First Half Analysis: Stanford 10, Notre Dame 0
Notre Dame got thoroughly outplayed by Stanford on both sides of the ball and the Cardinal lead the Irish 10-0 at halftime. My first half analysis:
NOTRE DAME OFFENSE
*** This was an incredibly puzzling game plan for Notre Dame. Stanford came into this game giving up 38.5 points per game against FBS opponents and the Irish were held scoreless.
*** Notre Dame ran a lot of 12-13 personnel against the Cardinal, and much of their run game was slow developing. This is a Stanford defense that giving up 207 rushing yards per game, and it's a defense that lacks speed on every level. By going with so much power alignments and running slow developing plays - with almost nothing outside - the Irish played right into Stanford's hands. It's the second straight game that Notre Dame went into a game with a strange run game plan that didn't match what the defense does, or what the defense is good at.
*** The 4th-and-2 jet sweep call was abysmal. Tommy Rees called that play to Notre Dame's slowest receiver in a part of the field where everyone would be up near the line of scrimmage. This isn't on Jayden Thomas, he was put in a bad situation. He needs to plant his foot and get vertical, but that's not a situation where he should get the football.
*** Quarterback Drew Pyne had a rough first half. Like last week he was staring down tight end Michael Mayer, which caused him to miss several open receivers, including a key third-down in the second quarter where Lorenzo Styles was open for what would have been a first down. Pyne has also been late with almost every read, which is partly why the balls are getting batted down and why Stanford is batting balls down. On one batted ball he tried to go to Mayer on a play where he had Thomas and Braden Lenzy open on the other side of the field. His presnap read should have taken him to the opposite side where Thomas and Lenzy were running, but he was locked in on Mayer.
*** When he did look at other receivers he was off target. He was off on back shoulders all half, and on the long pass interference to Styles where a penalty should have been called, Pyne needed to lead Styles. He was on top of the corner, which made a back shoulder very, very hard to complete unless you throw it high, which he didn't. He missed similarly on a late second quarter throw to Styles. Pyne also missed an open Lenzy on a post route on a play that should have gone for a touchdown.
*** Pyne is not trusting his other teammates and he's not trusting the scheme.
*** He's also not being put in great position with the play-calling and play designs.
*** The offense looked unprepared and without focus in this game. Getting a false start on the opening drive of the game because you were late getting the snap off because you had to "scan" and try and get the "perfect play?" Covering up a tight end, eliminating a big pass play. That's the kind of stuff that shouldn't be happening, and we saw these types of sloppy plays throughout the half. This looked like a unit that wasn't guided well during the week of preparation.
*** Notre Dame will need to come out in the second half and start attacking the perimeter. They need to push the tempo, stop with the constant "scan" stuff and just go right at Stanford and be aggressive. That means attacking with stretches and tosses, using the inside zone more and then getting the run game established again. They would start running in the first half and then go to the pass and miss, which would kill drives. Pyne has to be willing to cut it loose, and one thing Rees can do to help is maybe design a couple of shots where he only has 1-2 reads, so he will be more willing to throw on time.
NOTRE DAME DEFENSE
*** The play of the Notre Dame defense was only slightly better. On the opening drive of the half the defense was slow to react. They weren't prepared for Stanford's moderate tempo, and they played unsure of where they were going.
*** The defensive line started performing better after that drive, but on the touchdown run of that drive they were driven off the ball. They were better, but still not nearly good enough and physical enough against a below average Stanford line. Stanford was able to get a push early and late in the quarter, with the Irish defensive line playing better in the middle portion of the half. The Cardinal coaches did a great job moving the pocket for the quarterback, which helped negate the Notre Dame pass rush.
*** The downfield coverage was good, and twice freshman Benjamin Morrison covered a downfield throw attempt that was designed to take a shot. They threw at him once and threw it away another time. The problem in coverage was Notre Dame giving the inside up on slants and snags, and the slot defenders - Clarence Lewis and Jack Kiser - had issues staying with receivers and tight ends.
*** Notre Dame's perimeter run/screen defense was not good, and Stanford got a lot of easy yards on screens. The tackling across the board was also poor, and Stanford got at least 40 yards after contact, or in some cases just flat out misses.
*** Linebacker Jack Kiser has had a rough half in coverage. The linebackers have been okay, but they still aren't making enough plays and aren't aggressive enough getting downhill. On the opening drive Notre Dame started out in nickel, with three safeties, but on third down they went to the base defense and put Kizer in the slot. He got beat for a first down, then they went back to the nickel defense. It was .... odd.
*** Consistency remains an issue for Notre Dame on defense, as the Irish will go through periods where they just overwhelm their opponent, and then just make silly mistakes or do things from a play-calling standpoint that give up easy yards.
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