One of the biggest question marks heading into the season was how the linebacker position would shake out. I wasn't overly concerned because 1) there's plenty of raw material to work with, and 2) I'm pretty sure Clark Lea is good at his job. But Lea still had his work cut out for him. However, [...]
During the spring I highlighted 6 snaps from the loss to Clemson where Ian Book needed to calm down and trust himself more in the pocket. His skill-set is such that his optimal performances happen when he's able to deliver the ball accurately, on time, while allowing pass catchers to continue down field without breaking [...]
One thing I like about Chip Long is his ability to creatively use formations and motion to out-scheme the defense. I feel that past Notre Dame offenses where too reliant on one player making big plays to be successful, whether it's Will Fuller getting open deep or CJ Prosise breaking off a big run. Having [...]
Notre Dame's run game sputtered against Northwestern and wasn't able to consistently help the offense move the football down the field. I targeted a handful of plays that I thought were interesting from Saturday and worthy of additional conversation. I'm opening up the film room and flipping on the projector. RP(N)O This is the very [...]
Notre Dame escaped with a victory on Saturday and can now enjoy some delicious cheeseburgers, but that doesn't mean the film room is closed for the week. The final score was too close for comfort on Saturday as Notre Dame's hyper-efficient offense stalled out most of the afternoon before finally delivering the winning touchdown in [...]
Welcome back to the 18 Stripes Film Room. Dexter Williams returned to the field on Saturday and responded by slicing through the Stanford defense for a touchdown on his first carry behind a plethora of tight ends and pulling linemen. So pull out your lunch pail because we're talking some smash mouth football today. The [...]
Welcome back to the 18 Stripes Film Room. I've been off the past few weeks recruiting grizzly bears for Larz's secret training program. It's hard work but someone has to do it. Today we're going to take a look at Ian Book's touchdown pass to Chase Claypool. It's a good look at how Chip Long [...]
Just like Larz, I've been away from the Film Room for quite some time. But the 18 Stripes crew is already in mid-season form which means we have two film posts this week. Larz already looked at the defense so today we'll move to the offensive side of the ball. We'll take a look at Notre [...]
Two seasons ago Notre Dame and Michigan State combined to go 7-17 in hugely disappointing seasons for both programs. Last year both rebounded for combined 20-6 records each with their own double-digit win season and satisfying bowl victories. The Irish win in East Lansing this past September avenged what was a fairly pathetic effort against [...]
Notre Dame's offensive line won the Joe Moore Award as the best unit in the country yet gave up 30 sacks which was the most during the Brian Kelly era and an underwhelming tied for 87th in the country. What gives? How could a very good running team--and traditionally one of the top pass protecting [...]
With the recent internet rumor of a suspension for Dexter Williams the Fighting Irish could be facing Michigan on September 1st without 4 out of its top 5 running backs from last year's roster. The lone man standing in the backfield is Tony Jones, Jr. a rising redshirt sophomore who finished 2017 with the 4th [...]
Just about a year ago I wrote an article that recapped Notre Dame's run success rate through the recent seasons and wondered what was right and what was wrong. In short, I noticed the Irish lack of long running plays was a glaring weakness and, as luck would have it, Notre Dame proceeded to have [...]
We haven't opened the doors to the 18 Stripes Film Room in a while and with actual football (we can call it this, right?) being played inside Notre Dame Stadium recently I thought it was a good time to take a look at 7 plays that caught my eye early on in the spring game. [...]
Chip Long came in talking about running the ball. But I was skeptical. After years of listening to Brian Kelly talk about emphasizing the run game and then seeing him abandon the run at the first sign of an extra defender approaching the line of scrimmage, I’ve learned to ignore the rhetoric and see what [...]
In 1988, a third year coach edged his team to a national championship led by a brutalizing rushing attack. He employed an option-based running attack with dynamic athletes at fullback, running-back, and especially the quarterback. He was blessed to have in his corner such talents as Bobby Daugherty, Kenneth Goldsmith, Richie Harris, and Patrick Baynes. [...]
Recent Comments