Let's look at a few numbers.

 

In total offense, Notre Dame currently ranks #73 at 387.9 yards per game. Not great, but not totally pathetic.

 

However, if you look at Yards Per Play, a factor that will remove a "hurry up" offense from skewing the numbers, and look only against FBS opponents, to remove the "cupcake" factor to a degree, ND ranks 48th at 5.79 yards per play. Near the upper third actually. Not so bad. (Notable teams behind ND in this category: Miami, Florida, LSU, Oregon St., Stanford)

 

So 48th isn't terrible. Still not elite, but not even bottom half in college football for offensive production. Let's go deeper. Who has ND played?

 

At this point, again vs. FBS teams only, ND has played the #8 (Mich. St), #12(Mich.), # 15(BYU) and #18 (Stanford) in terms of yards allowed per play. Maybe the best measure of overall defense (the top 5 are the usual suspects, Alabama, LSU, FSU, Florida and South Carolina, ND ranks #12).

 

So of the 7 games, ND has played four of the best 18 defenses in the country, statistically speaking anyway.

 

Two teams ND has played rank below #85 in this category, Navy (#87) and Miami (#115). Not surprisingly, ND had their way with both of those teams.

 

So, is ND's offense actually OK and has just played some really good teams? If ND had played two more really bad defenses instead of Mich and Mich. St and put up huge numbers, would you feel better about the offense? Good defense usually beats good offense, see Oregon vs. LSU, W. Virginia Vs. Kansas St. etc.

 

Of note, Oklahoma has played 4 teams that rank below #90 in this category, UTEP, Kansas, Texas and non-FBS Florida A&M. They struggled vs. Kansas St. to score points and got 3 turnovers from Texas Tech, but only had 380 yards for the game and a defensive score.

 

So you can take from this what you will. However, at this point, with our team starting a young QB, playing the back up for nearly two full games and playing 4 of the best 18 defenses in the country, I think our offense has actually done quite well.

 

The problem is Oklahoma in #15 in that defensive category, so it figures to be another slog fest, but against the two better D's they've faced, they've struggled to put up big yards as well.

 

This is verified by the fact that this site, http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/feioff2012, has ND having the 4th best offense in the country, when adjusted to opponents strength. Things may not be as bad as they appear.

Edited October 22, 201212 yr by corysold

Great thoughts Cory and great stats to back them up. But...

 

My gut still tells me our offense isn't what it could/should be. No stats to back this up, just my intuition and what my eyes see on Saturdays.

 

:becky::becky::becky:

Great thoughts Cory and great stats to back them up. But...

 

My gut still tells me our offense isn't what it could/should be. No stats to back this up, just my intuition and what my eyes see on Saturdays.

 

:becky::becky::becky:

 

I agree. Sometimes even stats can be deceiving. But I know we would all feel better about our offense if we had two more 50 point, 300 yard rushing games on the stat sheet, which we probably would based on the past evidence against bad defenses.

Short answer.....Yes, yes they are.

In total offense, Notre Dame currently ranks #73 at 387.9 yards per game...

 

Unreal, 388 ypg puts you near the bottom 1/3rd..

 

This stat really shows what pathetically weak D's these so-called high power offenses are playing!

 

It also shows how retarded we can get at finishing drives again...

Ranked 100th in passing yards is what concerns me. Especially when we have the #1 TE in the country.

Ranked 100th in passing yards is what concerns me. Especially when we have the #1 TE in the country.

 

No, that really isn't concerning. ND is 104th in attempts per game. Kansas St. and Alabama are both near the bottom in passing yards also, but they are #1 and #2 in passing rating.

 

That is what is concerning about ND, they are 79th in passing rating with the #1 TE in the nation. He should be a young QB's best friend, but he isn't for some reason. Hopefully between the TD throw vs. Stanford and watching Rees just lob balls towards Eifert for completions, Golson gets that all he has to do is get it near him.

Ranked 100th in passing yards is what concerns me. Especially when we have the #1 TE in the country.

 

^^^ This. Our offense is underachieving, especially in the passing offense. It was great to see the O-line dominate BYU in the second half though. Golic still plays like he has roller skates on. The majority of the the long runs came off the left side with Watt and Martin. We need to be able to stretch the field more.

^^^ This. Our offense is underachieving, especially in the passing offense. It was great to see the O-line dominate BYU in the second half though. Golic still plays like he has roller skates on. The majority of the the long runs came off the left side with Watt and Martin. We need to be able to stretch the field more.

 

Again, the total yards don't really matter. ND doesn't throw as much as other teams, they have a run based attack and don't run as many plays as most teams. But what does matter is how well you do when you do throw, which ND hasn't been great at so far this year.

No, that really isn't concerning. ND is 104th in attempts per game. Kansas St. and Alabama are both near the bottom in passing yards also, but they are #1 and #2 in passing rating.

 

That is what is concerning about ND, they are 79th in passing rating with the #1 TE in the nation. He should be a young QB's best friend, but he isn't for some reason. Hopefully between the TD throw vs. Stanford and watching Rees just lob balls towards Eifert for completions, Golson gets that all he has to do is get it near him.

 

Right, but our attempts are directly attributed to an inability to move the ball through the air. We would have more attempts if we were able to yield positive results.

Right, but our attempts are directly attributed to an inability to move the ball through the air. We would have more attempts if we were able to yield positive results.

 

Yes and no. I think it is more a function of what offensive style do you want to run. Maybe Kelly would pass more if Golson/Rees were better at it, but maybe not.

 

Alabama and Kansas St. are the most efficient passing attacks in football, but they rank 115th and 117th in attempts per game. They don't throw much, but when they do, they hurt you.

 

That is where ND needs to be. When they do choose to throw, they make plays in the passing game. I've no problem with how much ND throws, only how effective they've been at doing it. Hardly any big plays from the passing game, that needs to change. ND is last in passing plays of 40+ yards, with 1.

 

Even Oregon is in the 80's in attempts and yards per game in the passing game, but no one questions their offense.

Edited October 22, 201212 yr by corysold

I've been thinking this the past few weeks. I didn't take the time to verify this like you did (great job by the way), but I knew we'd played at least 4 defenses in the top 25. I'm guessing only 1 or 2 other teams can say that.

 

What concerns me is still the red zone efficiency, where ND ranks 89th (That only improves to 88th when you factor vs. FBS teams only). Last week we had two missed field goals. This year we've seen red zone turnovers and mistakes and overall just not being able to get the ball in the end zone and settling for field goals.

 

Yards are great but this isn't a game of yards, it's a game of points. Now, obviously one is often the result of the other.

 

If you look at Alabama, yes, they aren't great when it comes to yards (33rd vs FBS) and passing, but they are extremely efficient when it comes to points, ranking 14th with 41.0 points per game (8th vs FBS).

 

We need to find a way to be more efficient with our offense and covert yards/opportunities into points. That is where we are struggling.

Yes and no. I think it is more a function of what offensive style do you want to run. Maybe Kelly would pass more if Golson/Rees were better at it, but maybe not.

 

Alabama and Kansas St. are the most efficient passing attacks in football, but they rank 115th and 117th in attempts per game. They don't throw much, but when they do, they hurt you.

 

That is where ND needs to be. When they do choose to throw, they make plays in the passing game. I've no problem with how much ND throws, only how effective they've been at doing it. Hardly any big plays from the passing game, that needs to change. ND is last in passing plays of 40+ yards, with 1.

 

Even Oregon is in the 80's in attempts and yards per game in the passing game, but no one questions their offense.

 

That's because it usually only takes them 2 passes to score....

Is the offense THAT bad...

 

With Tommy, YES. He still is physically limited, and that allows ANY opposing defense to defend a short field with no vertical threat and no running threat from the QB.

 

I dont know what was more disappointing, seeing Rees out there, or seeing Kelly refuse to hand the ball off until the 3rd quarter.

Cory, great work once again. You should change your name to CoryStat.

 

ND has run the gauntlet. Could the offense be better? Sure, but again they haven't been playing a bunch of cupcakes all season. We have a rookie and a guy playing at his ceiling. Despite this, ND is 7-0.

 

BYU was supposed to have a great run defense, but how was their strength of schedule prior to ND?

Rushing: 193.9 YPG

 

Passing: 194 YPG

 

Might not be the most productive but could be the most balanced.

ESPN is ragging on our schedule now saying it hasn't been that tough, although we haven't had any "Statement" wins as they say we haven't played any scrubs and have played some extremely good defenses. We haven't played the Savannah States or Towsens of the world, if we had our offensive stats would be alot higher. Michigan St , Michigan, Stanford, and BYU would have beaten alot of less physical teams up and the fact that we are undefeated with a freshman QB after playing those defenses tells me that our offense in fact is better than the numbers say. If we had a couple games to pad stats like every other team in the nation our numbers would look alot more impressive. At the end of the day the only stat we should care about is wins and losses.

Yes and no. I think it is more a function of what offensive style do you want to run. Maybe Kelly would pass more if Golson/Rees were better at it, but maybe not.

 

Alabama and Kansas St. are the most efficient passing attacks in football, but they rank 115th and 117th in attempts per game. They don't throw much, but when they do, they hurt you.

 

That is where ND needs to be. When they do choose to throw, they make plays in the passing game. I've no problem with how much ND throws, only how effective they've been at doing it. Hardly any big plays from the passing game, that needs to change. ND is last in passing plays of 40+ yards, with 1.

 

Even Oregon is in the 80's in attempts and yards per game in the passing game, but no one questions their offense.

 

 

This. A thousand freaking times this! People think we're like Ala in playing great D, running the ball and have a game manager at QB. WRONG! Ala is #1 is pass efficiency. As noted by Hansen yesterday, that stat is the most important in determining NC-caliber teams, offensively speaking.

 

This is why I was talking about upsets and bad red-zone play biting us in the ass. Too many think we can just win with D. Not gonna happen. D and a an efficient passing game and a strong running game. We've got 2 outta 3 which bodes well for a BCS game but not so much for a NC game...

This. A thousand freaking times this! People think we're like Ala in playing great D, running the ball and have a game manager at QB. WRONG! Ala is #1 is pass efficiency. As noted by Hansen yesterday, that stat is the most important in determining NC-caliber teams, offensively speaking.

 

This is why I was talking about upsets and bad red-zone play biting us in the ass. Too many think we can just win with D. Not gonna happen. D and a an efficient passing game and a strong running game. We've got 2 outta 3 which bodes well for a BCS game but not so much for a NC game...

 

Yep. This is why I think ND is a devEloped QB away from being a title contender. Most every other piece is in place. It isn't the most dominating defense, but good enough. It isn't the best running game, but add a QB who keeps a dEfense honest and it is good enough.

 

I'd rather have a defensive team with a power run game and solid QB every day of the week and twice on Sunday per a high powered spread offense.

 

Running games and defense rarely take a week off. Passing offenses do, ask W. Virginia. Maybe Golson gets far enough along this year to get it done, who knows, bu if ND gets a solid, top tier QB anytime soon, they are going to be tough to beat.

ND should be doing more on offense. Eifert is great. he made some great catches early in the BYU game where the ball wasn't even thrown that well to him. but then he got double covered and other receivers didn't step up.

unless I missed something, where is John Goodman?

couldn't Riddick be getting some passes as a RB coming out of the backfield like on screens?

This is why I was talking about upsets and bad red-zone play biting us in the ass. Too many think we can just win with D. Not gonna happen. D and a an efficient passing game and a strong running game. We've got 2 outta 3 which bodes well for a BCS game but not so much for a NC game...

 

I hear ya buddy.

 

But let's not start inching that goal line ahead to fit the "realists" view on things.

 

Don't be that guy who, when we don't get to the NC game, says "I told you so."

 

Don't be that guy who was worried about winning seven or eight games before the season who now laughs at the fans who are dreaming of the national champiponship - after the team bucked the "realists" preseason predictions to rise to No. 5 after seven games.

 

We all know our flaws. But we've been dealiing with flaws that were supposed to kill us against Michgan State and Michigan and Stanford too.

 

Let's friggin dream right now. Let's have fun with this.

 

We all know what's up.

 

But let's enjoy it brother. Let's enjoy this ride!!!!!

 

And don't be the guy who, the day we fall, tries to explain how you knew it all.

 

We have exceeded EVERYONE's predictions.

 

From here on out we are all in this together.

 

Ain't nobody thinking we're gonna actually do it.

 

But galldarn if in the back of all of our minds we ain't dreaming about it.

 

We should. We should have fun with it.

 

This has been a GREAT RIDE!!!!!!

Edited October 23, 201212 yr by NDBadaBing