Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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28 OCT. 2, 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED OPPORTUNISTIC IRISH Forcing turnovers has not been a strong suit for the Notre Dame de- fense in recent seasons. In each of the previous two campaigns, the Irish defense produced just 14 turnovers, placing it near the bottom of the na- tional rankings. The 2016 Irish defense ranked 104th out of 128 teams in turnovers gained, while Mike Elko's Wake For- est defense tied for 10th last season after forcing 27 turnovers. Part of the reason he was brought to Notre Dame during the offseason was to improve in that area. So far, so good. After forcing three more turnovers against Michigan State, the Irish have now forced nine on the season, put- ting the defense on pace for 27 regu- lar-season turnovers. "That's the narrative in terms of who we're becoming," Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly said of his dis- ruptive defense. "Each team takes on a different kind of look each year, and this team, and the way it's coached, and the way Mike Elko was brought here because we knew that that's the kind of defense that he has coached in his tenure as a defensive coordinator. "He coaches it every day, he talks about it. But more importantly, it's taught every single day, so those aren't coincidences." While the defense has proven to be far more opportunistic, the Irish of- fense has taken full advantage of its counterpart's ability to get it the ball. Notre Dame has scored an offensive touchdown on the drive immediately following a turnover seven times this season, and against the Spartans the defense had a score of its own. Notre Dame's first turnover of the night came on its first defensive pos- session when cornerback Julian Love stepped in front of a Brian Lewerke pass for his first interception of the season. Love wasn't done — the soph- omore raced 59 yards to the end zone for the first touchdown of his career. "I think the story here is defensively, we're taking the football away," Kelly said. "We hadn't been able to take the football away the last few years. "We're taking it away, and then we're opportunistic." In the second quarter, senior line- backer Greer Martini hit Lewerke near the Spartans' sideline, knocking the ball out. Sophomore defensive end Daelin Hayes recovered the ball at the Michigan State 24-yard line. The offense punched it in six plays later to give Notre Dame a 21-7 lead. The final turnover was the big- gest. Michigan State answered Notre Dame's third touchdown with a nine-play drive of its own. Junior running back LJ Scott was on the verge of finishing the drive off with a touchdown, but Notre Dame junior cornerback Shaun Crawford hit him right before he reached the goal line, knocking the ball loose. Scott tried to jump on the ball but could not secure it, allowing Craw- ford to recover the ball in the end zone for a touchback. The Irish offense immediately re- sponded, with junior running back Josh Adams ripping off a 30-yard gain on the next play. Four plays later, classmate Dexter Williams raced into the end zone from 14 yards out to put the Irish comfortably ahead 28-7. Notre Dame's ability to force turn- overs and respond with points has been crucial in the team's 3-1 start. According to junior quarterback Brandon Wimbush, the ability to turn turnovers into points is about both sides of the ball simply doing their jobs. "I don't think we think about it," Wimbush said of the offense re- sponding to turnovers with touch- downs. "We think about each drive as a separate drive. The defense … has done a great job taking the ball away and giving us field position. "We've been able to capitalize not just with field goals, but actual six- seven points. That's been great for us. We've done a great job capitalizing when the opportunity presents itself." MICHIGAN STATE GAME NOTES BY BRYAN DRISKELL Senior linebacker Greer Martini's hit on Michigan State quarterback Brian Lewerke caused a fumble, one of three turnovers forced that the Irish converted into seven points. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA MISCELLANEOUS NOTES • With the victory over Michigan State, Notre Dame improves to 13-7 under head coach Brian Kelly against opponents currently in the Big Ten Conference. • Sophomore running back Deon McIntosh scampered into the end zone for a nine-yard touchdown in the third quarter, the first score of his career. • Sophomore wide receiver Chase Claypool set career highs in receptions (four) and re- ceiving yards (56) in the game. • The eight-yard touchdown reception for junior running back Dexter Williams was the first receiving score of his career. • Senior linebacker Drue Tranquill's first- quarter sack was his first since coming up with half a sack in Notre Dame's victory over Michigan on Sept. 6, 2014.