Tag: Jordan Faison

Notre Dame vs. Indiana: Fourth-Quarter Analysis

Enjoy this win over the holidays, folks.

The fourth quarter of the first-round College Football Playoff game between Notre Dame and Indiana mostly was uneventful. That’s in part because the Irish had this game in the bag well before it got underway. All that was left to do really was wait for the clock to hit zero and let the Irish enjoy their 27-17 win.

The quarter wasn’t completely devoid of action though. [autotag]Mitch Jeter[/autotag] had a 37-yard field goal blocked, but the Hoosiers did nothing with that. [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] responded by directing a 78-yard drive that featured a 44-yard completion to [autotag]Jordan Faison[/autotag] that came up just short of the end zone. Leonard ran it in himself two plays later for his 15th rushing touchdown this season, an Irish quarterback record.

The Hoosiers came alive after the two-minute timeout when Kurtis Rourke fired a 7-yard touchdown pass to Myles Price and then completing a two-point conversion pass. They then recovered an onside kick, and Rourke led another scoring drive, this one via a 23-yard touchdown pass to Omar Cooper Jr. The late surge came too late to make a difference though.

Having ended the Hoosiers’ dream season, the Irish now turn their attention to the Sugar Bowl, where Georgia awaits them. With just under two weeks to recover and prepare, we’ll find out plenty about this team come New Year’s Day.

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Notre Dame College Football Playoff round one highlight: Riley Leonard sets a record

Riley Leonard just keeps using his legs.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] has set a record against the Indiana Hoosiers during the first round of the College Football Playoff.

Leonard set the record for rushing touchdowns in a season by a Notre Dame quarterback with 15. He passes [autotag]Brandon Wimbush[/autotag], who set the previous mark in 2017.

Leonard’s 1-yard run capped off a 9-play, 78-yard drive that took 5:44 off the clock.

While the run was nice, it was a deep toss from Leonard to [autotag]Jordan Faison[/autotag] for 44 yards that set the Irish up in the red zone.

The drive came after a baffling decision from Indiana to punt, and the touchdown made the score 27-3 in favor of the Irish.

Notre Dame place kicker Mitch Jeter (98) celebrates scoring a field goal during the first round of the College Football Playoff between Notre Dame and Indiana on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, in South Bend.

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Notre Dame vs. Indiana: Third-Quarter Analysis

One quarter away from victory.

Notre Dame is in good shape to defeat Indiana in the first round of the College Football Playoff. There wasn’t a whole lot of action in the third quarter, but there was enough that people will talk about at game’s end.

[autotag]Jayden Harrison[/autotag] pitched the ball to [autotag]Jordan Faison[/autotag] on the opening kickoff of the second half, and that got the Irish into Hoosiers territory. The ensuing possession went nowhere, but [autotag]James Rendell[/autotag] punted the ball 31 yards to back the Hoosiers up to their own 12-yard line.

The Hoosiers went three-and-out after Kurtis Rourke was sacked by [autotag]Rylie Mills[/autotag] and then [autotag]Bryce Young[/autotag]. Mills’ sack proved costly though as he went down and ended up limping off the field. Fortunately, he was up and moving on the sidelines and could return to this game.

The Irish began their next possession at the Hoosiers’ 41. A late hit out of bounds on third down put them in the red zone, but even that nearly went for naught. They came up short on a fake field-goal attempt but were bailed out by a Hoosiers timeout right before the ball was snapped. That prompted them to do the sensible thing and have [autotag]Mitch Jeter[/autotag] actually kick a field goal, which he did from 33 yards out after a false start penalty.

After another Hoosiers three-and-out, the Irish drove for a few minutes before ending the quarter on the outskirts of field-goal range. That 20-3 lead sure looks safe, but stranger things have happened in college football. We’ll see.

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Notre Dame statistical leaders through 11 games

Who leads the Irish heading into the final regular-season contest?

Notre Dame has its fate in its own hands for the College Football Playoff. All it needs to do is defeat USC, and a first-round game at Notre Dame Stadium appears to be a certainty. Who would have thought the Irish would be in such a good position after the loss to Northern Illinois threatened to derail their season early?

The Irish can’t afford to get complacent though. The Trojans have not had a great season, but dealing the Irish a loss that could threaten their playoff chances would make up for everything that has gone wrong for them. That’s why the Irish will need to prepare for them like they would for any ranked team, and the talent they have should allow them to emerge victorious.

Here are the major statistical leaders the Irish are taking into their regular-season finale. Not all of them will be available, but they’re fun to see nonetheless:

Notre Dame vs. Army: First-Quarter Analysis

So far, so good for the Irish.

So far, Notre Dame is off to the start every one of its fans was hoping for in this Shamrock Series game against Army. All you really have to know is that the Irish have a 14-0 lead, but let’s go into specifics anyway because every unit contributed in the first 15 minutes.

The Irish’s defense started out fine by forcing a Black Knights three-and-out. Then, the offense took over, and [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] needed a little over two minutes to lead a drive that consisted of nothing but positive plays and ended with him throwing a 28-yard touchdown pass to [autotag]Jordan Faison[/autotag].

The Knights then went three-and-out again, but the ball never left their side of the field because [autotag]Bryce Young[/autotag] blocked the ensuing punt, and it was recovered by [autotag]Christian Gray[/autotag] to set the Irish up at first-and-goal. After two runs didn’t go very far, Leonard threw to [autotag]Jeremiyah Love[/autotag] for a 6-yard touchdown.

The Knights had better success on their next possession, getting into Irish territory and being aided by an offside penalty by [autotag]Jaylen Sneed[/autotag] on fourth-and-1. When the quarter ended, they were in the red zone. We’ll see how much that makes a difference in this game later on.

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Notre Dame Week 13 highlight — Riley Leonard connects with Jordan Faison

Riley Leonard, Jordan Faison get it started for Notre Dame.

No. 6 Notre Dame has gotten off to a strong start against No. 18 Army at Yankee Stadium in New York City.

After forcing the Black Knights to go three-and-out on the opening drive of the game, the Fighting Irish moved the ball effectively down the field on the strength of a run/pass mix and a couple of nice scampers by running back [autotag]Jeremiyah Love[/autotag].

The Irish then capped things off when quarterback [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] found wide receiver [autotag]Jordan Faison[/autotag] for a 29-yard touchdown pass.

Leonard was 3-for-3 passing on the drive, which was 5 plays, 68 yards and took 2:17 off the clock. The touchdown was scored with 10:24 remaining in the first quarter.

Marcus Freeman updates wide receiver Jordan Faison’s injury status
Notre Dame wide receivers Logan Saldate (19) and Jordan Faison (6) stretch before a Notre Dame football practice at Irish Athletic Center on Wednesday, July 31, 2024, in South Bend.

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Notre Dame vs. Virginia: Second-Quarter Analysis

This quarter lasted over an hour and was quite crazy.

If you were hoping for more action between Notre Dame and Virginia in the second quarter, you would have gotten some. In a quarter that lasted over an hour in real time, the Irish had one crazy moment after another, and it ended with them holding a 28-0 halftime lead.

Both teams continued to struggle offensively for the first few minutes. After [autotag]Max Hurleman[/autotag] muffed a punt and the Cavaliers recovered, the Irish’s 7-0 lead appeared to be in jeopardy. But the Irish took the ball right back a few plays later when [autotag]Rod Heard II[/autotag] forced a Kobe Pace fumble that was recovered by [autotag]Xavier Watts[/autotag].

The difference between the two turnovers is that the Irish took advantage. Their offense had its most productive drive of the day, and it culminated when [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] hit [autotag]Jayden Harrison[/autotag] for an 8-yard touchdown.

On the next possession, Leonard fired another apparent touchdown pass to Harrison from 78 yards out, but it was wiped out when [autotag]Pat Coogan[/autotag] was penalized for illegal hands to the face.

Another apparent touchdown then was wiped out after a very confusing sequence. Faced with fourth-and-11, the Irish opted to fake a punt and try a fumblerooski, and [autotag]Jordan Faison[/autotag] ran the ball 73 yards to the house. However, the officials called it back for illegal formation, much to the chagrin of the Notre Dame Stadium fans and the NBC announcers.

But that touchdown was dying to be scored, and it finally was after [autotag]Adon Shuler[/autotag] returned an interception 46 yards and Leonard immediately faked a handoff before firing to an open [autotag]Cooper Flanagan[/autotag] in the end zone from 2 yards out.

The Irish weren’t finished though. Anthony Colandrea threw another interception, this one to [autotag]Leonard Moore[/autotag]. On the final of three subsequent passes, [autotag]Mitchell Evans[/autotag] had a 16-yard touchdown.

Colandrea kept feeling generous though because Watts picked off another one of his passes in the waning seconds of the quarter. Although [autotag]Mitch Jeter[/autotag] missed a 54-yard field goal as time expired, the Irish still deserved a rest in the locker room after everything that had just happened.

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Notre Dame Week 12 highlight: Adon Shuler steals it away

Notre Dame gets a big pick from Adon Shuler

It’s been a wild few minutes at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend.

The No. 8 Notre Dame Fighting Irish are hosting the Virginia Cavaliers on Senior Day and the final few minutes of the first half have been bonkers.

It started with Notre Dame having a long touchdown pass from quarterback [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] to wide receiver [autotag]Jayden Harrison[/autotag] coming back on a penalty. Then Notre Dame appeared to perfectly execute a fake punt for a touchdown with wide receiver [autotag]Jordan Faison[/autotag] running it in. But that came back on an illegal formation penalty and the Irish punted for real.

Virginia quarterback Anthony Colandrea then threw an interception to Notre Dame safety [autotag]Adon Shuler[/autotag], who returned it to the Virginia 2-yard line.

We’re in for a frantic finish to the first half in South Bend.

Adon Shuler had a big play early against Navy.
Oct 19, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish safety Adon Shuler (8) walks off the field before a game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images

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Notre Dame Week 11 highlight — Mitchell Evans gets first touchdown of the season

Mitchell Evans has his first TD of the season for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

[autotag]Mitchell Evan’s[/autotag] first touchdown of the season came at a very good time for the No. 10 Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

It looked like the Irish might have a drive stall before halftime against the Florida State Seminoles. Notre Dame appeared ready to attempt a FG, then took a timeout and decided to go for it on fourth down. A [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] pass to [autotag]Jordan Faison[/autotag] converted, but the Seminoles also had 12 men on the field and were penalized.

Leonard hit Evans for a 12-yard touchdown pass on the next play, ending a 12-play, 77-yard drive that took 1:31 off the clock.

Notre Dame leads the Seminoles 21-3 at the halftime break.

Notre Dame has six named to PFF’s top returning players for 2024
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – OCTOBER 07: Mitchell Evans #88 of Notre Dame Fighting Irish against the Louisville Cardinals at L&N Stadium on October 07, 2023 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

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Notre Dame vs. Florida State: Second-Quarter Analysis

The Irish are up with 30 minutes in the books.

(This story was updated to add new information).

[autotag]Jadarian Price[/autotag] wanted to finish what he started for Notre Dame late in the first quarter. On the first play of the second quarter, he ran for 65 yards and initially appeared to have just missed the end zone.

But a replay review confirmed Price had kept his foot in bounds, so he had a touchdown to extend the Irish’s lead over Florida State to 14-3.

There wasn’t a lot of action to speak of for a while after that, though the Irish’s defense had an interesting sequence. After [autotag]Howard Cross III[/autotag] went out with an injury, [autotag]Rylie Mills[/autotag] picked him up with back-to-back sacks on Brock Glenn to unseat Cross as the Irish’s sacks leader.

After getting close to Seminoles punter Alex Mastromanno a few times, [autotag]Adon Shuler[/autotag] got a piece of a punt, and that allowed the Irish’s offense to start a drive at midfield. It didn’t mean a thing though as the Irish never reached the red zone, and a [autotag]Mitch Jeter[/autotag] 42-yard field-goal attempt went wide left.

[autotag]Donovan Hinish[/autotag] recorded another sack on Glenn to force another Seminoles punt. The Irish had to start further back than before this time, and with time running out, they opted to go for it on a fourth-and-10 from the Seminoles 34-yard line after a timeout.

The Seminoles were flagged for having 12 men on the field, and the Irish  picked up a first down when Leonard completed a 22-yard pass to [autotag]Jordan Faison[/autotag]. Leonard took full advantage by promptly hitting [autotag]Mitchell Evans[/autotag] with a 12-yard touchdown.

The Irish are up, 21-3, at halftime. The way the Seminoles have played offense, that looks like a safe lead, but we’ll see.

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