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Lasting thoughts on Notre Dame football’s win over USC

Michael Chen
·5 min read
14

Notre Dame football gained its signature win of 2023, routing USC at home 48-20.

It was a surprise, not that the Irish won the game, but how well they looked, absolutely dominating the Trojans all evening. It was only in the first quarter that Notre Dame looked like wasn’t in full control, but the last 45 minutes was pure bliss.

It’s clear this win will stick in most people’s head for a while, the Irish do have a bye week so there aren’t dreams of what this coming weekend could be. Let’s take a look at some lasting thoughts I have about Notre Dame’s convincing win over USC.

No bye week blues

Thoughts

Sometimes you can enter a bye week like you are going to miss football, but this weekend the Irish earned their rest. Physically, emotionally and everything in between, these last four weeks have been draining for Notre Dame. They now have a chance to rest up, and get ready for the final stretch of the season.

Told you the sky wasn’t falling

Thoughts

Many people, not myself, were starting to put Marcus Freeman on the hot seat, something he didn’t deserve. There was almost zero chatter post-USC win about finding someone else. It’s amazing what a win over the Trojans does. Let’s be real here, Freeman has the program headed in the right direction. I mean, Brian Kelly could still be here, so there’s that.

New Year’s Six game still in play

Thoughts

A 10-win Notre Dame team will be very enticing to the College Football Playoff committee to include in the field, even if it’s not one of the final four teams. Of course the Irish would like to be there, but the reality of the situation is they will not be. Making one of the New Year’s Six games would still make this a good to great season, great if Notre Dame could finish with a major bowl win.

Recruiting

Thoughts

Talk about electric environment this past weekend; the recruits notice. Freeman and this staff did a phenomenal job of making sure the right recruits were on campus, ones Notre Dame can close on. Wins like these will not push them over the edge, but they certainly help and show what kind of environment they could be playing in if they opt for South Bend.

The secondary

Thoughts

Wow, this unit is impressive. They absolutely shut down the supposed generational quarterback in Caleb Williams, potentially costing him a second Heisman in the process. Last year it was a lot of Benjamin Morrison, but not much else. This year, he has got plenty of help. Xavier Watts obviously had a massive game, and he has had a great season so far with four interceptions. DJ Brown, Clarence Lewis and Ramon Henderson each have a pick, which is just one off last year’s total of 10. The leaps this unit has taken is impressive and both Chris O’Leary and Mike Mickens deserve a lot of credit for coaching up this group.

Audric Estime bounces back

Thoughts

Although I didn’t think Estime would get leapfrogged on the depth chart by freshman Jeremiyah Love, I thought his carries would go down. They did for one game as the offense once again leaned on its power back to get the job done. Estime’s two scores were significant. Both were in the second quarter when the game was still undecided. Kudos to the young man for keeping his head up and getting the job done.

Special teams

Thoughts

Kicker Spencer Shrader was on his game, hitting all six of his extra points and going 2 of 2 on field goal attempts. Punter Bryce McFerson also was great, averaging over 45 yards on each of his punts. The highlight of this group was Jadarian Price’s 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Anytime you have this kind of production and points, it’s hard to lose.

Sam Hartman

Thoughts

My last thought revolves around the biggest current enigma for the Irish, Sam Hartman. Early in the season, he was talked about being a Heisman candidate, but that has cooled significantly. It seems like the transfer has regressed over the course of the season, maybe he peaked way too early. Against USC, Hartman completed 13 passes for just 126 yards, an average of just over 9 yards-per-completion. He didn’t turn the ball over, but the offense didn’t score all of the 48 points. Fourteen were from special teams or the defense. There weren’t many complaints right after the game, due to the magnitude of the win, but Hartman needs to find the confidence he had earlier this year during the bye.

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Story originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire