[dropcap]A[/dropcap]fter losing on the road to USC in 2014, the Fighting Irish appeared to be on a mission Saturday night in their quest to regain the Jeweled Shillelagh and get revenge for that loss.
Despite the Trojans (3-3) putting up 590 yards and scoring 21-unanswered points in the middle quarters, No. 14 Notre Dame (6-1) fought back for a 41-31 victory in what was the 87th meeting between the two rivals. The Irish didn’t just know they were going to win; they were determined to.
DeShone Kizer looks for an open receiver during Saturday night’s victory over the rival Trojans. Damien Dennis/The Pit
“I just felt like there was too much confidence on our sideline. Our guys believed that they were going to win today,” Notre Dame Head Coach Bran Kelly said following the game. “That’s how I felt.”
But the determination from the Irish side didn’t dampen the fight brought on by the Trojans.
After the first quarter, it looked as if Notre Dame would run away with the game as the Irish sat with a 21-10 advantage.
Notre Dame quarterback DeShone Kizer found Torii Hunter, Jr. at the USC 3-yard line, but he lost the ball and it was recovered for a touchback by Adoree Jackson. The Irish held the Trojans to a three-and-out following the fumble.
And while a Justin Yoon field goal after that fumble increased the lead to 24-10, USC marched on for 21 unanswered points.
One its next drive after the Yoon field goal, USC opened action with a 75-yard rocket from Jalen Greene to JuJu Smith-Schuster. About two-and-a-half minutes later, Adoree Jackson caught an 83-yard touchdown pass from Cody Kessler that sent the game into the half all tied up at 24 apiece.
Kessler would connect with Taylor McNamara on a 4-yard pass to complete an 80-yard touchdown drive to lead 31-24 after three quarters of play.
“Coming back to tie it at half-time really felt like we had great momentum going into the second half,” Interim USC Head Coach Clay Helton said about his team’s performance Saturday night. “And then at the end of the day, mistakes hurt us, whether it was penalties, special teams, some missed tackles and some turnovers on offense.”
Things turned around for the Irish 40 seconds into the final quarter – in which Notre Dame would score 17 unanswered points of its own.
C.J. Prosise capped a 90-yard, 3-minute drive with a 6-yard touchdown run that evened the tally. Two minutes later, Kizer found Corey Robinson in the endzone for a leaping touchdown catch that gave Notre Dame the go-ahead score.
On USC’s following drive, KeiVarae Russel snatched a pass from Kessler at the Irish 33-yard line which would ultimately end the game for the Trojans after Yoon notched a 32-yard field goal to make it 41-31 with 3:35 remaining.
“I tell you, we don’t make excuses. It’s our job as coaches to find answers, and that’s why they pay us,” Helton said. “We have a talented football team that was very hungry to come prove something in this game. We just didn’t get it done tonight.”
USC opened the game with Kessler running 3 yards for the touchdown, but the Irish immediately struck back. Kizer connected with Will Fuller for a massive 75-yard pass to even the tally.
“Yeah, that was a huge. As a team we always talk about starting strong,” Kizer said. “That being said, Coach Kelly puts a lot of emphasis on making sure we come out on the first play and making sure that we play with some heart. And being able to start off with a long touchdown was huge for us.”
Alex Wood tallied a 42-yard field goal to give the Trojans a 10-7 lead but Prosise bolted for 25 yards to give the Irish their first lead of the day.
The Irish made things interesting in the latter part of the opening quarter. After holding USC to a three-and-out, Equanimeous St. Brown got a hand on the ball during Kris Albarado’s punt from the USC 23. Amir Carlisle came swooping in and scooped the ball up at the 5-yard line and returned it for the touchdown to give Notre Dame and 11-point lead.
Amir Carlisle scoops up the blocked USC punt and returns it for an Irish touchdown. Damien Dennis/The Pit
“That’s a big thing — especially since they came and drove on us and put points on the board — that we can respond,” Carlisle said. “To score a touchdown was huge for us.”
As part of a rivalry game, one can always expect teams to pull some tricks out of the bag. While USC had plenty, nothing would be more surprising than seeing Kizer kick a 43-yard punt in the final seconds of the first half.
Kizer had some skill as a punter in high school, but said this effort wasn’t one that showcased his skill.
“We were just trying to get some taps in and get the ball rolling down the field and not too much time to allow them to make a play,” he said.
Kizer also had quite the running game for himself, notching 47 yards. He was 15-0f-24 for 227 yards and two touchdowns through the air.
“Yeah, I thought – he’s very capable. He’s still learning,” Kelly said about Kizer’s running game.
One such instance was a 23-yard sprint Kizer ran on a 3rd-and-long situation in the third quarter.
“It was time to make a play,” he said. “As a quarterback, I had a lapse in the middle of the game. I missed the easy five-yard out and threw it into C.J.’s legs. And I took two sacks, one where there is an open guy on the back side and I’m keeping my eyes to the field.”
Despite the loss, Cody Kessler had 365 passing yards and two touchdowns for the Trojans. He led his offense to 590 total yards of production. Damien Dennis/The Pit
Kessler had a big night for his side as well. Despite throwing two interceptions, he finished 30-of-46 for 365 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
“It is disappointing. It is not like the effort was not there. It was just when it got down to the end of the game, during crucial points, we did not finish and execute. Whether it was me or anything going on with us making plays, we have to make those plays,” Kessler said.
Notre Dame will finish the season largely on the road, with the last home game on November 14 against Wake Forest. The Irish will have a bye this week before returning on the road Halloween to face Temple.
Coach Kelly mentioned that the sort of road team Notre Dame is has yet to be determined, but it’s time to be road warriors.
“You know, we have to beat Virginia late on the road and we lost to Clemson. That’s yet to be determined about how we’re playing on the road,” he said. “And that’s the next thing that we need to continue to cultivate and develop with this group.”
