What more could you ask than a 55-0 beating of an overmatched foe on Senior Day to clinch Notre Dame’s 5th straight 10-win season?

The Irish completely took over the game on Jack Kiser’s pick-six to make it 10-0, and from there the only drama was how much action the senior reserves would get. Georgia Tech was completely helpless to slow down the Irish offense in the first half, and equally helpless to slow down the pass rush the whole game.

Some more thoughts as you consider your CFP rooting interests:

Not giving up TDs is fun

For the 3rd straight game, the Irish did not surrender a touchdown. Today it was a full-blown shutout, as even Georgia Tech’s surrender field goal was blocked by Myron Tagavailoa-Amosa. MTA would later get an even bigger standout moment by taking a fumble to the house, completing the touchdown he wasn’t quite able to get 2 seasons ago against Virginia.

Even though the backup quarterback caveats apply to this string of defensive success, it’s safe to say the Irish have found their groove in the new defensive system. DC Marcus Freeman brought pressure from various angles throughout the game, and they all succeeded. The Jackets had 224 total offensive yards and not a single one of them mattered. Mike Tirico had a running joke throughout the game that he was going to run out of factoids about Tech punter Daniel Shanahan, and sure enough, he did.

As I’ve marveled at before, what was really cool was even the reserves were getting in on the fun. The days of ND only being one-deep with quality players at most positions are long gone. What this unit has done without its best player, Kyle Hamilton, has been a treat to watch.

Playing bad defenses is cool

It turns out the cure to what ailed Notre Dame’s offense was at least as much just playing worse competition as anything else. Since a few-week run of very good defenses ended with the Cincinnati game, the Irish offense has been a much different group, and it helps that they’re now playing the worse half of the country on the other side. With the starters in the game, there was rarely a hiccup as the Irish scored every single time they had the ball in the first half, as Jack Coan effortlessly distributed the ball to playmakers all over the field.

It was less inspiring in the second half when the backup linemen came in to block for Tyler Buchner. I’m sure ND was hoping to get Buchner some time running a more complete offensive playbook, but because he was running for his life the whole time, that didn’t happen. I guess not everything could go perfectly.

The 2022 RB room is going to be fun

So, this was, as mentioned on the broadcast, likely Kyren Williams’ swan song at Notre Dame Stadium. I mentioned next season’s running backs last week too, but that was before we got a good look at Audric Estime today. Good lord. He’s a slightly smaller Derrick Henry. Tackling him looks like tackling a tank.

So, go ahead and put him in alongside Logan Diggs, who had another awesome TD run, and Chris Tyree, who’s a great Swiss army knife for the offense if nothing else, and that’s a terrific position group. Oh, and at receiver, you’ve got Lorenzo Styles, who we already know is really good, and up-and-coming Deion Colzie. And maybe Kevin Austin and/or Avery Davis coming back. Tyler Buchner won’t want for weapons.

What a position we’re in

This is probably the worst Notre Dame team since 2016, and it’s going to go 11-1 (presuming no Stanford devil magic next week) and finish just out of the College Football Playoff. Take any five-year stretch of the two decades prior to that and pick out the least talented and least experienced team of that group. It’s somewhere between a nightmare and oh God make it stop.

In this five-year stretch, you’ve got this – an occasionally frustrating but eminently likeable team that has ground its way to yet another double-digit win season and probably a New Year’s 6 bowl. And, by the way, we have two of the game’s most exciting up-and-comers coordinating the two sides of the ball and increasingly intriguing recruiting classes coming in because of it.

Perhaps I’m just getting a head start on Thanksgiving, but for a kid who turned 10 the year Lou Holtz left and saw very little fun for the next two decades, this is just awesome. This isn’t where Notre Dame wants to ultimately be, but I can’t shake the feeling the Irish are on their way. Ho-hum 11-1 seasons certainly feel, at least, like a major sign of a healthy program.

See you next week, Stanford.