Things To Learn: Notre Dame cannot afford a hangover heading to Duke on Saturday

Hear someone say they are hungover and you’ll assume they have a pounding headache, are physically exhausted and perhaps nauseous, all from enjoying too much whiskey the night before. And you may be right. But that is a narrow assumption about a hangover, far from the only version of it.

No. 11 Notre Dame (4-1) may be massively hungover this week as it heads to No. 17 Duke (4-0) at 7:30 ET on ABC. The Irish did not incur this hangover via whiskey. Physically, they are rather close to 100 percent — with the exception of junior receivers Jayden Thomas (hamstring) and Deion Colzie (knee scope) — partly a benefit of so much of the contributing roster being seniors and graduate students, thus enjoying the recovery and treatment perks of few classes on the schedule.

But Notre Dame may be hungover in the deeper sense.

The most literal definition of a hangover is when the physiological effects of an effort continue to compromise the body, effects that do not always show themselves in an obvious physical manner.

The “Sunday scaries” that many 20- and 30-year-olds cite is nothing but alcohol’s lingering effect of increasing anxiety on a chemical level. A sugar craving three days after a long run is a reflection of low intensity interval training lowering blood sugar levels. Typos in a Friday afternoon column are often the reflection of fine-motor function diminishing due to a week of incurring sleep debt.

And losing a chance at a top-10 upset because only 10 defenders took the field on the two most important plays of the game can understandably lead to dejection and loss of focus. If the Irish were dismayed Sunday and Monday, no one could fault them.

They were a year ago, the cause of that post-Ohio State hangover less dramatic but still acute, emphasized by travel delays adding some unexpected sleep debt to the equation. That hangover cost Notre Dame a full week later, losing to Marshall, getting thoroughly outplayed along the offensive and defensive lines.

“Last year, you lose to Ohio State and then you lose to Marshall, you don’t know if you’re ever going to win,” Irish head coach Marcus Freeman said this Monday.

That is how hungover Notre Dame was after losing to the Buckeyes last year. “You don’t know if you’re ever going to win.”

Back then, Freeman was — oh, let’s find a way to stick to the analogy — effectively waking up the day after his 21st birthday. The stakes had been raised and the day-after impact had escalated along with them. The night had been planned for. Recovering from it was unchartered territory.

Freeman is not yet a seasoned veteran, but he has at least been there by now, the senior buying the first round in this analogy and then also showing up with breakfast sandwiches the next morning. But the Irish do not need breakfast sandwiches. Aside from receiver depth, they are fine physically. They need to remember how 59 minutes and 57 seconds went against Ohio State. A 60.6 percent postgame win expectancy does not change Notre Dame’s record, but it does emphasize how clearly the Irish outplayed the Buckeyes, even if Ryan Day spent Saturday night bellowing otherwise.

“There were a lot of positives from the game, which obviously nobody is going to really care about because of the outcome,” Freeman said. “That’s the reality of it. Our players need to understand there were a lot of positives from the game that we have to continue to get better at and attack the deficiencies and lack of execution that we had.”

That’s the football equivalent of having a protein shake and a cold shower after a night at the bar, of correctly justifying a donut after a three-hour bike ride, of getting nine hours of sleep going into a Saturday of college football.

A trainer or nutritionist would hear each of those scenarios, nod in agreement and then encourage you to get back on track with the habits that were established before the hangover-causing moment. That’s a few steps past the senior showing up Saturday morning with breakfast, but 22-year-olds are more and more tuned into their bodies these days, so it can fit the analogy.

“We’ve had two really, really good practices, spirited practices, really attention to detail and those things that we look for that tell you if you are lacking focus, it will show up in practice,” Freeman said Thursday. “I’m really pleased with the way these guys really focused on improving the way we practice. Improving our overall team and that’s been the message, every week we have to get better. …

“The other part of that is continuing to preach the right message to them and continue to say the right things to them, because there is noise everywhere, right?”

Notre Dame needs to return to those habits immediately because Duke is a formidable foe. Blue Devils quarterback Riley Leonard remains underrated nationally despite his highlights against Clemson in the season opener. Head coach Mike Elko has coached up a defense from his first days in Durham, one that makes few mistakes and keeps opponents in front of it, giving up only 2.69 points per quality drive this season and giving up quality drives on fewer than 30 percent of possessions.

To return to the analogy, facing a top-20 opponent in a primetime moment may, in fact, expedite Notre Dame’s hangover recovery.

When another long workout looms quickly after a taxing one, the recovery is emphasized, an ice bath complementing a full night’s sleep after eating two bowls of pasta. When another night out punctuates a birthday celebration, time cannot be spent lounging on the couch with that headache, so a workout precedes the protein shake to truly flush the system.

From the moment Chip Trayanum crossed the goal line last Saturday night, the Irish have known they needed to be ready again in a few hours short of seven days. A year ago, they may have diminished that by overlooking Marshall. No one would be so foolish as to overlook a top-20 opponent in what may be the biggest game in its program’s history, certainly not after watching the Blue Devils on film.

“The biggest thing is we know we have a lot of season left,” Notre Dame fifth-year linebacker and captain JD Bertrand said Saturday night. “We know we got to learn from our mistakes.”

Oklahoma State transfer defensive back Thomas Harper was even more forward-looking.

“We still can accomplish everything that we set out to accomplish this season.”

Some hair of the dog in primetime at Duke would be the next step to overcoming a hangover and approaching those accomplishments. A year ago, Notre Dame fell flat in such a moment. Has it found the correct hangover cure this year?

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