Notre Dame football: Irish can’t erase early deficit vs. Alabama, lose 31-14
By Brad Weiss
The Notre Dame football team went down early against the Alabama Crimson Tide, and could not come back against the No. 1 team in the land.
With a chance to punch their ticket to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game, the Notre Dame football team battled it out against No. 1 Alabama in the Rose Bowl. A huge underdog going into the game, the Irish started slow, going down 14-0 in the first quarter, and was never able to come back against the best team in the land.
Alabama took a commanding first-half lead
The game had all the looks of being a blow out early on, as Alabama’s offense was humming during the first quarter. On their first possession, Mac Jones led a business-like drive against the Irish defense, going 79 yards in only seven plays, picking up chunk yardage at will.
Alabama star DeVonta Smith would cap off the drive with his first of two first-half touchdowns, as the Tide went up 7-0. After a quick stop, the Crimson Tide got the ball back and only needed five plays to go nearly 100 yards.
Jones connected with Jahleel Billingsley to give the Tide a 14-0 lead after the first frame. Within that drive was an inhuman play by Tide running back Najee Harris, who leaped over Nick McCloud on a 53-yard rush.
Notre Dame came right back at the Tide after the touchdown, riding the legs of Kyren Williams on a 15-play, 75-yard drive that spanned over eight minutes. 14-7 would be as close as the Irish would get, as Alabama scored on a second Smith touchdown with a little under nine minutes left in the half, pushing their lead to 14 points.
The Irish had a chance to put some points on the board before the half, but a Jonathan Doerer kick from over 50 yards out was way short. That game the Tide a 21-7 halftime lead, and the ball after the half.