Players Of The Game From The Notre Dame Victory Over UNLV
Notre Dame earned its second home win of the season yesterday by blasting UNLV 44-21. The Irish jumped all over the Rebels and the game was out of hand by the end of the first quarter. Notre Dame wasn't able to put UNLV away in the manner desired, but it was a game the Irish controlled.
There were a number of standouts for Notre Dame, but two players stood above the rest, and for the first time ever I gave the same player the defensive and special teams honors.
OFFENSE - Logan Diggs, Running Back
Stats: 28 carries, 130 yards, 4.6 YPC
Runners Up: TE Michael Mayer
Diggs got the start for Notre Dame and was the primary ball carrier in the game. Early on the Irish line had some trouble opening up room against loaded boxes, but even then Diggs was grinding out tough yards. He had just 11 carries for 49 yards in the opening half, but his tough running and pass protection were solid.
Diggs started to get room in the third quarter, rushing for 33 yards on seven carries, but he helped put the game away in the fourth quarter. Diggs carried the ball 10 times for 48 yards in the fourth quarter as he helped wind down the clock. He showed good patience against the Rebels, he was decisive and he ran with authority.
When there wasn't much room, Diggs was willing to put his foot in the ground and get vertical for whatever he could get. As the line started opening up more room in the second half, Diggs capitalized and made some bigger runs. Diggs finished the second half with 81 yards on the ground on 17 carries.
Tight end Michael Mayer was Notre Dame's most dominant player in the game, but dropping a touchdown and another should-be catch on a bubble screen kept him from earning this award. But the big time plays he did make, and his improved blocking, are why he deserves special mention here.
DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS - Isaiah Foskey, D-End
Stats: 5 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 3 sacks, 2 blocked punts
Runners Up: DT Howard Cross III, DT Rylie Mills, LB Marist Liufau, CB TaRiq Bracy
I was very critical of Foskey in the loss to Stanford, and a case could have been made it was the worst game of his career. That can be dismissed when you consider how he played against UNLV. To see him bounce back from that performance with a dominant performance on offense and defense says a lot about Foskey's internal fight, and shows he takes pride in the kind of performance he wants to have in an Irish uniform.
Foskey racked up a career-high three sacks in the victory, and they were big plays for the defense.
It seemed, however, that Foskey's work on special teams sparked his play on defense. He blocked a UNLV punt on the third series of the game, and he came right back on the next series and blocked another punt, and both gave the Irish offense great field position. Foskey and JD Bertrand combined for a sack on the very next series to end that drive.
Foskey was better against the run against UNLV, but that is the one area where improvement is still needed.
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