for the Irish is a great situation to have going forward.
Who should start at QB vs. Cincinnati?
When No. 8 Notre Dame plays host to No. 7 Cincinnati on Saturday the Fighting Irish will be doing so with a two-quarterback system. Exactly which two quarterbacks however remains to be seen.
Jack Coan has been Notre Dame’s starter for the first four games of the season but was knocked out of the most recent win against Wisconsin. Although it isn’t serious in terms of being a longterm injury, his availability for the showdown with Cincinnati is still unkown.
The quarterback situation is such, and I think I mentioned it after the game, if Jack is healthy, Jack would be our starter,” Brian Kelly said on Monday, “We’ll see when we get on the field tomorrow. We’re not on the field today, so I really can’t give you an assessment of how (Coan) is relative to throwing the football. I think tomorrow we’ll make a decision on how he feels and how he looks.”
As was the case against Toledo and for the first half against Purdue, freshman Tyler Buchner will play the other quarterback role that has helped in opening up the running game.
“But Tyler felt really good yesterday at treatment, so he declared himself feeling really good, so that that’s good for us,” Kelly said, “That allows us to get him back into the mix.”
Right now it would appear that Coan will be the starter for Saturday but if things don’t go as planned in Tuesday’s practice then it’ll be Drew Pyne that the Irish will lean on to get them through another big-time matchup.
“If he (Coan) can’t then Drew is ready to go and it appears that Tyler is going to be in pretty good shape to play for us,” Kelly said, “So, the two quarterback situation, it just depends on what two from that standpoint.”
Related:
Notre Dame releases depth chart for test with No. 7 Cincinnati
Notre Dame dominates fourth quarter vs. Wisconsin: 5 Instant Takeaways
