Syracuse Orange at Notre Dame Football: 3 Studs and 3 Duds
By Andrew Hall
The Notre Dame Football senior class finished its home career with a 25-1 home record after beating the Syracuse Orange, 45-21.
This week’s 3 studs and 3 duds are more cumulative than Syracuse specific, as Saturday’s 45-21 victory was a culmination of years of work by the senior class of this Notre Dame football team. For the first time in Notre Dame history, the Irish won 10-plus games in four consecutive years, an incredible accomplishment.
Ian Book surpassed great quarterbacks Tom Clements, Ron Powlus, and Brady Quinn for most career wins at the school with 30, as Book never lost a home game as the Notre Dame starting quarterback.
Currently, the Irish are riding a 24-game home winning streak and a 16-game streak overall.
Not all accomplishments were career milestones. Notre Dame running back Kyren Williams eclipsed the 1000-yard mark with another 100-yard effort. When you consider Williams registered four total rushes in 2019, his feat is amazing.
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish move on to face Clemson in the ACC Championship, as the Tigers clinched the 2nd spot with a decisive 45-10 win over Virginia Tech. Over the next two weeks, a debate will rage whether or not Notre Dame can afford to lose the contest.
The consensus is if Notre Dame loses a respectable game, and the other teams maintain the status quo, then the Irish will earn a berth in the College Football Playoff. However, the Notre Dame football team wants to prove that beating Clemson was not due to the absence of quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
Further, a victory in the ACC title game assures the Irish an odd set of bragging rights. It also clinches a birth in the College Football Playoff without any help from the committee or other teams.
Without further ado, here are this week’s 3 studs and 3 duds.