It’d be so much easier if things were cut and dry. But once again, Notre Dame loses, and it doesn’t even begin to tell the story. For much of the game, the Irish were shut down offensively, failing to get into the red zone for the entire first half while the defense held it’s own against the potent combination of Pitt’s running and passing attack.
Yet as the script always does, the Irish mounted a furious comeback, thanks to the electric play of Golden Tate, and after Tate’s punt return for a touchdown, the Irish found themselves attempting a two-point conversion to make it a field goal game. Yet Jimmy Clausen’s shovel pass dropped between backup tight end Mike Ragone’s hands, and the Irish never got any closer.
Still that doesn’t tell us everything, as the Irish had another chance to march down the field and win the game. With Pitt down two key cornerbacks, the Irish had a chance to mount another rally until a chop-block penalty was called on Dan Wenger, dropping the Irish back from a 2nd and 1 at the 42 to a 2nd and 16 back at the 27. On the very next play, Clausen was flushed from the pocket, and hit just as he threw the ball, the ball squirting forward and putting the Irish in a 4th and ballgame situation. The Irish called timeout to get a play set, the Big East replay officials called downstairs to take one more look at the play.
We’ll never know what would’ve happened on that 4th and long for the Irish. The Pitt pass rush ate Paul Duncan and the Irish offensive line alive all evening and maybe the Irish wouldn’t have had a chance to throw down field. But Golden Tate and Michael Floyd were going against a beat-up secondary, and at the very least the Irish — and their embattled head coach — deserved a shot. Yet a replay official who couldn’t overturn a controversial completion to Jonathan Baldwin a few series earlier could somehow determine that Clausen’s pass was a fumble and the inadvertent whistles once again didn’t kill a play before Pitt recovered?
Sigh.
In the end, there will be more questions than answers. If this is it for Charlie Weis, he certainly deserved better. Better than being on the short end of nearly every replay review short of one against Washington, and better than knuckle-headed mistakes his players made while they played frantically for their coach.
Here’s five things we learned tonight:
1) Pitt’s pass rush killed the Irish.
If Notre Dame fans hear the name Greg Romeus again they might get sick to their stomachs. Romeus, Gus Mustakas, Jabaal Sheard and Mick Williams controlled the line of scrimmage when the Irish tried to throw the ball, taking away the deep threat and letting Pitt’s defensive backs jump the short throws. Even when Weis tried to slow down the pressure with screen passes, the Pittsburgh defense was game, snuffing out every attempt for a loss of yardage with great pursuit by the linebacking corps. Ditto the Wildcat formation. The Notre Dame running game was surprisingly effective with Armando Allen gaining 5.5 yards per carry, yet to get back into the game, the Irish needed to lean on their passing attack, and without any time to throw the ball, Jimmy Clausen just couldn’t get it done.
2) Notre Dame’s kicking game killed them
Just when the Irish finally get a big play out of their special teams, they have a game like Pittsburgh, where kicking and punting factored largely in the outcome. I’m sure Eric Maust is a good person, but he was terrible punter on Saturday night, kicking 5 times for an average of 24.8 yards. When he wasn’t punting short ineffective kicks, he was dropping the snap and shanking punts out of bounds when he should’ve been pinning the Pitt offense deep. Much of the first half the Irish offense was shut down because they had to start deep in their own territory. On the flip side, David Ruffer filled in for freshman kicker Nick Tausch, who was a surprising scratch from the lineup, and while Ruffer made his only field goal and did well on kickoffs, his low extra point attempt was blocked, putting the Irish in another hole. (To be fair, Trevor Robinson got run over…) Either way, the Irish have now committed two scholarships to punters, two to kickers, and even another one to a long snapper, all to try and get the Irish special teams to average. Even with Tate’s punt return for a touchdown, it was clear that Notre Dame could never flip the field on a change of possession, and Maust’s short punts put Notre Dame at a real disadvantage.
3) Irish defense just can’t force turnovers.
During this two game losing streak, the Notre Dame defense has failed to force a single turnover. In their four losses, the Irish have only managed two turnovers — an interception of two freshman quarterbacks, Tate Forcier and Matt Barkley, who both seemed to manage pretty decent games despite the gaffs. It’s become so evident that the Irish defense is deficient that the offense knows it, and it’s permeating the entire gameplan for Notre Dame. While Weis can say that he likes his offensive’s chances with the defense holding a team in the 20s, what he isn’t mentioning is that most teams depend on a big play or two from the defense to help score some points. The lack of pass rush out of the front four against Pitt forced the Irish to gamble with blitzing linebackers and once again Jon Tenuta’s scheme rolled snake eyes, giving up big plays to Jonathan Baldwin and Dion Lewis that ultimately sank the Irish’s chances.
4) Way too many games are turning subjective.
Remember when people used to say, “Let’s settle it on the field?” Not anymore. Too often the replay booth is getting in the way of the ebb and flow of the game, stopping to look at a trivial replay to confirm a play when a referee was within feet of the action. I’m all for getting things right, but when you’ve got the game starting and stopping to review plays that aren’t even close, the replay officials are getting in the way of a the football game. Even more baffling is the decision to overturn a call. Whether it’s Friday night’s game in Cincinnati or the final offensive play for the Irish, there is just way too much subjectivity getting in the way of football. When you slow a person’s movements down to a single frame per second it warps your sense of what really happened.
Jimmy Clausen’s fumble/incompletion at the end of the game is a proof that replay officials have forgotten what the word inconclusive means. There’s no way you can overturn Clausen’s fumble if you understand what indisputable means. And if Clausen’s fumble is the line of demarcation, then Jonathan Baldwin’s controversial catch with under seven
minutes left in the game should’ve been brought back. The NCAA has to do something this offseason about it’s replay system, and putting the onus on coaches to call challenges instead of allowing partisan officiating crews to dictate what play gets looked at is the best solution. Football may be a game of inches and the officials may be doing the best job they can, but it’s getting to the point where even logical fans start questioning the integrity of officiating crews.
5) Notre Dame’s nightmare scenario is upon us.
Once again, Charlie Weis and the Irish are in a position where they’ve given up their ability to control their own destiny. A win at Pitt would’ve silenced a very vocal minority that is hellbent on change. Now there’s another week of questions, another week of speculation, and another week where people will look for word out of Notre Dame’s athletic department regarding the head coaching situation. As I said earlier, it’s too bad that things aren’t black and white, because it’d be a much easier decision. There’s no doubt in my mind that the whispers from last week weighed on the Irish players and there’s no doubt in my mind that it’ll effect them again as they prepare for UConn. Now it’s up to Weis to prepare his team for another tough game, or for Jack Swarbrick to tell him he doesn’t need to do it anymore.
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- mike ford - Nov 15, 2009 at 10:38 AM
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You never heard the news? Notre dame is a racists college so that honorary degree must have been a political ploy! YA that’s it, It had nothing to do with the fact that electing Obama to the Presidency was clearly a defining moment in the HISTORY of our nation and a college with the PRESTIGE NOTRE DAME HAS would honor a man who overcame one of the, if not the largest obstacles in the history of our nation. Ya I’m Catholic, and have been since the day I was born! I’m proud to call myself a NOTRE DAME FAN and also an OBAMA supporter! I guess some of us can’t look past simple details of transparency to see the bigger picture! GO IRISH!!! ALL IRISH!!!
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- willmose - Nov 15, 2009 at 11:05 AM
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Perhaps what is wrong with ND football is all its fans want to do is whine about the officials and call each other racists. No, on second thought, it is just Charlie Weis. I am old school, a head coach’s job is simply to win. All the other stuff, is just that stuff and nonsense. Get a head coach that wins.
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- claq - Nov 15, 2009 at 11:05 AM
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Bravo!!!
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- leomcm - Nov 15, 2009 at 11:13 AM
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to StehpenOFTroy
You have your head in a very dark place. If you pull it out you may realize that Willingham’s firing had nothing to do with race. It was for the same reason CW will be fired. It’s the coaching stupid!
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- sadbuttrue - Nov 15, 2009 at 11:20 AM
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Jim-
There’s a better chance of ND winning the national championship this year than the resurrection of the Cubs.
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- Mark S - Nov 15, 2009 at 11:28 AM
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I agree, overturning a really ambiguous play where the refs had blown the ball dead after a review was bad officiating.
On the other hand, you can’t get past the fact that, at best, ND would be in the position of 4th and 16 on the most critical possesion of the game. That’s just not how the best teams play. Weis was right when he said they got there because of the spearing penalty – yet another dumb penalty is the real issue.
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- Bottom Line - Nov 15, 2009 at 11:30 AM
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Notre Dame football is a money machine for the University, and, absent a revolt from those who matter most to the school (i.e., those who have lots of money and make big contributions), only the fear of loss of football revenues will force a change in coaching. Take it to the bank: Money, Money, Money. Joe Paterno said many years ago, when ND submitted to a partial corporate takeover by NBC, that ND had become a bank. It is true. Money Money Money…..Is this not the reality? Or am I simply a cynical old man? It hurts so much to watch my team look so poor. It will hasten my demise. Let it be so, for what is life without my Notre Dame Boys winning over all? In the next world Our Lady and Touchdown Jesus truly will care who wins Notre Dame football games. Gerry Faust’s reverent signs of the cross before extra points and field goal attempts really will matter. And the little old nuns who say their prayers for a win for Our Lady’s School will have the 50-yard-line seats. Best to all of you. Some day we will be on top again. There is a younger Lou Holtz out there somewhere.
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- StephenOfTroy - Nov 15, 2009 at 11:40 AM
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robertg: You wrote “1. the 1st step for any poster who expects to be taken seriously is…” AND I JUST ABOUT FELL OUT OF MY CHAIR LAUGHING.
No one in his or her right mind takes you seriously. You’re nuttier than a fruitcake. Way to use the royal “we,” by the way. The voices in your head don’t count as other people.
robertg, anyone who thinks YOU are an attorney also thinks that President Obama is a citizen of Kenya and that we never landed on the Moon. I AM an attorney. None of what you say will ever come to pass, Notre Dame Nostradamus. And there are (and can be) NO cases pending against the officials for what you imagine as a huge conspiracy. Pretending that you and your massive imaginary legal team are building a case? Wow. Do you also pin a towel around your neck with a safety pin and think that makes you Superman? Try jumping off your roof and let us know if you can fly. No one is going to reverse history and make it so that your Irish didn’t lose the games they lost. Care to pass around some of what you’re injecting between your toes, robertg? The nurses will re-supply you. Don’t hold out on us.
The only thing funnier than robertg’s insane tirades against the vast zebra conspiracy is the oft-repeated notion that somehow, someway, Urban Meyer would walk away from winning multiple national championships with Florida for the chance to coach at ND, a school he ALREADY turned down. ND isn’t the prize it used to be, and it certainly isn’t going to get Meyer to tarnish his stellar reputation simply by throwing NBC’s money at him. Would you break up with a supermodel so you could date Rosie O’Donnell?
Some of you apologists keep dodging the issue. Why is Weis still coaching at ND? Same record as Willingham, same winning percentage as Davie. But he gets paid boatloads of money and has a multi-year contract. You can pretend he’s an offensive genius all you like; in my book an offensive genius knows how to use his talent (AND the game clock!) and understands each facet of the offensive game. Last I checked, the kicking game AND the running game are big parts of the offense. So why take out the RB who got you to the red zone, just to run the same uninspired passing plays that fail again and again? How do you get blanked in the red zone 4 times against NAVY? If Tate is so good, why doesn’t Tate have 15 catches a game? Why not get Tate the ball on reverses, screens, wildcat, something, anything, to take advantage of his allegedly incomparable skill? If Clausen is so good, why does he have to keep trying to bring the team back in the 4th quarter? Why is he only able to drive the ball down the field in the 4th quarter? (hint: the other team has a big lead and gives up everything underneath…) And if Weis is so good, why can’t he devise a running game or a pass-blocking scheme with all the experienced O-linemen? Weis is an offensive genius like a pair of scissors is the ideal tool for cutting my lawn. It’s adequate at what it does, but it doesn’t do what’s needed.
More to the point, you cannot deny that Weis obviously knows nothing about defense and hasn’t got a defensive mastermind in place to cover his ignorance. Yet you fall all over yourselves pretending that it’s not his fault and it’s only ND’s lofty academic standards to blame. So…how does Stanford manage to beat quality opponents (in my school’s case, BADLY)? Stanford is much tougher academically than ND. Hint: Stanford has a head coach. Not a guy who sticks it to his own defensive player who has the temerity to admit his team got out-schemed. Not a guy who claims that he will never change, no matter the situation, even though situations demand adjustments on the fly. Are you telling me that Weis couldn’t see that Navy was beating his team with its fullback, and couldn’t re-assign a linebacker to hit the fullback on every play? Come on, that’s Pop Warner stuff.
And stop whining about the refs. They’re on YOUR side. ND gets all the breaks. Personal fouls called against USC for flexing muscles after a play, but not against ND for the same thing. Late hit called on Mays for a LEGAL hit, but no late hit on the joker who hit McKnight after he took four long strides out of bounds. Unnecessary roughness called on Mays for hitting a guy with the ball. No pass interference called on USC’s last drive, when our receiver got mugged so bad even freshman QB Barkley couldn’t help but ask the officials how they missed it. Extra time mysteriously added to the clock even after Clausen was already pouting to Barkley. TD taken away from Washington, whose running back CLEARLY scored.
Oh, and Clausen is a joy to watch. For ND’s rivals, that is. His cheap shot that resulted in a personal foul made me laugh. At the end of each game, he gets visibly frustrated and angry. Decent talent, but poor sportsmanship. He pushed Navy’s players away when they tried to come say “good game” after the final whistle blew.
You know, there’s supporting your team, and then there’s pretending that up is down and down is up. My own team has a lot of work to do to maintain the standard our beloved head coach has set. I’d be lying if I said I was happy with the defense or the overall execution. But we have a new offensive coordinator, a new defensive coordinator, a true freshman taking snaps, 8 new starters on defense to replace the guys who went to the NFL, and injuries to our star RB Johnson, star WR Williams, star TE McCoy, and 3 starting LB’s. You’re not going to win every game on your schedule with that team, even if, like ND, you schedule Little Sisters of the Poor in an attempt to get into a BCS bowl.
Ok, so when does the “let’s give Weis another year for HIS recruits to shine” chant start up? He’s in his 5th year. Whose recruits is he fielding? Let’s find a way to blame it all on Lou Holtz or Ty Willingham. I really like Lou Holtz, by the way. He said “don’t tell anyone your problems. 90% of the people don’t care, and the other 10% are glad you have them. I bet you know where I fall on that spectrum, Weis-apologists. Can’t wait to see what Stanford does to YOUR school.
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- Bottom Line - Nov 15, 2009 at 11:46 AM
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Stephen: Don’t you realize that robertg’s comments are tongue-in-cheek? You need to take a some medicine.
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- Bottom Line - Nov 15, 2009 at 11:47 AM
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Stephen: Don’t you realize that robertg’s comments are tongue-in-cheek? You need to take a some medicine.
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- StephenOfTroy - Nov 15, 2009 at 11:54 AM
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Bottom Line: Tongue-in-cheek? Really? I’ve seen sarcasm. That ain’t it. It’s delusional. But hilarious all the same.
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- Mick Devlon - Nov 15, 2009 at 12:01 PM
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In football as in life, racism simply DOES NOT EXIST! Every so called instance of racism can be brushed aside by rational, insightful explanations. From murders to employment practices to police brutality to head football coach firing practices, it simply isn’t a reality in America. Let’s move past this and enjoy the rest of the football season people.
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- Art Vandelay - Nov 15, 2009 at 12:08 PM
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I was extremely dismayed by the lack of effort in this loss to Pitt. Prior to Tate’s amazing run back, it really seemed that this team had resigned itself to another loss. I’m afraid 6-6 on the year is the sad reality. However, my dismay turned to pure joy this morning when I saw that robertg and his team will be filing civil racketeering lawsuits immediately. Yeah robertg, that’ll show ‘em!
@willmose I agree completely with your comments.
@Keith Arnold – thanks so much for your last sentence of Point #4 above….now robertg will never shut up (and you have yourself to blame).
@StephenofTroy – I like your comment that you are a double trojan….perhaps your father should have worn such on the night you were conceived. Go to your own team’s boards and don’t bring your nonsense here.
Regards,
Your pal,
Art Vandelay
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- Mike - Nov 15, 2009 at 12:12 PM
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Why does anyone think that changing coaches now will make a difference. After Holtz we had Davies, an assistant coach who was promoted. Then we get Willingham, a coach at a University with comparable academic standards and graduate rates for athletes. Then we get Charlie Weis, another assistant but in the NFL, and an ND grad who had to qualify academically for admission. Head coaches are not standing in line for the ND job no matter what the naysayers of Weis may think. As an ND grad, I think we are better off sticking with Charlie for another year or two. Another change at this point will only cause more problems. Don’t blame the coaches, blame the administrators who pick the coaches. Why do you think their decisions will be any better?
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- phgreek - Nov 15, 2009 at 12:36 PM
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…PhalusOfTroy…Heres the deal…Willingham was the absolute worst football coach in history…he could not recruit, he could not coach…he could not organize…he could not scheme…and oh my god…he could not build a staff, and he had the stereotypical work ethic of the entitlement era. How he ever got hired in the first place is beyond me…he was mediocre at best before Notre Dame, and a miserable failure during and after..howd his Washington Gig go?
Charlie shares some similarities, but he has a resume that says he had some success before this gig…he also recruits better, and works his ass off, and the players love the guy.
I think his time has come, but don’t come in here with that race bullshit…it dtracts from situations where race is at play…dumbass.
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- ugetwutuask4 - Nov 15, 2009 at 12:38 PM
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I’m a 30 year old catholic also and all this racist, refs cheated, new coaching hire talk is making me sick! ND was outplayed last night by a much more bigger, athletically talented PITT team regaurdless of how close the score was. ND players ie Brian Smith do way too much talking before the game and never back it up on the field. Most of our players would be on the bench on most of these BCS schools. It’s a complete disgrace to be an ND fan in this day and age where the players lack so much integrity, dignity, and self-respect. Here’s my view from the cheap seats: Clausen great talent with huge NFL arm and upside. But if he leaves early for the league I hope he doesn’t get drafted by a team with a week O-line because he certainly can’t handle pressure very well. Anytime any little thing goes wrong he loses his cool which at times I feel affects his decision making process in feeling the rush and reading the defense. And I’m not talking about the times when the O-line doesn’t do their job. He reminds me of a great QB when things are going good and everything goes his way. But when things don’t go his way he flips back to that LIMO HUMMER riding spoiled rotten SOUTHERN CAL lil brat who cries over any and every little thing. It seems like opposing D-Lineman and defenseman in general love to get in his face and talk trash before and after plays as if they know they can get in his head and get him to react negatively. Golden Big Game Tate also has a lot of promise and has great NFL strength, speed, and athleticism. But seeems to be too lacadasical at times and seems to take a play or two off here and there. He also is overly flamboyant and cocky at times which I think if he leaves for the NFL will hurt him the moment he realizes that there are NFL corners stronger, faster, and better tacklers than he has faced in college. Which means he’d better get better at route running and the fundamentals of the postion before he get’s his dose of reality check at the next level. I must say I love both of the players to death and am a die hard ND supporter no matter how bad the turmoil, controversy, coaching, players, etc. I think that Jimmy and Tate need to grow up some more and must brushen up or fine tune their skills just a little bit more with another year of college ball. Not to only show everyone how much more they’ve progressed in their skills and maturity but also that they are ultimate leaders and champions on the field also. FIGHT IRISH 4EVER!
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- jane ellen - Nov 15, 2009 at 12:49 PM
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As the mother of a current ND student I think that a lot of the anti-Notre Dame whining is pure jealousy. Yes they are having a bad year. Yes the call in the Pitt game was criminal in its wrongness. I for one would have liked to see what Jimmy and the boys would have done on 4th and 16. I don’t know if it’s Charlie Weiss or not, but I do know that Notre Dame has very high standards for admission and I know that a lot of people who couldn’t ever get in to the college (or any other college) are judging them. It’s a great school, a classy school and several of those losses could have been wins, i.e. Navy Michigan. The reffing has been against ND all year. I don’t know about the money and politics but I watch every game intently and have been a football fan for 40 years. I love watching ND football and agree with the previous poster that I would NEVER root against them. I don’t know why Stephen of Troy is even posting here. Post on your own board and leave us alone.
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- BillMac - Nov 15, 2009 at 1:05 PM
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Weis can’t cheat at ND like he did with the NE Patriots. He also had no head coaching experience prior to being offered and accepting the ND football head coaching job. The ND search and selection process for a head football coach has been so incompetently managed and politicized since the departure of Lou Holtz. They need to find a more unlikely candidate like Ara Parseghian was when he was chosen at the end of the 1963 season. Why Urban Meyer wasn’t approached much sooner several years ago remains a mystery. Jack Swarbrick and the selection committee need to look for another Leahy, if he exists, but DON’T make the mistake of signing the next heat football coach to a long (anything over 3 years) term contract. Weis’s reported 20M dollar severance package is a waste of university funds that could be better spent!
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- BillMac - Nov 15, 2009 at 1:09 PM
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Weis can’t cheat at ND like he did with the NE Patriots. He also had no head coaching experience prior to being offered and accepting the ND football head coaching job. The ND search and selection process for a head football coach has been so incompetently managed and politicized since the departure of Lou Holtz. They need to find a more unlikely candidate like Ara Parseghian was when he was chosen at the end of the 1963 season. Why Urban Meyer wasn’t approached much sooner several years ago remains a mystery. Jack Swarbrick and the selection committee need to look for another Leahy, if he exists, but DON’T make the mistake of signing the next heat football coach to a long (anything over 3 years) term contract. Weis’s reported 20M dollar severance package is a waste of university funds that could be better spent!
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- Mick Devlon - Nov 15, 2009 at 1:09 PM
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The apologists never stop. The problem with the Willingham firing had more to do with the school’s “policy” to give coaches so much time to develop their talent. Ty didn’t get that time. On top of that Charlie then came in and got a huge extension based on half a season with Ty’s boys. As Charlie did with Ty’s boys, Ty initially won with Davies’ boys (correct?). Ty was not successful at Notre Dame (no dispute), but how could any argument against him not apply to Charlie? Once the shine faded off of the new hires, true coaching skills began to present themselves in BOTH instances. Charlie has performed woefully bad during his tenure so I just don’t understand where all of the unwaivering support comes from (recruiting, hard work, talent development, etc.). Just as I don’t understand how people can be so harsh on a coach who did just as much as Charlie as done. Personally I did not want Ty to be the coach at Notre Dame as soon as I heard the announcement because I KNEW it would play out like this and now no one can get past it because he simply did not get the time afforded to every other ND coach (this also cannot be disputed). Now that they are in bed with him, I for one hope ND NEVER fires Weis. Put emotion aside and base your arguments on cold hard facts and you might realilze you have no argument at all.
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- Mick Devlon - Nov 15, 2009 at 1:11 PM
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I hope this never happens. It would be another disaster. Charlile must stay.
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- NDhater - Nov 15, 2009 at 1:17 PM
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The ultimate golden boy could have been called for intentional grounding. However, There is no way the replay showed that it was a fumble. There is no way the replay showed the Washington player was stopped short of the goal, as well. I have always felt that all the bad replay calls go NDs way. Yesterday was a shocker for me.
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- jeff moreno - Nov 15, 2009 at 1:32 PM
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It’s over for Charlie Weis!!!He had his chance!kickers. they are Wake up.You pay a guy millions to win without cheating. He hasn’t done either! I wish Weis well.The overall performance,or lack of it, of The Irish football players is exceeded only by it’s Coaching staff.The officials in last nights game are tarnished ,no questioned.That said what is so different from an official being dishonest and a group of Coaches taking huge sums of money and not performing as they said they would?For that matter, players not doing there best to help teammates accomplish common goals.How many ridiculous penalties does the offensive line get to commit.How many 20 yard punts,dropped balls does a punter get? Enough of mediocrity,enough of players looking elsewhere for answers ,it’s time to look at yourselves.Big East officials were dishonest during last night game.NO QUESTION!BUT Notre Dame football team lost because they didn’t care enough to win!!!!3 toughest guys on the field for ND.Two wide receivers and a QB!Ouch!
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- jeff moreno - Nov 15, 2009 at 1:33 PM
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It’s over for Charlie Weis!!!He had his chance!kickers. they are Wake up.You pay a guy millions to win without cheating. He hasn’t done either! I wish Weis well.The overall performance,or lack of it, of The Irish football players is exceeded only by it’s Coaching staff.The officials in last nights game are tarnished ,no questioned.That said what is so different from an official being dishonest and a group of Coaches taking huge sums of money and not performing as they said they would?For that matter, players not doing there best to help teammates accomplish common goals.How many ridiculous penalties does the offensive line get to commit.How many 20 yard punts,dropped balls does a punter get? Enough of mediocrity,enough of players looking elsewhere for answers ,it’s time to look at yourselves.Big East officials were dishonest during last night game.NO QUESTION!BUT Notre Dame football team lost because they didn’t care enough to win!!!!3 toughest guys on the field for ND.Two wide receivers and a QB!Ouch!
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- ND'90 - Nov 15, 2009 at 1:44 PM
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Stephen – I am clearly partisan, but you should understand that the officials at the ND home games come from the conference the opponent is in, not from ND – so the calls you mentioned were not “homer” calls despite the fact that they came at home.
