This story was updated to correct a misspelling/typo.
No. 8 Notre Dame fell to No. 17 Texas A&M 41-40 on Saturday, and there will be plenty of soul-searching as the playoff hopes for a team that was expected to compete for the national championship hang by a thread.
5 – Running Backs
Let’s start with the good. Running backs Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price figured to be a bigger part of the game plan than in Week 1, and they were. Both were successful, too, with Price rushing for two TDs and Love rushing for one and catching one.
4 – CJ Carr
Carr had one boneheaded interception but he played relatively well and he continues to show flashes that he can be the quarterback the Irish need to get to the next level. But that next level might have to wait until next season, given the team’s other issues.
3 – Malachi Fields
Fields is showing why the Irish got him in the transfer portal — he makes plays. Hopefully, we will see more from him going forward.
2 – Special Teams
A very mixed bag. The punt block TD was great, as was a Jordan Faison punt return, but the botched extra point made Texas A&M’s job easier — and a penalty saved Notre Dame from allowing a kick-return TD.
– Defense
What happened to last year’s vaunted defense? Yes, some players moved on to the NFL, but many veterans return. Yes, the secondary is young — but the pass rush doesn’t have that excuse. And while Tyler Buchner will be vilified for the botched extra point, the fact is Notre Dame still allowed Texas A&M to march downfield and score on a fourth-and-goal. Even if the Notre Dame extra point had good, the Aggies still could’ve either tied the score and sent the game to OT or won it with a two-point conversion. They needed to be kept out of the end zone.
If Notre Dame has any, ANY, hope at all of stopping the bleeding at two losses and making the playoffs again, the defense must be fixed NOW. I don’t know if that means firing defensive coordinator Chris Ash — seems too rash after just two games — but something has to be done. The unit was better than against Miami but still looked lost, and this with two weeks to prepare. If Notre Dame isn’t a playoff team, Ash might be out of a job at season’s end.
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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Five stars from Notre Dame’s 41-40 loss to Texas A&M
Reporting by Tim Healey, Fighting Irish Wire / Fighting Irish Wire
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