Wake up the echoes, Notre Dame appears to be for real this season -- real, real good that is.
The Irish throttled their intersectional rivals from Southern California on Saturday night, rolling to a 49-14 win over No. 11 USC in a game that never seemed in doubt after the opening few minutes. It was as complete an effort as Brian Kelly’s team has had this season and the fashion in which it was done -- under the lights and on NBC -- should leave a lasting impression on the College Football Playoff Selection Committee when they meet in a few weeks.
Proving that a few weeks of rest was just what the doctor ordered, Notre Dame quarterback Brandon Wimbush was simply stellar in his return from a foot injury. Playing rust-free from the opening drive, the signal-caller threw for 120 yards and two touchdowns despite just nine completions. It’s not like the team needed him to use his arm on so many short fields but he did most of the damage with his legs to the tune of 106 yards and two more scores.
As impressive as that was, he wasn’t even the best player in the Irish backfield. Running back Josh Adams, who will surely find himself on many Heisman lists come Sunday, once again dazzled with some jaw-dropping runs and finished with a whopping 191 yards and three touchdowns in a little over three quarters-worth of work. Much of that effort helped Notre Dame jump out a 28-0 lead at halftime, which was the second largest mark by the Irish in the series’ illustrious history.
As well as just about everything went for the Irish, the opposite could be said for the visitors. The Trojans turned the ball over three times, fumbling on their first drive and muffing a punt in the first half as well. Sam Darnold was anything but the golden boy many expected on this stage, posting decent numbers of 229 yards and two touchdowns but he was under siege all night long by the opposing front seven. In addition to taking five sacks, he was briefly injured just before the end of the third quarter but later returned to play out the string.
A lot fell on Darnold’s shoulders in the loss because USC simply couldn’t run the ball. Ronald Jones managed just 32 yards on the ground and the team hovered below the three yards a carry mark most of the night.
It’s not like a little improvement would have made any difference however, as the Trojans were blitzed from the opening whistle by an energized Notre Dame team. The end result was the Jeweled Shillelagh remaining in South Bend for the year as the Irish will turn their eyes toward a suddenly huge matchup with N.C. State next Saturday that may look even better on the resume than that beat down of once mighty Troy when all is said and done.