Thursday, December 29, 2011

Interceptions doom Notre Dame

Notre Dame understood how it obtained here but most likely still couldn't determine why, with a period of promise scuttled through inexplicable early implosions after which inexplicable belly flops once the chances for payoff presented themselves.

After which came Thursday's 18-14 reduction to Florida State within the Champs Sports Dish, and the tires kept spinning within the mire. An emphatic two-touchdown lead collapsed underneath the weight of mind-numbing errors, leaving the Irish in order to wonder again precisely what got into all of them.

So it's a good 8-5 season speckled along with calamity and, in lots of ways, precisely where the actual Irish landed last year. A team along with BCS talent in spots along with a favorable schedule increased only semantically much better. Now comes a good asteroid field of the 2012 slate and also the small issue associated with utter uncertainty in the quarterback position.

"There were lots of games where we left a great deal out there, inch said receiver Erina Floyd, whose career closed having a chest injury upon his 100th capture of 2011, the Irish's single offensive touchdown from the night.

"We view it as we might have run the table this season. But with our mistakes and never being disciplined at times, we fell brief. "

The Irish protection was capable sufficient, surrendering two ratings on short areas and recording 5 sacks, holding Sarasota State (9-4) in order to 41 yards hurrying and scoring by itself on safety Zeke Motta's 29-yard first-quarter fumble come back.

Even the floor game sufficed, with two tailbacks as well as quarterback Andrew Hendrix mixing for 122 yards from the nation's No. two run defense. However, oh, the turnovers. 2 more end-zone interceptions through quarterback Tommy Rees, along with Hendrix contributing an additional pick, and the actual conversation stops presently there.

"It's nice every single child talk about the Notre Dame soccer team that performs championship defense, simply because they did that these days, " Irish trainer Brian Kelly stated. "Now we need to get our offense, certainly, to play from that level too. That will be the next phase for our plan. "

Florida State sported probably the best defense the actual Irish faced just about all year, so there's that. But Notre Dame nonetheless had a 14-0 lead following the first series from the second half, with Floyd basically intercepting another feasible Rees interception and making it a spectacular, balancing scoring grab.

Then your earth opened. Florida State's 77-yard kickoff return setup a field objective. The Seminoles adopted with two EJ Manuel landing passes recorded simply 96 seconds component, the first 1 capping an 84-yard march and also the second following the horrendous Hendrix interception.

A field goal managed to get 18 straight factors, but the Irish obtained one last present: A Seminoles punt as well as penalty that offered them possession from Florida State's 28-yard collection with four min's left. Three performs later, Rees misread the coverage and put an interception away his back feet. An agonizingly acquainted, all too fitted end.

"It just makes everyone much hungrier, " security Jamoris Slaughter stated. "We know we're much better than how we performed. "

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