Sunday Reflections

Notre Dame’s offense has been a work in progress this fall, but there have been signs of life during the eight-game winning streak.

On Saturday, Mike Denbrock’s offense wasn’t as sharp as it had looked in previous weeks and it started with quarterback Riley Leonard not playing as clean as he had over the last few games. Yet, Leonard still completed 67 percent of his passes and threw three touchdowns in the 35-14 win over Virginia. 

The Irish offense started slow and it was hardly Leonard’s fault. The Irish started 0-for-4 on third down and the average distance to go was 12 yards. I’m not sure Joe Montana or Jayden Daniels would have success in those situations - and it was Notre Dame’s fault as penalties killed multiple drives on the day. For the game, Notre Dame finished 1-for-12 on third down with an averaged distance to go at 10.5 yards.

Not great. And it’s probably why Notre Dame left the first team offense in a little longer than normal as the Irish were looking to clean up some of the sloppy play. 

That said, there’s a trend developing where Leonard takes the heat. Sure, he can be better with his accuracy at times, but he’s also having the season Notre Dame’s staff envisioned. There is production through the air, but also on the ground, which is why this staff wanted Leonard. 

It’s been written here before, but the ability to dictate coverages due to a running quarterback and not have the backside defensive end crash on run plays is a significant deal for this offense. 

If you look at Sam Hartman’s 2023 season through 10 games compared to Leonard’s first 10 games in the blue and gold, it’s eerily similar in production at the end of the day and you can see where Notre Dame is more than letting Leonard use his legs as a weapon. 

Perhaps more importantly, Leonard is 9-1 as a starter, while Hartman was 7-3 and Notre Dame’s College Football Playoff hopes died the first week in Louisville a year ago. 

In watching way too much college football over the years, Leonard might have that underrated quality of playing with grit and being mentally strong. The Alabama native started 0-for-2 on Saturday, but then completed nine passes in a row and then completed seven straight later in the game. 

If you think back to the Texas A&M game, Leonard grinded his way to a win. The offense was far from pretty, but he willed the offense at times, and that’s what you need at quarterback, regardless of whether it’s pretty or not. It’s very clear this team will follow Leonard’s lead and that’s priceless, especially going into these final two games. 

Leonard’s legacy in the present will likely come down to the USC game and his lasting legacy would be determined by a playoff run, but there is little doubt Notre Dame has a winner at quarterback and that goes a long way in college football. 

The next step for Leonard is to find a little more consistency on his shot plays. Even the casual football fan can see his talent throwing the ball in flashes. The 72-yard strike to Jayden Harrison that was called back was a big-time throw. Leonard made more than few impressive throws and now he’s got to clean up some of the errant throws. 

Regardless, Notre Dame has a weapon at quarterback and Denbrock will need to continue to figure out ways to push Leonard over the next two weeks as the Irish have a quarterback who can cause some noise on a national level if that growth happens by say mid-December. 

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Notre Dame’s defense is something else. Sure, the Irish haven’t faced a murder’s row of quality offenses, but heading into Virginia’s last drive of the game, Al Golden’s defense had held the Cavaliers to 220 yards of total offense with five minutes left in the game. Virginia scored on Notre Dame’s reserves, which include a few walk-ons so it’s hard to hold that against the performance of the first team defense. 

Virginia starting quarterback Anthony Colandrea finished 8-for-21 for 69 yards and three interceptions. The same guy who threw for 159 yards and two scores at Clemson and 279 yards against Louisville earlier this year. 

And it’s worth repeating, but Golden seems more than fine giving up a few extra rushing yards to make sure Notre Dame isn’t beat deep or hit with explosive plays. There is definitely something to be said about this defense bending and not breaking. Do some of the runs annoy Notre Dame fans watching? Probably so, but at the end of the day, Notre Dame is No. 3 in the nation in defensive scoring as the Irish give up just 11.4 ppg. It’s worth noting Army is No. 2 at 10.8 ppg. 

Notre Dame should move in front of Texas to become the nation’s No. 1 defense in passing efficiency, and that’s an important metric to have in today’s game. It’s even more impressive when you consider Notre Dame doesn’t have Benjamin Morrison and its top two pass rushers. 

Now, Golden will look to stop the triple-option once again, which will be interesting as Army will have seen how Notre Dame defended, adjusted and everything else from the Navy game. The offenses are different, but there’s a baseline there. 

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Big picture, Notre Dame won by 21 points in a game the ACC officials allowed it to be that close and the offense had some unexpected penalty issues. It’s won’t go down as a sexy win, but it was a good win. If you look across college football on a weekly basis, you see teams playing close games or losing games to inferior competition. Notre Dame appears to have moved past that stage.

This week, Joe Rudolph needs to find a way to reel his guys back in as Saturday was one of the worst performances by the offensive line in pass pro. That needs to be cleaned up as Army’s defense will be ready to go. 

The good news is Jeremiyah Love looked explosive once again. It had been a few weeks since he had let it go, but that burst was back. The 76-yard run showcased it, but Love exploding through the line of scrimmage on a few short-yardage runs likely had NFL scouts drooling. 

Also, it has to be somewhat of a headache for defensive coordinators to prepare for Notre Dame’s passing game. No, the receivers aren’t going to scare coordinators, but Leonard completing 22 passes to 11 different receivers is a problem. Yes, it’d be nice to have a Chase Claypool or Will Fuller, but Leonard spreading the rock also has its benefits. 

And finally, Notre Dame is in the middle of a playoff run, while Florida’s social media team put Brian Kelly in a body bag after the Gators upset LSU. 

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