Notre Dame Football: Irish need to achieve balance on offense

For the Notre Dame football team, balance has been the main issue when trying to move the ball on offense.

Notre Dame football has been inconsistent (to put it nicely) when trying to move the football on offense to start the season. At Louisville, the Irish got off to a fast start, but struggled at different times when trying to put their foot on the accelerator to pull away.

Against New Mexico, the Irish abandoned the run in order to hit on big plays to take advantage of a weak defense.

But the Irish needed it all together to succeed against Georgia, and frankly, that didn’t happen. Against the Bulldogs, the Irish were able to muster only a meager 46 yards on the ground, and that’s even considering that Ian Book was not sacked.

But the most disappointing part about Notre Dame’s lack of a running game against Georgia was the fact that it seemed to give up on the running game altogether. The Irish ran the ball only 14 times to gain those 46 yards.

While the 3.3 yards per carry number certainly isn’t optimal, it shouldn’t have been enough to completely abandon the run. And when taken a step further, it’s not as if the Irish were were tremendously efficient in the passing game. After all, Ian Book is considered one of the most efficient passers in college football and only completed 29 of his 47 passes in the game.

Perhaps the Irish didn’t feel confident in their ability to move the ball, given that they are down two of their top three running backs due to injury. But with Georgia wearing on Notre Dame’s defense in the second half, the Irish would have been better served to run the ball a little more, if only to help slow the tempo and limit possessions in the second half.

With Georgia out of the way, it would be a surprise to see the Irish not make a more concerted effort to move the ball on the ground.