Social media reacts to Notre Dame touchdown after fake punt
Notre Dame knew it needed to open its road contest against Duke with a bang. It appeared that wouldn’t be the case when the Irish were faced with a fourth-and-4 at the Blue Devils’ 47-yard line. Instead, the Irish successfully executed a fake punt as Jeremiyah Love ran for 34 yards:
NOTRE DAME FAKE PUNT pic.twitter.com/lbRfbL8map
— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthew_CFB) September 30, 2023
Two plays later, Audric Estime was in the end zone on a 7-yard run, giving the Irish an early 7-0 lead:
Notre Dame cashes in the fake punt and turns it into six pic.twitter.com/1EbC6hEZbe
— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthew_CFB) September 30, 2023
One of the criticisms of the Irish during their loss to Ohio State is that they got too cute at times instead of doing what had been working. That criticism probably wouldn’t have happened so often if those cute plays had worked. They did this time, and that put an early damper on the festivities in Durham.
We’ll see how this game plays out, but in the meantime, here are some the best reactions on social media to the Estime touchdown:
Tyler Horka
Two plays after the Jeremiyah Love fake punt run, Audric Estimé scores the game's first touchdown.
The Fighting Irish come out swinging.
— Tyler Horka (@tbhorka) September 30, 2023
Mik McGivern
Got to love a fake punt call 😍🍀
— Mik McGivern (@MikMcGiv) September 30, 2023
Aaron Beard
Perfect fake punt leads to the short TD run for ND. Duke had swallowed the run to that point before the fake.
— Aaron Beard (@aaronbeardap) September 30, 2023
JJ Ceglio
WHAT. A. START.
Sammy taking shots early.
A FAKE PUNT
AND AN ESTIME TD.
7-0 #GoIrish☘️
— JJ Ceglio (@JJCegs24) September 30, 2023
Kevin Sinclair
Well, I didn’t see that fake punt coming.
Like, not at all
— Kevin Sinclair (@KevinSinclair_) September 30, 2023
Liam Farrell
Personally, I wouldn't recommend arm tackling Audric Estime. Irish roll the dice on the fake punt, and it pays off big. Couple plays later, Irish stuff it in.
7-0
Players and coaching staff look motivated early on, and it's time for the Defense to match the energy
— Liam Farrell (@LiamFarrell_IT) September 30, 2023
Greg Flammang
I give a ton of credit to Marcus Freeman for going with the fake punt there. Very easy to just kick and play defense so early in the game. Love him valuing the ball and taking advantage of Duke kicking off to them.
— Greg Flammang (@greg2126) September 30, 2023
Rick Heidrick
Hats off to Marcus Freeman on that fake punt call
— Rick Heidrick (@rheidrick24) September 30, 2023
Joseph Rymasz
#NotreDame with an IMPRESSIVE opening drive that included a fake punt with Jeremiyah Love and ends with a “TOO EASY” by @AudricEstime after his TD! ZERO FLATNESS by this Notre Dame Football team! #GoIrish☘️
— Joseph Rymasz (@TrueSophomore) September 30, 2023
CJ Kaltenbach
Marcus Freeman after a week of rough coaching headlines with a massive fake punt call to totally change the tide early
Definitely not afraid
— CJ Kaltenbach (@TheSeigeDFS) September 30, 2023