No one will claim Notre Dame's win over Boston College was pretty. Marcus Freeman might come into his press conference angrier than we've ever seen him. That was an ugly, ugly win over the Golden Eagles. And yet, it was a win, and that's what's most important.
The Fighting Irish came off their bye week looking quite rusty. The offense couldn't get going on their first couple of drives, the defense had some hiccups and some mental breakdowns, and then there was special teams.
So what stood out the most in the 25-10 win for the Notre Dame football team over Boston College?
Notre Dame's kicking problems are back in effect
Legitimately, the weirdest aspect of the last two seasons is the Fighting Irish's complete inability to find a consistent kicker and/or keep him healthy. For the second straight season, there will be real concerns about any close game the Irish play in as they hunt the playoffs.
On Saturday, Erik Schmidt missed an easy field goal. He was pulled and replaced by Noah Burnette, who promptly missed an extra point. He was then pulled and replaced by 3rd string kicker Marcello Diomede, who also missed an extra point. And then, when the Irish scored the game's final touchdown, Schmidt came back in and hit the extra point.
This is going to be a question for the next four games.
Jeremiyah Love is the best player in the sport
The Notre Dame game plan and a loaded box early in the game limited Jeremiyah Love to just 17 carries. However, he made those carries count, especially the 94-yard touchdown dash that put the game away.
The best players in the country are the ones who, even when a game plan finds a way to bottle them up for a while, they'll always find a way to make their mark.
Love has now rushed for 364 yards in his last two games and is averaging 8.8 yards per carry. He's also scored a touchdown in seven straight games after being held out of the end zone in the season opener.
'Every Notre Dame game being a playoff game' is tiring
For whatever reason, the Irish just didn't seem really dialed in. That's likely the side effect of playing two straight years where darn near every game is a "must win" game.
It's hard to be dialed in every week. Notre Dame football fans should be happy that they won in a game where they looked off-kilter all day. Next week, they've got to find a way to dial in from the start or else their poll position could suffer.