Notre Dame Compliments & Conclusions vs Bowling Green

Notre Dame came into the game against Bowling Green as 45.5 point favorites. They did not disappoint, as they dominated the Falcons by a score of 52-0 in a tune up game, prior to back-to-back matchups against rivals USC and Michigan.

The Irish dominated this game from start to finish in all facets. Notre Dame was expected to blow out Bowling Green, but this was an important game for the Irish, as it allowed them to fine tune their game prior to facing rivals USC and Michigan.

While the standard format of this article is to feature compliments, criticisms and conclusions, this time it will only feature compliments and conclusions, as it is tough to find anything to be critical of in the 52-0 win by the Irish.

As a result, here are the compliments and conclusions following the Notre Dame win against Bowling Green:

Compliments

Tony Jones Jr. Continues To Run The Ball Effectively

After a breakout game against Virginia, Tony Jones Jr. followed up with another stellar performance against Bowling Green. Jones Jr. would finish the game with 102 yards on only seven carries. Despite limited action, Jones would have his way with the Falcons defense, gashing them for an average of 14.6 yards per carry. With Jafar Armstrong dressing for this game, the continued dominance of Jones Jr. bodes well for the rushing attack of the Irish, who will likely get their change of pace back, Armstrong, back for the game against USC.

The Irish Defense Is Dominant Again

The Notre Dame defense secured the shutout against Bowling Green, allowing only 228 total yards to the Falcons in the game. Jalen Elliot came up with an interception of Falcon’s quarterback Grant Loy, and the elite pass rush that was witnessed in the game against Virginia showed up again against Bowling Green. Clark Lea and the Notre Dame defense had an answer for anything that the overmatched Bowling Green Falcons threw at them.

Javon McKinley Takes Advantage Of Additional Playing Time To Shine

Javon McKinley, who had remained relatively quiet since a dominant win against New Mexico in week two, re-emerged to have a dominant game against Bowling Green. McKinley would lead all Irish receivers in receptions and yards, with five receptions and 104 yards respectively. In addition, McKinley would add a receiving touchdown, as the Falcon’s secondary looked clearly overmatched against the Irish senior wideout.

Ian Book Seems To Find His Rhythm

After starting the game with a three and out, Ian Book would find his groove and complete 15 of his next 16 passes and finish the game by completing 16 of 20 passes for 261 yards and five passing touchdowns.

The five passing touchdowns tied a career high for most in a single game for Book. The Irish were looking for Book to find a rhythm in what was expected to be a blowout win, as he and the Notre Dame offense have not been terribly effective this year, with the exception of the game against New Mexico. The Irish coaching staff has to like what they saw from Book against Bowling Green, as he made crisp passes and was extremely effective. Hopefully, Book can use this game as a springboard and parlay that into next week’s matchup against USC.

Phil Jurkovec Looks Like A Competent Backup To Ian Book

Phil Jurkovec performed well in garbage time against the Falcons of Bowling Green, completing 5 of 7 passes for 79 yards and a passing touchdown, while adding 42 yards rushing on four attempts. The Notre Dame staff was determined to get Ian Book an adequate amount of snaps in an attempt to try to get in an offensive rhythm going forward. It was also imperative that they got Jurkovec playing time, in the event that Book were to get injured and Jurkovec was forced to play meaningful downs.

Jurkovec looked more than capable both with his passing and his rushing against the Falcons. Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly has to feel confident about his backup, should the need arise to play him this season.

Depth Players Get Valuable Playing Time

The Notre Dame coaching staff did an excellent job of walking the tightrope between getting starters reps to prepare them for their upcoming matchups against USC and Michigan, while allowing depth players to get valuable game experience against Bowling Green.

In addition to Jurkovec and McKinley, players such as Avery Davis, Braden Lenzy, C’Bo Flemister, Kyle Hamilton were able to log valuable minutes. The experience of these players will come in handy as the season progresses, especially if injuries become a factor or if starters need a breather in a tightly contested game.

Conclusions

Notre Dame Continues To Play Like An Elite Football Team

Elite teams dominate lesser opponents. That is exactly what the Irish did against a severely overmatched Bowling Green team. At times in the past, Notre Dame has played down to the level of competition, allowing lesser teams to hang around longer than they should.

This year, that has not been the case, as Notre Dame has easily disposed of lesser teams such as New Mexico and Bowling Green. While there wasn’t much excitement leading up to or throughout the game against Bowling Green, Notre Dame did exactly what elite programs should do. They did not look past their opponent and disposed of them in dominating fashion, utilizing the game to prepare for upcoming opponents.

All Phases Of The Game Appear To Be Clicking For Notre Dame

Notre Dame performed effectively and efficiently in all three phases of the game. There were not any let downs and everyone appeared to show up for the matchup against Bowling Green.

While the Notre Dame defense and special teams have been solid throughout the majority of the season, the offense has looked anemic at times. That was far from the case Saturday. If the Irish can continue to fire on all cylinders, in all three phases of the game, they will continue to dominate the remainder of their schedule and will likely be in the conversation for the College Football Playoff at the end of the season.

Notre Dame Appears Ready For Their Matchup With USC

The Irish looked comfortable and confident putting away Bowling Green and showed no reason to believe that they won’t be ready to handle the rival USC Trojans next week in South Bend.