SOUTH BEND, Ind. — To watch Notre Dame’s offense through five games is to take a Rorschach test.
Look long enough and the marginal gains made by a new offensive coordinator and quarterback start to show. Or squint hard enough and see a passing game with more potential than its Iowa-esque metrics. This is all part of the problem. For Notre Dame to have a legitimate College Football Playoff offense, the Irish can’t leave so much to interpretation. It’s just that Notre Dame has the season entering its second stanza.
It all begs the question of what Mike Denbrock can fix and how quickly he can correct it as Notre Dame begins a three-game stretch of Stanford, Georgia Tech and Navy before a second bye week.
Maybe the Irish can muddle their way through the next three weeks by paying the price for its offensive inefficiencies. But that bill will eventually come due.
Here are four fixes Notre Dame needs to make sure its offense can capitalize.
Through five games, QB Riley Leonard has completed 65.1 percent of his passes for three TDs to two INTs. (Michael Clubb /South Bend Tribune / USA Today via Imagn Images)
Figure out what Riley Leonard does well … with his arm (and legs).
It was one of those micro-improvements, the kind of thing a senior quarterback should have down even if Riley Leonard didn’t until Notre Dame faced second-and-5 on its opening drive against Louisville.
Leonard got pressure from his left as Louisville sent a defensive end through Mitchell Evans and Jeremiyah Love in protection. During the season’s first four games, Leonard bailed in this situation. He trusted his legs more than his receivers. There was no reason to keep his eyes down the field because he wasn’t going to throw it there.
Until now. Instead of bailing out the back of the pocket, Leonard stepped into it with his eyes down the field. He scrambled to throw, the kind of thing Ian Book did so well during his three seasons starting at Notre Dame. Then Leonard found Jaden Greathouse for a 19-yard gain on the left sideline, part of Notre Dame’s touchdown drive that settled the stadium after going down early.
“Two weeks ago, I said we have to continue to focus on our move-to-pocket throws, which I thought he did a better job at,” Denbrock said. “Again, I have a lot of confidence in Riley. Nobody plays perfect, but I thought he did a really good job in terms of his preparation, in terms of his execution in the game and we’re going to continue to build on that. Again, it’s let’s do things that your players do well, and he did a great job versus Louisville.”
Denbrock moved the pocket for Leonard more against Louisville than any game prior, letting the quarterback be an athlete and a quarterback at once. Leonard’s three throws outside the pocket on the opening drive against Louisville were more than the two he had in the entire game against Texas A&M.
“I think we’ve seen glimpses of what it can really turn into and become here,” Denbrock said. “And we’re at about the point in the season where it’s time for that to kick into gear.”
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Can Notre Dame trust itself on first down?
The Irish have one of the nation’s worst third down offenses, converting just 35.2 percent of their chances to stay on the field. But Denbrock’s third down call sheet isn’t so much to blame as how the Irish have failed to get to it. Notre Dame has struggled to stay ahead of the chains on early downs, and it stresses itself when it needs something to extend drives.
Third-and-long is no way to go through a game plan.
“We’ve been average as dirt on first down,” Denbrock said. “It’s got to be way more consistent.”
This is where Leonard’s unpredictability as a passer puts Notre Dame in a bind. He hasn’t been accurate enough in the short game for throws into the flat to be extensions of the run game. He hasn’t been clear-eyed enough to take deep shots either. And if Notre Dame gets stuck in a second-and-10, it almost always means a punt or field goal is coming.
Removing Purdue from the discussion, Notre Dame has faced a second-and-10 (or longer) on 25 drives this season. Those possessions have turned into four touchdowns and three field goals. Three of those touchdowns came against MAC opponents. Against Texas A&M and Louisville, 14 drives included a second-and-10. Just one ended in a touchdown when Jadarian Price went 47 yards for a score in College Station.
In other words, Notre Dame isn’t explosive enough to get back on track when it falls behind the chains. Does Notre Dame let Leonard pass on first down considering the risk of second-and-long? Because that’s been a drive killer. It all creates a problem for Denbrock to solve.
“I mean, there’s nothing that’s off the table,” Denbrock said. “And I always start with me first. So, I’ve got to make sure scheme-wise and what we’re doing on first down, in particular, is more on point. Or that I give the quarterback the information he needs to adjust what we’re doing, probably a little bit more consistently and a little bit better.”
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Get Jeremiyah Love more work
Whether it’s NFL scouts or opposing defensive coordinators, there’s no debate about Notre Dame’s best offensive player. But Love doesn’t lead the Irish in rushing attempts (that’s Riley Leonard). Love doesn’t lead the Irish in receptions, either (that’s Beaux Collins). The sophomore running back paces Notre Dame in offensive touches with 68 combined rushing attempts and receptions … but is 14 touches per game enough for a future pro?
“I don’t really think about my touches too much,” Love said. “I trust my coach. I trust coach Deland (McCullough). He’s going to put me in the best position he can.”
Through five games, Love has yet to convert a third or fourth down. And yes, that feels strange for a back with his explosive ability who recorded the game-winning touchdown at Texas A&M, a hurdle-and-score against Northern Illinois and that undeniable screen against Louisville.
Love is on record that he wants to be an every-down back, but he won’t overtly lobby for it within an offense still figuring itself out.
“Carries, if I get the ball I get the ball, if I don’t, I’m going to help this team in the best way that I can,” Love said. “If they call a play I’m going to do it to the best of my ability and I trust my coaches.”
Notre Dame has had a true lead back four times in the past six seasons. Kyren Williams averaged 20.5 carries/receptions per game in 2020 and 2021. Audric Estime averaged 18.9 carries/receptions last season. Dexter Williams got 19.3 carries/receptions in his shortened season in 2018. Can Love close the gap between a true RB1 and how he’s been used? Notre Dame’s offense could be better for it.
Stay out of Al Golden’s way
Maybe that’s a little unfair to Notre Dame’s offense considering the Irish have turned the ball over on special teams — Jordan Faison’s muffed punt against Miami (Ohio) and Devyn Ford’s fumbled kickoff return against Louisville — this season. But there’s no getting around the fact Notre Dame is borderline unbeatable when it doesn’t put the Irish defense in a bad spot.
Of the 63 points Notre Dame has given up this season — which ranks No. 8 nationally — more than a third (23 points) have come after Irish turnovers. Of the six giveaways, five have turned into points. The sixth came at the end of Leonard’s 43-yard run in the third quarter against Miami (Ohio), which went three-and-out.
Those turnovers-to-points include two Northern Illinois field goals after two Leonard interceptions, his only ones this season.
“As an entire program, what we can’t do is hurt Notre Dame,” Freeman said. “We have to make sure our ball security — there is no excuse, the weather, anything. We have to make sure we hand the ball to the official.”
It’s not that Notre Dame has been poor with ball security. Those six turnovers lost rank middle-of-the-road nationally. Under normal circumstances, the Irish should be able to live like this, balancing risk (turnovers) with reward (big plays). It’s just that Notre Dame doesn’t have enough big play ability to make this formula work. So, until the reward for a big play is bigger (or more often), being better with ball security will be paramount.
(Top photo of Jeremiyah Love: Michael Clubb / USA Today via Imagn Images)
