Unfortunately for Notre Dame, he was the only source of offense for them.
Advertisement
Two weeks after giving up 50 points and 517 yards to Texas, the Fighting Irish allowed 36 points and 501 yards this week.
DeShone Kizer, who hit on 20 of 37 passes for 344 yards and two touchdowns with one interception, brought Notre Dame nearly all the way back.
Ohio State (3-0) responded, though, with an 89-yard drive capped by the first of four Noah Brown touchdown catches from the arm of J.T. Barrett.
By the time Gerald Holmes ran for daylight, Michigan State’s offensive line appeared to have said goodnight to Notre Dame.
“I didn’t even dream about it, it was so surreal, to come in here and play and start in a game, and then take a knee in Notre Dame Stadium, and throw up your hands and realize you’ve won”.
Things got more interesting in the fourth when Kizer scored again, this time on a 3-yard run to make the score 36-21 with just 11:45 left.
NOTRE DAME: The Irish begin a stretch of three straight games against Atlantic Coast Conference teams, which Notre Dame is a member in for most sports aside from football, when it plays Duke. The play was not reviewed, however, and the score stood. They basically played half a game and they needed a ND lapse on offense at the end to help seal the game. “There is not a referendum on who’s got to carry who, the defense can’t do that, we’re too sloppy overall as a football team”. A Kizer interception was turned into Spartans points on the ensuing drive.
Then there was a two-point conversion, and a Notre Dame fumble, and a 10-yard rushing touchdown from RJ Shelton that left it 15-7 at the half.
A slow start was costly, as the Irish trailed 15-7 at halftime. As a result, they dominated the time of possession. The second play of the Spartans’ next possession almost qualified as a knockout effort-a 73-yard TD run by Gerald Holmes. Yeah, the blowout loss to Alabama still lingers, but coach Mark Dantonio’s teams are now 12-6 in the last 18 games as an underdog. This drive would not be what the doctor ordered as Kizer was picked off by the standout LB Reschke.
Since then, Notre Dame had been searching for a signature victory like that one. The Spartans knowing they could not take their foot off the gas against a desperate Irish squad, handed the ball off to Holmes who broke through the line and sprinted 73 yards for his 2nd touchdown of the night.
Now at 1-2, the Irish are likely to drop out of the AP Top 25, they’re nearly certainly out of the mix for the College Football Playoff and they’re definitely looking at another week of questions about their withering defense.
Kizer rallied the Fighting Irish to make it a one-score game late in the fourth quarter.
The Irish forced a three-and-out, but couldn’t move the ball when they got it back and had to punt.
But it was the third quarter that doomed the Irish. They also got 15 yards on a pass interference penalty against Notre Dame.
Michigan State exposed that on Saturday night in South Bend. However, their deficit was too great to overcome, and they ended up losing 36-28.
The kind of improvement that never seems necessary for Michigan State.
Could the Spartans ice the game with a long drive?
The win boosted Michigan State’s record to 2-0. After a quick 8-yard completion to St.
Advertisement
But before that, Notre Dame’s defense was anything but reliable.
