Notre Dame beat the Miami of Ohio Redhawks 28-3 in South Bend on Saturday, avoiding the nightmare of two weeks ago when the Fighting Irish fell to a different Mid-American Conference team, the Northern Illinois Huskies.
Here are the best and worst performances from the Fighting Irish players and coaching staff on Saturday.
5 Stars – Notre Dame’s defense
To be clear, the Irish defense did look a bit lost, especially against the run, early in the ball game. But the unit improved as the game wore on, and also kept Miami of Ohio off the scoreboard, save for a field goal, as the Notre Dame offense struggled early. Two huge interceptions helped swing the game for the Irish.
4 Stars – Jeremiyah Love
Once again, Jeremiyah Love’s legs have been key for the Irish. Although he did fumble before the goal line, he had a 15-yard run for a touchdown in the third quarter and helped keep drives moving. While we understand that Riley Leonard can run well and Jadarian Price is a solid option in the backfield, we’re still perplexed that Love doesn’t get even more carries. Love would finish with 60 yards on 11 carries.
3 Stars – Riley Leonard
Quarterback Riley Leonard looked bad early. Sure, he was still running the ball well, but his passing looked all out of sorts. He was even missing easy short throws to wide-open receivers. But he improved as the game went on, despite fumbling after a 43-yard run. His passing looked sharper and he even had his first passing TD of the season. He also added two more rushing touchdowns, including the game-capper. He finished with 143 yards rushing and 154 yards passing.
There’s still work to be done, but Leonard may have held off the calls for him to be replaced for at least one more week.
2 Stars – Notre Dame second-half offense
The Notre Dame offense was terrible early. Sloppy. Undisciplined. Out of sync. It looked like another MACtion upset might be brewing. But then the offense got untracked, with a few bumps, starting late in the first half. Points weren’t poured on like against Purdue, but the Fighting Irish scored enough to get the job done.
1 Star – Notre Dame’s first-half offense
We already touched on it above, but it was ugly at the start. If the Irish come out that sloppy and flat against No. 19 Louisville next week, it’s going to be a long day. If the Irish are serious about recovering from the flop against NIU and making a playoff push, whether that requires them to run the table or will allow them one more loss, they cannot afford to start that slow on offense. Especially at home.
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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: 5-stars: The best and worst of Notre Dame’s performance vs. Miami of Ohio
