Instant Reaction | Notre Dame 45 Virginia Tech 23

I could feel the freak out coming from Notre Dame fans. The Irish put all of those people to bed with a second half where both the offense and defense took control of what was a tight game.

There were legitimate reasons to worry after Julian Okwara was ejected for targeting at the end of the first half. He was having another disruptive game before it happened and with Daelin Hayes not traveling this week due to an injury, the Irish went from deep to to deep trouble at Drop.

The players who had to fill in did so admirably, though. More importantly, the rest of the team stepped up their game in a big way and Notre Dame made plays when the needed to.

It started out as a hostile environment. The Irish were not intimidated and never let the Hokies keep things going long enough for the crowd to be a factor. In my opinion it was the most impressive road win for Notre Dame since Oklahoma in 2012. It sets thing up really well for the Irish in the second half of the season.

- Virginia Tech missed out on some golden opportunities in this game. That’s definitely part of the storyline. They made some critical errors that cost them.

Good teams overcome things like that and Notre Dame missed plenty of opportunities too. The difference was that the Irish got better when it mattered and Virginia Tech didn’t.

- Ian Book certainly had some throws he would like to have back and not just that interception where he made a bad pre-snap read on Reggie Floyd. The deep ball was there several times and Book couldn’t connect with multiple receivers. If he did, the Irish might have been able to drop 60 in this game.

But even though that wasn’t working for him, what he did in other aspects was phenomenal. That 8 for 8 start with him nullifying the Virginia Tech pass rush by getting the ball out quickly was awesome. Then after he struggled after the first two drives, he came back and was lights out in the second half.

He finished 10 for his last 12. Everything from him throwing in rhythm to Miles Boykin to improvising on that touchdown to finding Chris Finke on that 3rd down in the soft spot in the zone when Bud Foster dropped eight, it was all a testament to how good he is.

- I have to tip my cap to the Virginia Tech staff for how they came out calling the game on offense. They did a tremendous job of testing the eye discipline of Notre Dame’s defenders and if quarterback Ryan Willis was more efficient early, they probably could have taken better advantage of Notre Dame’s defense.

I kind of thought they went away from what they were doing with some play-action and tempo and it helped out Notre Dame in the second half. I also think that Notre Dame played in a way to force Willis to throw on several RPOs and he wasn’t good enough to beat the Irish.

- That first half running the ball wasn’t too great. Most of that has to do with Bud Foster scheming to take away the run. There was a reason why the Irish kept taking shots down the field. It’s because Va. Tech had more bodies near the line of scrimmage and there were a lot of one on one matchups in the passing game because of it.

- Dexter Williams showed exactly why he is a difference maker when he touches the ball. 17 for 182 is obviously skewed because of 97 and 31 yard touchdowns, but that’s what he does. He can hit the homerun and that’s why the more carries he gets, the better it is for Notre Dame’s offense.

- The pass rush was not as good in this game as it was in the last game, although it wasn’t bad. No Okwara for the second half and no Hayes the whole game played a part in it. They paid a little extra attention to Jerry Tillery as well.

It did enough to affect Willis, though. Especially when it mattered and that’s where the defense stood out. The situational defense was fantastic.

I’m not just talking about red zone defense. Va Tech reached ND territory nine times and only came up with those 23 points. That was the biggest difference in the game. They had to settle for five field goal attempts while Notre Dame scored six touchdowns.

- I was happy for Jamir Jones to get a chance to play more. I thought it took him awhile to get comfortable and there was a big run by Steven Peoples to start the 3rd quarter that he needed to close out and make the play, but he settled in and did a nice job as a pass rusher. I

know he played only limited snaps, but I liked what I saw from Justin Ademilola at Drop too. It was good for him to get his feet wet in this type of situation.

- The biggest factor on the defensive line was Khalid Kareem. He’s been great all season and took it up a notch when it mattered. That forced fumble play was one of the best plays you’ll ever see from a defensive lineman. The initial dominance with the bull rush and the relentless hustle to finish the play was special.

- It’s so hard for me to be too critical of a Notre Dame offensive lineman in the moment because we don’t get the end zone copy and I’m writing stuff as the game goes along. I can miss stuff or not see the full picture.

I will say that there were two plays where Liam Eichenberg did not do a good job of sealing the backside on runs where his guy made the play. That’s a cardinal sin for an offensive lineman. He certainly did a nice job in pass protection, but he’s still searching for that consistency.

- Te’von Coney and Drue Tranquill were ballin’ out tonight. Both of them made so many important plays like Coney on a 3rd down screen play to get Notre Dame off the field. I honestly believe that Tranquill might have made the biggest play of the game in the 3rd quarter when sett the edge on a jet sweep that was finished off by Kareem.

That set up 3rd and 11, which ended up incomplete. The Hokies missed a field goal and from that point on, it was pretty much all Notre Dame.

- I think you could say that Ian Book has “it” and so does Julian Love. It’s not even the interception he had that cemented the win. It’s just being there and smelling blood in the water when the ball is on the ground for that scoop and score.

Whatever “it” is, Love has “it”.

- Miles Boykin has now had two games in a row where corners had to feel a bit helpless going against him. I think it’s fair to say that he has earned the right to be the number one option for Notre Dame. When the Irish need a play on offense, he’s the guy Book is looking for. That pretty much says it all.