I don't think anyone thought that Notre Dame would be winless after the first two games of the 2011 season. Head Coach Bryan Kelly was supposed to have engineered a turnaround in Irish fortunes much the way he had turned around Cincinnati when he coached there.
However, 0-2 is exactly where the Irish stand, but if you have actually watched the games you know that the Irish should have won both contests. A plethora of turnovers (five in each game) will prevent any team from winning even the most lop-sided of games.
Now, with a potential 0-3 start looming, Michigan State comes to town. The Spartans are a traditional rival of the Irish, and have won 10 of the last 14 matchups.
If you'll remember, last year the Spartans executed the infamous fake field goal that resulted in the winning touchdown in overtime.
The Irish are currently favored to win the game, and it's likely due to having accumulated over 1,000 yards of offense in their two previous games combined. That's good enough to be the 10th-ranked offense in the BCS. However, their frequent turnovers in the red zone have resulted in only 25.5 points/game, which is only good enough to be tied for 75th (with teams such as Indiana and Buffalo).
Michigan State is currently averaging 415 yards and 36 points per game, and we've already seen with Michigan how teams that traditionally do well against the Irish always seem to play their best game against them.
If the Irish manage to keep control of the football better, they can beat almost anyone. Let's hope they stop beating themselves!
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