OK things get ratcheted up a notch this week with the return of JoePa to Notre Dame Stadium. I don't know what to think of Penn State after the Akron game, they didn't show much running game, their QB showed a cannon for an arm though. Some who saw the game said that they thought Paul Poulslosky didn't look like his old self. I know the Nits have a lot of new OL's so maybe it will be awhile before they can get the running game going. Or maybe they were sandbagging it. I do think that the game is likely to be a very physical low scoring affair inspite of the outstanding QB's and WR's on both sides of the ball. I think JoePa will have a very conservative gameplan that protects his young QB in his first start on the road. And even during the down years PSU always had a very good defense, and I think they will do much the same vs ND as Ga.Tech did in terms of blitzing and they are probably a better run defense. I worry that our FG kicking could cost us this game if it is in fact close low scoring. I say Irish win 21-14. Go Irish!!
I will be going to the game. An older gentleman I know who has season tickets and doesn't go to every game asked me if I would like his PSU tickets at face value. After thinking about it for 1/100 of a second I said yes. He also included for face value ($35.00) a JACC South parking pass. Cool, huh? He was an occasional source of tickets for me during Brian's years at ND. Terry, I suspect JoPa's running game was under wraps last week and will be unveiled in its entirety against ND. I also expect a tougher test for our defensive secondary. On offense, we have nowhere to go but up......I hope. Like you, I worry about our field goal problem in a close game. We also need to cut down on the penalties. On one hand, I'm very concerned. On the other hand, I'm glad we are facing PSU, Michigan, and MSU early and not being forced to endure the suspense of the less challenging part of our schedule wondering what kind of team we really are.
Irish open up 8 pt favorites....I don't know about you guys, but for some reason, that seems like alot. We'll see..... Terry
Terry, I pretty much agree with everything you said except for the final score :lol: The Akron game provides more questions than answers. Akron beat Northern Illinois twice last year to win the MAC, and they returned 17 starters. Not a great team by any means but not like they faced a total dud. They are expected to be a MAC contender although they have a brutal schedule. Their QB Getsy is a another one of those very good MAC QB's. Their defense played a 3-5-3 which no other PSU opponent plays except for rare occasions that OSU will show. Not exactly a good D to prep against. Offensively the running gamed sucked. It's hard to say if it was the lineman , the defensive scheme or both. They had 8 in the box and they blitzed on almost every down. If they don't get the running going, it will be a long season. On the positive side, in spite of all the blitzes "Antnee" never got sacked and was rarely pressured and when he was, hung in the pocket well. "Antnee" has got a GUN and a super quick release. Penn State never had a QB with his physical ability and they have had some strong arms in Collins & Wally Richardson. He was throwing 20 yard sideline linedrive lasers which is about 50 yards in the air. In conjunction with their talented receivers, hopefully, this will keep the defense honest and open up the running game. On the downside, guys with his arm sometimes try to force their throws which he did few times and almost got picked off. He also showed some rookie mistakes in his reads. PSU obviously didn't have to open up their entire arsenal to beat Akron, but Akron is not a team you can completely dismiss as an opponent. Defensively, I'm not sure. They played a 3-4 for most of the game which is new. Played well for the most part, but there's a learning curve here and I'm not sure where the weaknesses will show up. We got good pressure on the QB. I'm not sure about DT Ed Johnson. He's a good penetrator and had a good game but he's more of a 1 gapper than a 2 gapper that you need for a 3-4. The linebackers played well and made the bulk of the tackles and sacks. I'm not sure about Poz. I think with the new scheme, he wasn't as involved in many of the plays. They say (fans) he limped and looked slow. Maybe true, don't know, but there's great depth behind him. The secondary played well, but they didn't face any 6'5" receivers. The coaching staff says they are more athletic, but that doesn't mean they have the same skill, strength or play recognition that we got from Zemaitis & Phillips. Big guys are always a problem for a corner who doesn't have the strength, positioning and ability to force the wr's hands down. More often than not, at least on the collegiate level you'll see a 5'9" corner try to outjump a 6'5" wr and get eaten alive. The only thing you can get after watching the 1st game from both teams is that Notre Dame still has a great offense and that it's defensive is still relatively unknown as is PSU's offense AND defense. On paper Notre Dame is supposed to win but games are played on the field and I don't think you should ever underestimate Joe Paterno. If Penn State does not self destruct on offense, it should be a great hard fought game.
I agree that 8 points is a lot, maybe too many. I'm sure we get 3-4 points for being the home team. PSU's stats vs. Akron are too skinny to be an accurate reflection of their offense IMO.....less than 3 yds per rush, only 206 yds passing in 32 attempts. They coughed up the ball twice. They picked off two passes. If there ever was a coach in the traditional mold who didn't care about the first-game score and was not going to show much to his second opponent, it is JoPa. I expect PSU to come into our house and give us everything we can handle. I also expect our QB to be more relaxed and on target than he was in the first game. I only hope we can repeat our defensive performance against Ga. Tech. If that happens, I like our chances.
JoePa presser on ND. It's pretty funny. When asked about Charlies influence on the offense, he hemmed and hawed and said it was Quinn, that kid who's name I can't pronounce... If you go to this link you get a text interpretation of what Joe said, there is another link to the actual audio. JoePa on ND/PSU
While at my daughter's in Dayton, her neighbor stopped by and told us that he invited 3 friends to the game and one coudln't make it. He asked me if I'd like the ticket. I thought about calling Sid to see what he'd do and then decided he'd likely take it. (Unlike Sid, I didn't get a parking pass thrown into the deal.) My son-in-law and older grandson are going to be at the game so it will be a good time. I look for ND to play a nickle D on 2nd and 3rd downs unless it's short yardage. We finally have enough depth to run that D and quite frankly, it's probably more effective with our problems at LB. On O we just might get to see Prince carry the ball. He supposedly has some good speed. I'm not sure who our third receiver is. We just might get to see some spread formations this week. I wonder if the frosh kicker will start over Dr. Strangefoot.
He's got a point there. Kind of an unfair question if you ask me. He's not going to praise Weis and fuel controversy over Willingham. He is also giving credit where it is rightfully deserved and that's with the players. Quinn was highly recruited so was McNight. They were great athletes before Weis ever became the head coach. Coaches are just tools. They can not play the game for you.
I was just poking fun at Joe for not knowing how to pronounce Jeff Samardzja's name!! But you have to admit joe sort of rambles here and there during the conference.
Have to disagree with you AJ.....Brady would not be where he is without Weis. He was terrible with most of the throws and no Charlie has made him so much better, I'm sorry but Charlie made these guys to be that much better.
No doubt ND's offense improved under Weis, but Charlie was blessed to have talented players like Quinn,Mcknight and Samarja (sp) ND would not have been a contender without these quality players last year. Quinn's sophomore season 2600 yds 17 TDs 10 ints under Willingham is not a bad year by any means and he still would have been highly sought after in the NFL with or without Charlie.. The Vikings drafted in the 2nd round Tavarius Jackson as 2900 yard passer on a AA 6-5 Alabama St team. Conversly there's a graveyard of fun and gun QB's with gaudy stats who never made it past the NFL training camps.
ND/PSU <r>O.K., <br/> <br/> I watched about all of the PSU/AKRON game and maybe it's just me but PS just doesn't look <B><s></s>THAT<e></e></B> impressive to me....or maybe I'm missing something here. They were playing AKRON right? <br/> <br/> Akron had several penalties in the first half that didn't help them either or this game would probably have been closer. They never seemed to get much pressure on the QB either.<br/> <br/> From what I saw the Irish should not have a lot of difficulty moving the ball. I didn't think the PS defense looked as quick as GT's did but again, maybe that's just me. Hopefully our O-line will give BQ time and ND can put up some serious points. I think Walker should ahve a pretty good game also and maybe Prince can really get something going too. <br/> <br/> If the Irish can keep the mental errors down and play to their potential this time, they sould be able to take PS.</r>
I think our single biggest advantage here is at Head Coach. I've always admired Paterno but I think he has reached the stage in his coaching career where he is likely to have a senior moment out of frustration or just plain obstinance. Weis' job is to take him out of his game plan; that's when Joe becomes a big influence. I saw it with Woody and I saw it with Lou.
Most of you guys just diss the fact that some ref calls can be game changing. The clip call when PSU was 1st down on the 20 after a nice 25 yard gain would have given the Lions some momentum going into the half should they have gone on to score. That clip call on #57 was in fact pretty much B/S and acknowledged so by the TV announcing team. I contend that a game is broken down into a few important momentum segments that can each affect the other. Sorta like when you miss a 3 foot putt your next tee shot is much more apt to go awry because the putt weighs heavily on your psyche for a time and only the pros are adept at putting those things well behind them. In any event...ND has looked better than PSU but I truly think PSU was in position to at least make a game of it if they go in at halftime down 13-3 or 13-7. Now it could be lights out for Joe Pa and crew at 20-0 at the half.
you have to be kidding me <t>the game has been dominated in every statistical and practical viewpoint of the game. that doesn't mean we might not see a whole new game in the 2nd half. however, to say that one play/call changed the complexion of the half?<br/> <br/> btw, do you not deny that it wasn't a clear attempt to chop block the knees 25 yards downfield? The ND defender moved away from the block and thus missed the tackle.<br/> <br/> but regardless, to say that was the difference in the half is incredible. no way.<br/> <br/> ps<br/> jesus are Penn State's LBers something. every year, it just amazes me how good they are. without those 3 on the field, this is an ND track meet.</t>
Jopa looks for big strong SMART white boys...similar to how coach K at NC won a load of games...the key word is SMART!!
a <t>phantom PI call for a Penn State 1st down. These things come out in the wash.. as a type this, a no call on a brutal hold allows a screen play for Penn State. Like I said, they all come out in the wash.</t>