Rapid Review: Notre Dame 30, USC 27
Rolling on methodically while building a 17-3 halftime lead that was upped to 20-3 early in the third quarter, the No. 9-ranked Fighting Irish survived a fierce second-half USC rally for a 30-27 conquest Saturday night at Notre Dame Stadium.
Junior tight end Brock Wright cradled USC's bouncing on-side kick with 1:03 remaining to seal the outcome and raise Notre Dame's record to 5-1 while USC fell to 3-3. The Irish enter their second bye this season next week before facing Michigan in Ann Arbor on Oct. 26.
A 308-yard rushing output by Notre Dame coupled with a crucial 75-yard drive engineered by senior quarterback Ian Book to provide a 30-20 cushion with 3:33 powered the hard-fought victory.
1.TOP 3 STORYLINES
• For the third straight week, senior running back Tony Jones Jr., eclipsed the 100-yard rushing total, finishing with a career high 176 yards on 25 carries, notably 12 attempts for 120 yards in the first half — with his seven second-quarter carries netting 95 yards while the Irish outscored USC 17-0 in those 15 minutes.
• On the drive to make it 30-20, Book commanded the drive magnificently. He completed a nine-yard pass to junior tight end Cole Kmet on third-and-7 from his 28-yard line, found Kmet again for 12 yards while evading pressure, scrambled for 17 yards on third-and-11 from the USC 30-yard line, and followed two plays later with an eight-yard quarterback draw for the touchdown at the 3:33 mark.
• Junior kicker Jonathan Doerer converted all three of his field goal attempts, which proved crucial in the three-point win. What's more, they came from 45, 52 (tied for third-longest in school history) and 43 yards.
2. TURNING POINT
Trailing 3-0 and back up at its three-yard line, Notre Dame marched 97 yards on nine plays in 2:32, culminated by a 10-yard touchdown pass from Book to Kmet on a crossing route at the 8:37 mark of the second quarter.
On third-and-7 from the Irish six-yard line, Book completed a nine yard pass to senior wideout Chase Claypool. Jones Jr. followed with back-to-back 12- and 43-yard runs. That began a run of 20 straight Notre Dame points (17 in the second quarter) that the Trojans could not quite rally from the rest of the way.
3. STAT OF THE GAME
Led by Jones and a consistent effort from the Irish offensive line, the 308 yards rushing took control most of the game, especially with neither team committing a turnover.
4. GAME BALL
So much attention was focused on whether junior running back Jafar Armstrong would return to the lineup (he played very sparingly) that it’s become almost taken for granted how effective Jones Jr. has become as the bell cow back.
Like many other Irish running backs who blossomed as seniors in this decade — Jonas Gray, Theo Riddick, C.J. Prosise and Dexter Williams — Jones has become a consistent and steady force.
5. HISTORICAL FOOTNOTE
Head coach Brian Kelly is now 7-3 versus the school's arch rival in football. That victory total is the the third most by a Notre Dame head coach, behind only Lou Holtz (9-1-1) and Frank Leahy (8-1-1).
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