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#1
I have gone back and re-watch every Alabama and Notre Dame game this season (except Wake Forest), so needless to say I feel I have a very good handle on both teams and what they like to do. I have a lot of information about this game in my head, but I’ll try to limit this write-up to what I feel are the most salient issues. If you would like more information about specific thoughts I have on this game, just ask and I’ll do my best to respond.
In bringing Notre Dame back to prominence, Brian Kelly is emulating what Nick Saban has done at Alabama. That translates into playing conservative smash-mouth football by running the ball, limiting mistakes, and winning games with stingy defense. The problem for Notre Dame is now they have to play the team they are trying to emulate. In short, they have to beat Alabama at their own game.
In the Saban era, when Alabama has played out-of-conference teams that are molded in, and adhere to the smash-mouth philosophy, (Virginia Tech, Penn State, Michigan State, Michigan) I have successfully bet huge on Alabama. I do so because these are ideal matchups for Alabama. That is so because Saban has built Alabama from the ground up to win these type of games in the SEC, and Saban has essentially been able to recruit the best players in the country to implement this philosophy.
The types of teams that give not only Alabama trouble, but other SEC teams that implement (for lack of a better term I’ll call it) the Saban philosophy, are unconventional offenses that have dynamic quarterbacks. In Alabama’s case it has been guys like Tim Tebow, Cam Newton, Johnny Manziel (all Heisman Trophy winners), and even Brian Johnson who have been Saban’s kryptonite. Also take note of this season’s LSU/Clemson and Florida/Louisville bowl games. LSU and Florida are both molded in the Saban philosophy. As expected both teams dominated their opponents in the trenches, and dominating at the point of attack usually determines who wins football games. But LSU and Florida both ran into dynamic QBs (Tajh Boyd & Teddy Bridgewater) who were able to carve up even the best defensive strategies designed to stop them. That’s also why an unconventional team like Oregon would pose a much bigger threat/challenge to a team like Alabama than a team like Notre Dame. Notre Dame falls right into the wheelhouse of the type of team Alabama is accustomed to playing, and specifically built to beat.
A big problem for Notre Dame is that while Alabama is quite accustomed to playing teams of Notre Dame’s caliber (if not better), Notre Dame has not really faced a team even close to Alabama’s caliber. The closest comparison would be Stanford, and Stanford is not on Alabama’s level. We saw something very comparably in the 2009/2010 national championship game when Alabama’s running attack was matched against the Longhorn’s #1 rushing defense In the country. Both Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson ended up rushing for over 100 yards and scoring 2 touchdowns a piece, and they did so because Texas’ front 7 was not accustomed to playing against a running attack of Alabama’s caliber.
I liken it to learning how to hit a baseball. Someone can learn everything there is to know about hitting a baseball, and can master the perfect swing, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be able to hit a 95 mph fastball in the World Series. In this game Notre Dame’s defensive front 7 has not faced an offensive line that is in the same universe as the one they will see tomorrow night. So unless they’ve been practicing against the Chicago Bears’ offensive line, playing against an offensive line that is made up of 4 likely 1st round NFL draft picks is not likely to end well for the Golden Domers. A national championship game is no time for acclimation.
In bringing Notre Dame back to prominence, Brian Kelly is emulating what Nick Saban has done at Alabama. That translates into playing conservative smash-mouth football by running the ball, limiting mistakes, and winning games with stingy defense. The problem for Notre Dame is now they have to play the team they are trying to emulate. In short, they have to beat Alabama at their own game.
In the Saban era, when Alabama has played out-of-conference teams that are molded in, and adhere to the smash-mouth philosophy, (Virginia Tech, Penn State, Michigan State, Michigan) I have successfully bet huge on Alabama. I do so because these are ideal matchups for Alabama. That is so because Saban has built Alabama from the ground up to win these type of games in the SEC, and Saban has essentially been able to recruit the best players in the country to implement this philosophy.
The types of teams that give not only Alabama trouble, but other SEC teams that implement (for lack of a better term I’ll call it) the Saban philosophy, are unconventional offenses that have dynamic quarterbacks. In Alabama’s case it has been guys like Tim Tebow, Cam Newton, Johnny Manziel (all Heisman Trophy winners), and even Brian Johnson who have been Saban’s kryptonite. Also take note of this season’s LSU/Clemson and Florida/Louisville bowl games. LSU and Florida are both molded in the Saban philosophy. As expected both teams dominated their opponents in the trenches, and dominating at the point of attack usually determines who wins football games. But LSU and Florida both ran into dynamic QBs (Tajh Boyd & Teddy Bridgewater) who were able to carve up even the best defensive strategies designed to stop them. That’s also why an unconventional team like Oregon would pose a much bigger threat/challenge to a team like Alabama than a team like Notre Dame. Notre Dame falls right into the wheelhouse of the type of team Alabama is accustomed to playing, and specifically built to beat.
A big problem for Notre Dame is that while Alabama is quite accustomed to playing teams of Notre Dame’s caliber (if not better), Notre Dame has not really faced a team even close to Alabama’s caliber. The closest comparison would be Stanford, and Stanford is not on Alabama’s level. We saw something very comparably in the 2009/2010 national championship game when Alabama’s running attack was matched against the Longhorn’s #1 rushing defense In the country. Both Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson ended up rushing for over 100 yards and scoring 2 touchdowns a piece, and they did so because Texas’ front 7 was not accustomed to playing against a running attack of Alabama’s caliber.
I liken it to learning how to hit a baseball. Someone can learn everything there is to know about hitting a baseball, and can master the perfect swing, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be able to hit a 95 mph fastball in the World Series. In this game Notre Dame’s defensive front 7 has not faced an offensive line that is in the same universe as the one they will see tomorrow night. So unless they’ve been practicing against the Chicago Bears’ offensive line, playing against an offensive line that is made up of 4 likely 1st round NFL draft picks is not likely to end well for the Golden Domers. A national championship game is no time for acclimation.
*** Continued ***
0
Very articulated writeup! But lets think outside the box, Notre Dame will benefit from refs ...In this corrupt society, "Big Dogs have a hand everything in life," especially Billion dollar business we call "Football" New York Yankees, Lakers,...etc You get the idea..Look for Notre Dame to get most of the calls. I can see it now on tuesday news paper across the nation, "Notre Dame is back, defeated Almighty Alabamba Crimson Tide. There will be point shaving. NOTRE DAME WILL SURELY COVER THE 10 pts .
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