Game Recap: Notre Dame 20 USC 16

I became an Irish fan when I enrolled there in the fall of 2004, so until this weekend, I had no idea what it felt like to be on the just and fair side of a Notre Dame/Southern Cal tilt.  My first football game as a fan and student was a loss at BYU, and things have just sort of spiraled on down from there.  The one high point was 2005, an exceptional team that I will go to my grave saying was a Justin Tuck away from facing off against Vince Young for the national title.  Except, of course, that high point was marred by October 15, when Gameday and the Trojans came to town and handed the Irish their second loss of the season. 

And that has pretty much been the pinnacle of the USC/Notre Dame rivalry in my time as a fan: two heartbreakers (2005 and 2009), and a whole bunch of bloody bludgeonings surrounding them.  The feeling at halftime, when the Irish led by ten, was one of total doubt over being able to pull this off.  Those dark thoughts were realized as a flurry of Tommy Rees turnovers led to the Trojans eliminating the ten-point cushion and eventually taking the lead.  As the fourth quarter rolled along, I caught myself contemplating how early I wanted to get to campus for the weekend of October 22, 2011, when USC would be rolling into South Bend for their annual matchup, because we were going to have to end the streak then.  The offense had been bogged down the entire second half, and while the defense was playing amazingly, they just weren't able to pry the ball loose for that one big play.  The ship looked sunk, all hope was lost and I was mentally preparing for another long offseason.

But on the possession after Southern Cal took the lead late in the fourth quarter, it was as if a switch had flipped.  Perhaps it was the fact the Trojans lacked a lot of defensive depth and it caught up with them.  Maybe it was some immaculate playcalling from Brian Kelly.  Or, just possibly, Robert Hughes was running for his senior class, one that had been tortured and abused by the Trojans since he stepped foot on campus.  Rees rolled out and got the ball to Michael Floyd (who had a fantastic effort in his first game against the Trojans after injuries robbed him of his first two) for a quick first down, then started into the same rollout, only it was a sprint draw to Cierre Wood, who danced around a defender and plunged the Irish deeper into Trojan territory.  At that point, it was sort of elementary: Robert Hughes smash, and no one was going to stop him.  The Irish scored, but there was so much time on the clock.  Way too much time on the clock.  It felt like 2005 all over again, only this time I was sitting right next to the Irish endzone, meaning that if - when - Troy scored the game-winning touchdown, it was going to be right in front of me.  As I had done so many times the past few years, I prepared for the absolute worst, as the worst had happened more often than not over that time frame.

But much like Robert Hughes was tired of losing to these guys, his classmates Brian Smith and Kerry Neal felt the same way.  Mitch Mustain had some success on the final drive, but he was dealing with Smith and Neal in his face for most of it.  Then the luck of the Irish finally helped out, as Harrison Smith fell down - not unlike what happened on the fake field goal by Michigan State earlier this season - but Ronald Johnson didn't even get his hands onto the ball of what would have likely been the go-ahead touchdown, depending on how quickly Jamoris Slaughter could have closed the gap.  That was the break Bob Diaco's defense needed, and a few snaps later, Mitch Mustain sent the ball sailing into the arms of Harrison Smith.

We started to cheer, but caught ourselves, beginning the search for flags.  There had to be flags.  Pass interference in the end zone?  Offsides?  Roughing the passer?  There was going to be some laundry on the field, and the defense would have to get up and do it all again.  But there were none, so we all started screaming "No flags!" like a bunch of idiots, hopping up and down while hugging and high-fiving, soaking in a random Los Angeles downpour that had drenched the Coliseum over the course of the second half.   Those adorned in garnett and gold started streaming out, and it was the contingent of Irish faithful left to celebrate, the rain serving as a nice cleanser for eight straight games of frustration.

And the entire time, there was Lane Kiffin, the boy prince of Troy, standing there like a kid who was drowning while trying to fly his kite.  His much-ballyhooed offense had been gift-wrapped four turnovers on the Irish side of the field, yet he could only muster one touchdown, that one taking four tries to move the ball all of two yards.  My favorite joke in the aftermath of this win is how it's a shame Diaco was fired immediately after the Navy game, because he is going to make somebody else one helluva defensive coordinator.  This was a game played on the road, at night, in the rain, with a freshman quarterback and a minus-three turnover differential, and Notre Dame won simply because they just hit harder and wanted it more.  

Did they make mistakes?  Sure.  But there was Michael Floyd bailing out his young quarterback, and Duval Kamara - another senior getting his last crack at a rival that had knocked him around for three years - applying a perfect tag to the end zone for a touchdown.  There was Manti Te'o, who could have easily gone to Southern Cal and been on the other sideline, blowing up screens because apparently Kiffin doesn't watch film and had no idea that throwing a screen anywhere near Te'o is like hanging a curveball against Albert Pujols - it is not going to end well.  There were stretches where the offense was just terrible, but when push came to shove and the clock ticked down in each half, they scratched together just enough points to win.  It wasn't pretty, but it was a win, and it was beautiful.

As much as the victory itself was enjoyable, the aftermath was just as fun.  Scrolling through my Facebook and Twitter feed, catharsis isn't strong enough a word for how everyone felt.  Classmates from across the globe were united for one very important purpose: to revel in the defeat of the Trojans.   Since we walked out of the stadium, I've been catching myself with a goofy smile on my face from time to time.  I'm not sure how long this feeling lasts, but it's a feeling I wouldn't mind chasing a little longer.  Seven more times in a row, for symmetry's sake?

A few more notes on a fantastic weekend for the Irish...

• I find it really interesting that Notre Dame, Southern Cal and Michigan all have identical 7-5 records, but the fan bases feel so incredibly different.  USC is coming off their first loss to Notre Dame since 2001, hoping that Kiffin can keep things from spiraling out of control as the sanctions really sink their teeth in over the next two seasons.  Michigan is facing a quandary over what to do with Rich Rodriguez, coming off his third straight obliteration at the hands of the Buckeyes and a season where they fielded the worst defense in Wolverine history.   And Notre Dame?  Well, judging by everything I've read since the final Rees kneel down on Saturday night, I'd say the Irish faithful are feeling pretty good after things really bottomed out Tulsa weekend.    
• One of the reasons for optimism is a rather bright future.  If Gary Gray and Harrison Smith both come back for their fifth years - which is what every report has said - the defense will only be losing Ian Williams, Darrin Walls, Brian Smith and Kerry Neal from feature roles.  Tough losses to be sure, with the cornerback position looking particularly precarious, but a front seven of Ethan Johnson, Sean Cwynar, KLM, Prince Shembo, Manti, Carlo Calabrese and Darius Fleming is awfully appealing.  If they can progress over the offseason at a rate comparable to what they did after the bye week, this has the potential to be a truly nasty (miss ya, Charlie) unit.
• Offense is a little more interesting, but no less exciting.  Chris Stewart moves on, either to the NFL or some full-time law schooling, but Chris Watt steps into his shoes and the line rolls forward with limited turnover.  Floyd and Kyle Rudolph are the big questions, but even if they both depart for Sundays, Tyler Eifert, TJ Jones, Theo Riddick and Roby Toma have all shown flashes.  The quarterback position is a little muddied, but we'll certainly be further ahead than we were coming into 2010, when it was Dayne Crist, who had very little experience, and a bunch of freshmen and walk-ons who had even less.  In the words of the great Lester Freamon, "We're building something here.  All the pieces matter."
• Your leading tacklers Saturday night?  Darius Fleming and Kapron Lewis-Moore, with seven each.  You really cannot say enough about the defense, who gave up scoring drives of three, fifteen, two and eighteen yards. 
• Rees had his worst game as a starter, but he was playing against a caliber of athlete far superior to anything he'd seen against Tulsa, Utah or Army.  The way he kept fighting and helped contribute to the go-ahead score late says all you need to know about his leadership qualities.  3-0 as a starter, with wins at Notre Dame Stadium, Yankee Stadium and the Coliseum.  We were all equally accomplished at age eighteen.
• USC lets you tailgate on their campus, which is a pretty nice little feature.  It was a beautiful day - which made the torrential rain in the second half all the weirder - and we had a very good time, especially considering everyone was just champing at the bit to get into the Coliseum and get the damn game started.  A big thanks to the Tresnowski family for semi-adopting me this holiday weekend and hooking me up with the great seat to see the game-winning pick in what seriously felt like slow motion. 
• Notre Dame finished up the season 32nd in Sagarin's rankings.  The five teams they lost to finished 11-1, 11-1, 9-3, 8-3 and 7-5.
  
• If you happened to miss it over the weekend, the women's soccer team advanced to their fifth consecutive College Cup national semifinal with a win at Oklahoma State.  Meanwhile, in Orlando, Notre Dame's men's hoops team ran off three consecutive wins against Georgia, California and Wisconsin to claim the Old Spice Classic title and get their record to 7-0.  Women's hoops also won three straight to claim the WBAC tournament title, polishing off Butler in the title game. 
• They took the score off rather quickly following the game...but they were not fast enough:

More big picture stuff later in the week, along with a much longer look at the great win over Wisconsin in Orlando last night.  Go Irish, Beat Unnamed Bowl Opponent.