3 Things To Take Away From Notre Dame’s 28-27 Loss To Navy

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are a really bad football team this year. In fact, they are awful. Don’t let all these close losses fool you. Notre Dame is 3-6 after losing to the Navy Midshipmen, and these 9 games have been the easiest 9 games that I can ever remember.

It’s a broken record from the media, social media, and hell... myself. But it’s only a broken record because Notre Dame is a broken record and keeps repeating the same mistakes.

I’ll keep this brief, if only because at this point, it only feels like piling on the situation.

DeShone Kizer has problems.

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The stat line will tell us a completely different story than what reality showed us. Kizer was 19-27 (70%) for 223 yards and three touchdowns, and he ran the ball 9 times for 52 yards. He did all that with limited possessions- 6 in all.

Just looking at the box score would lead you to believe that he had a good game, but watching him play has become increasingly frustrating. His decision making is fairly good, but it takes him just an incredible amount of time to make those decisions. During that time, receivers that get open either get covered or he fails to locate them all together. He also had some pretty terrible throws that, if accurate, would have kept drives alive that subsequently ended in a punt and two field goals.

In a game like this, Kizer could not afford the mistakes he made and he spent them anyways. I’m not calling for a new quarterback or saying that Kizer is awful- or any of that ridiculous talk. I’m just saying that there is something wrong with him and how he’s playing, and this isn’t a one game deal.

Special Teams is hot garbage.

Really, what can be said about the Notre Dame special teams unit that hasn’t been said already? It is an enigma and a total mess. What’s insane is that we have seen great plays on special teams this year with touchdown returns and blocks and scoop and scores... but it seems like every week they make a critical mistake that has helped Notre Dame lose these six games. Six games have been lost by an average of almost five points per loss. Five points.

You have to think that the special teams unit is responsibly for those 5 points in each loss and this week it came on a 12 men on the field penalty that went up to the review booth. The margin for error in these games is so small, and then crap like that happens. You have to wonder how Scott Booker hasn’t been shown the door already.

Brian Kelly is an awesome father.

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I bet Brian Kelly is a great dad. I bet the kids that he and his wife raise will be just phenomenal people. Do you know how I know this? I mean- how can he not be a great dad when he places such trust and loyalty in the most questionable places?

Think about it. When you’re raising kids, there are times as they grow up when you place a great amount of faith that they will do the right thing when given the chance. EVEN when they have given you ample evidence that they should in no way be trusted either because of their actions or the actions or events surrounding them. Still, I think, the best parents give their kids the benefit of the doubt and trust that they will do the right thing, and even if they do manage to screw it up, you still love them and support them and try to shield them from the ugliness of the real world and the results of their actions.

This is the only possible reason I can give on how he allows the defense to try and win the game against the Michigan State Spartans and now Navy. With 7:28 left on the clock, Kelly punted the ball to Navy which had just gone 75 yards on 16 plays in the prior drive that took NINE FREAKING MINUTES. Brian Kelly’s loyalty has already hurt the Irish this year with said game against Sparty, retaining Brian VanGorder from the disaster defense of 2015, and now by not leaving Scott Booker in Jacksonville with a Greyhound bus ticket.

Maybe he believes everything will be better in the morning, and maybe he is right. But the guy at the body shop said that not only was their a dent in the door, but the suspension is damaged, the frame is bent, and the insurance policy was cancelled.

Rage.