Notre Dame bounces back from their loss against Northern Illinois and plays a complete game against Purdue.
Photo by Notre Dame Athletics
Three weeks into the 2024 season, the Fighting Irish have experienced a rollercoaster of performances, as the Irish recover from an all-time low against Northern Illinois and dominate Purdue 66-7.
While it wasn't the prettiest offensive performance, the Fighting Irish dominated the Boilermakers in the trenches. Jeremiyah Love, Jadarian Price, and Riley Leonard each contributed to a dominant rushing attack as Notre Dame totaled 578 yards. Love and Price each added touchdown runs as Love finished with 109 yards and a touchdown, and Price ended with 86 yards and a touchdown.
The Fighting Irish's offensive success did come with some sacrifices. For one, Riley Leonard continued to struggle in the passing game as he missed wide-open receivers downfield. On the stat sheet, it might appear as if Leonard had an extremely accurate performance, but there was no downfield threat. A majority of Leonard's passes were within 0-5 yards of the line of scrimmage. He still hasn't displayed an ability to move the ball downfield.
Leonard only played the first half of the game, but finished 11/16 for 112 yards. He also added 100 yards on the ground for three touchdowns. His legs and toughness while running are undoubted, but I'm still not sure if he's the best option for the Fighting Irish for the rest of the season.
Part of the reason I say that is because of the talent within the quarterback room. Steve Angeli came into the game for the first drive of the second half, and on his first throw connected with Cooper Flanagan for a 28-yard TD. Angeli finished the day with two touchdown passes and 100 passing yards and sparked a conversation about a quarterback controversy.
The Irish offensive line also suffered two potential long-term injuries during the game. Right guard Billy Schrauth went down early, and center Ashton Craig went down later in the first half. Rocco Spindler did an exceptional job as Schrauth's replacement, especially on his first drive, and additionally, Pat Coogan did well manning the middle after Craig got hurt. With an already slim depth within the offensive line, the Irish are replacing young talent with more experienced players, so it should be interesting to track how the offensive line develops.
On the defensive side of the ball, Al Golden and the Notre Dame defense crafted a masterpiece. Golden really leaned into his defense after the excruciating loss last week, and he got quite the on-field result from his guys. After a first-half shutout that held the Boilermakers to just 72 total yards of offense, the Fighting Irish's starting defense delivered an impressive performance.
Defensive end Boubacar Traore even added a 34-yard pick-six right before halftime as the Irish defense capped off a near-perfect first-half performance.
Golden sent pressure throughout the game, confusing Purdue quarterback Hudson Card After a 24/25 passing performance in Week One, Card appeared rattled, as if he was seeing ghosts all game. Despite the constant pressure, Notre Dame's defensive backs continued to win their one-on-one matchups. All three Notre Dame corners, Benjamin Morrison, Christian Gray, and Jaden Mickey were great in coverage. Jordan Clark added another great performance in this one as well.
Even with this defensive success, the Irish lost one of the most integral figures in their defense this year: Jordan Botehlo. Botelho went down with a non-contact knee injury and was carted off the field. After finally turning the corner and developing into an elite edge presence, this injury is heartbreaking for Notre Dame fans.
In the end, Notre Dame delivered their most polished game of the young season. There is still plenty of room to grow, but their week three performance is encouraging as the Irish fight for a college football playoff berth.
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