By John Brice
Special Contributor
4 elements that defined Notre Dame’s first postseason win since 2019
Microcosm of a season.
Ugly start, steadying in the middle and scintillating in its conclusion.
Saturday afternoon’s Gator Bowl matinee featuring a pair of resurgent programs, Notre Dame and South Carolina, most closely resembled the Fighting Irish’s debut campaign under first-year coach Marcus Freeman.
And just as the Fighting Irish overall closed out their 2022 regular season with a flourish, they did the same to put down the pesky Gamecocks, 45-38, inside Jacksonville’s TIAA Bank Stadium.
Notre Dame trailed early by two touchdowns, 21-7, and again found itself in a 31-24 third-quarter hole after it briefly had gotten level with the Gamecocks.
The Fighting Irish, despite quarterback Tyler Buchner making just his third career start and first in 16 weeks, were the more poised group – if not quite always the sharpest.
Their ability to withstand a pair of South Carolina’s defensive touchdowns and dominate the second-half line of scrimmage lifted the Irish to their ninth win of the season, as well as their sixth in their final seven games.
In the final installment of our season-long series, here’s the 4-1-1 on Notre Dame’s season-ending, season-defining triumph.
FOUR ELEMENTS THAT DEFINED NOTRE DAME GIVING MARCUS FREEMAN HIS 4TH WIN AGAINST A RANKED FOE
210: Notre Dame had balance in the first half, with 17 runs and 17 pass attempts – but it did not have considerable success on the ground. In the second half, everything changed up front for the Fighting Irish.
With their powerful offensive line continually leaning on the Gamecocks’ defense, the Irish gashed their counterparts for 210 second-half rushing yards on … 17 carries. The 12.4 yard-per-carry average buoyed the Notre Dame comeback-effort and also helped keep the USC offense off the field after it had taxed the Irish for 252 first-half yards.
100: Despite seeing Freshman All-America corner Ben Morrison depart early in the second half and also playing without Isaiah Foskey and Jayson Ademilola, the Irish defense adapted to the Gamecocks’ pace, bottled up their perimeter success and attacked Spencer Rattler relentlessly in the second half. The result? The Gamecocks snapped just 27 offensive plays – after they had 45 in the opening half. During one particularly dazzling stretch by the Irish defense, the Gamecocks had three possessions result in a combined -14 yards and a trio of punts.
9, 9: Notre Dame notched nine tackles for losses against South Carolina and added an additional nine quarterback hurries. The TFLs resulted in -29 yards for the Gamecocks, who also saw Rattler complete just seven of his final 19 passes, a stretch that included Morrison’s team-best sixth interception of the season on a dazzling sideline-pick that ended the first half.
335: Playing in a game for the first time since Sept. 10, when he suffered a left-shoulder injury that required surgery, the unflappable Buchner overcame a pair of interceptions to earn Gator Bowl MVP honors with his five-touchdown, 335-yard performance. Buchner rushed for 61 yards and two touchdowns; he completed 18-for-33 passes for 274 yards and three more scores.
Including in Buchner’s aerial works were a 75-yard throw-and-run to Logan Diggs for a touchdown, as well as a 44-yard dime to super-senior Braden Lenzy. Buchner polished off his remarkable return with a game-winning 16-yard toss to a wide open Mitchell Evans.
Important to note: Buchner did all this, in his first game action in well more than 100 days, despite being hurried by the Gamecocks on nine throws, sacked twice and knocked down several additional times.
ONE THING TO NOTE
It’s hard to overstate how much Notre Dame’s poise and presence helped lift the Irish to victory in this game while South Carolina in many ways meltdown down.That’s taking nothing away from the Irish, who had several players rise to the occasion in all three phases; still, Gamecocks head coach Shane Beamer got an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty late in the first half that all but took a scoring opportunity away from his offense.
The Gamecocks then ended their futile last-minute rally attempt with an additional unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty. In between, they also had personal fouls on illegal blindside blocks – plays that went beyond football’s naturally aggressive nature and instead clearly broke the rules.
Meanwhile, the Irish showed so much poise – and remember, recent bowl history was not on their side. After USC blitzed Notre Dame for 21 first-quarter points, the Irish had been outscored 44-14 in their last three quarters of postseason play. Oklahoma State had rallied last year in the Fiesta Bowl with 23 second-half points.
But Freeman’s “For The Brotherhood” culture, timely dynamics from individuals, and collective work in all three elements lifted Notre Dame to victory.
ONE THING PIVOTING TO THE FUTURE
The Gator Bowl victory doesn’t just punctuate Freeman’s debut campaign; it lends considerable optimism for the future of Notre Dame football.
Consider this number: 89. That’s the offensive production against the Gamecocks – all from Lenzy – of players not expected to be on the Irish roster in 2023, with Lenzy having completed his eligibility.
Additionally, the Irish defensive production came extensively from players eligible to return to Notre Dame next season – punctuated by a combined three sacks from Jordan Botelho and Rylie Mills, whose superior condition shined late in the game when he was virtually unblockable by the Gamecocks’ offensive line.
Factor in that the Irish already are supplementing their roster with select NCAA Transfer Portal additions and a consensus, top-six 2023 recruiting class, and there’s reason to believe Notre Dame is poised to ascend under Freeman.