Notebook: Key Plays Alter Momentum In Notre Dame's Victory Over Duke
In his postgame interview with NBC on Saturday, head coach Brian Kelly admitted his team played with a "sleepy-eyed" demeanor early on in their matchup against Duke.
"There was a lot of rust on us in the first half," he said.
How did the Fighting Irish wake up?
With stadium attendance limited, momentum-altering plays will be at a premium this college football season, and Notre Dame proved that in its season opener.
On multiple occasions, a dejected-looking Fighting Irish team made a big play with its back seemingly against the wall, which provided players with some much-need energy.
Two plays, in particular, stood out on Saturday, both coming on fourth down. Without them, Notre Dame might have started the season with a loss.
Fake Punt Wakes Up Sluggish Offense
Down 3-0 to Duke early in the second quarter with the offense looking sluggish, the Notre Dame coaching staff decided it was time to gamble.
On fourth and eight from their own 21-yard line, sophomore punter Jay Bramblett received the play call: a fake punt. He’s a former high school quarterback, but Kelly wanted him to pick up the first down with his legs.
“My thought process was, ‘I hope the heck it works,'" Kelly said. “That was my first thought process. It was there. We saw it on film. We felt like it was there. It was one of those that you needed to call it in a very vulnerable area. In other words, when you're backed up.”
The ball was snapped and Bramblett followed his blockers to the left but a handful of Blue Devils had the play read, so he cut back up the middle, made a man or two miss and picked up a big 14-yard run. First down.
“Jay is a very good athlete, and you saw that he had to cut back to make that first down but felt very confident that he was going to get an opportunity to convert that,” Kelly said. “We needed a little bit of momentum, and so I just felt like it was the right time to make the call.”
At the time, this was Notre Dame’s biggest offensive play of the game.
Quarterback Ian Book and the Notre Dame offense capitalized off its second-chance opportunity and the Fighting Irish ended up with a 12-play, 96-yard yard drive and a 7-3 lead.
“I was ready to go,” Book said. “We were keeping the offense right there, and I was just excited to see Jay run the ball like that. He did a great job. He wasn't scared and didn't go around the edge. He went right down the middle.”
Kyren Williams Fourth-and-One Touchdown
Halfway through the third quarter, Kyren Williams tucked in a handoff from Book and darted toward the Notre Dame offensive line. It was fourth and one and his team needed a score, up just 10-6.
But he saw the left side of the offensive line get pushed into the backfield. There was no hole to run through.
In an instance, Williams changed course, followed an in-line block from tight end Tommy Tremble off the edge and burst into the open field. Wide receiver Javon McKinley picked up the only remaining defender, and Williams sprinted 26 yards into the end zone for his second touchdown of the afternoon.
In a game where Williams wiggled, cut and scampered his way to 205 all-purpose yards (112 yards on the ground and 93 yards through the air) and two touchdowns, this is the play that should make Fighting Irish fans giddy. It demonstrates that he has the vision and creativity to thrive even when an opponent calls the perfect defensive play.
“For an opener, that's a really good performance and something to build off of,” head coach Brian Kelly said. “Certainly there's a number of run-reads and blitz pickups and things of that nature that he's going to get a great learning curve from. But obviously a really good day.”
In the locker room after the game, Kelly handed Williams the game ball, and his teammates cheered him on as he provided them with a repeat performance of his touchdown dance.
For as impressive as his play was, Williams was slow out of the gate. His first four touches of the game went for a total of nine yards. Then, halfway through the second quarter, a well-blocked tunnel screen gave him enough daylight to run for a 75-yard gain, the biggest play of the game.
From that point on, Williams was in the zone and the offense took control.
“It took a couple of drives to get in my flow, to finally be able to relax, breathe and just be the player I am,” Williams said. “With the tunnel screen in and the long run, we were able to dictate their defense."
Despite just five offensive touches as a freshman for a total of 29 yards, Williams said he realized during his redshirt season that he was capable of such a performance given time.
Throughout the offseason, he reshaped his body and focused on improving in all facets of the running back position, especially pass protection. He came back to campus tougher, trimmer and more determined, which is why he felt his offensive production against Duke is indicative of more to come and not just a one-off performance.
“I feel like my load is exactly where I want to be," Williams said. "I definitely thought I was going to have a big impact on this game. I came in with a great mindset and great confidence. I knew that if I just played my game that I could play well.”
Williams doesn't possess the breakaway speed of a future top draft pick but did make at least one NFL talent evaluator take notice.
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