georgia 23, notre dame 17 | monday, September 23, 2019 | ndsmcobserver.com
Too little, too late Kmet’s return, late surge not enough for No. 7 Notre Dame to overcome No. 3 Georgia
ANN CURTIS | The Observer
Irish senior quarterback Ian Book looks down after a play during Notre Dame’s 23-17 loss against Georgia on Saturday at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia. Book completed 29 of his 47 pass attempts for 275 yards, including two touchdowns and two interceptions. He added 18 yards on the ground in a game where the Irish were held to 46 rushing yards.
There shouldn’t be any moral victories for Notre Dame, but Georgia game gave plenty for Irish to build on Jack Concannon Sports Writer
Saturday was a perfect illustration of what Notre Dame football is in 2019. The Irish are a great college football team. Irish fans are lucky to have such a successful team led by the greatest Notre Dame coach in recent memory. Their fight in the late fourth quarter after going down 23-10 showed what a mentally tough group they are. They gave Georgia a better game than 95% of FBS teams could have. Talent-wise the Irish are not quite on the Bulldogs’ level. There is no shame in admitting that you are not amongst a tier of roster talent that perhaps only includes Clemson, Alabama and Georgia. To join teams like that, you have to beat the best, and after Clemson in 2015 and Florida State in
2014, the Irish are tantalizingly close to elite status but are not quite there. There should not be any moral victories for a team like Notre Dame, but in many ways Saturday was something to build on. The Irish belonged on that field, the way a genuine top-10 team that can upset anyone on any given Saturday belongs on the field. The toughest part of making the jump from top 10 to perennial title contender will be continuing to manage life without consistent in-state talent. In-state recruits are the path to elite status. Eight of the 11 starters Georgia lists on offense were in-state recruits. Georgia could likely field a better team on paper than Notre Dame with just the players it recruits from in-state. No disrespect to the Mishawaka Cavemen, but see CONCANNON PAGE 2
By CHARLOTTE EDMONDS Managing Editor
Tradition, superstars, rivalry. A Georgia-Notre Dame pairing involves everything that’s good about college football. It seemed like this matchup couldn’t have been hyped up more. With College Football Playoff implications on the line, game day in Athens and the painful reminder of a one-point loss two years ago in Notre Dame Stadium painted red for the Irish. Even still, expectations were exceeded Saturday night. Cue the electric light show in Sanford Stadium and the bone-rattling chant of “We ready, we ready, we ready for y’all” — the energy was unlike many other matchups this Irish team has experienced. Despite coming in as a two-touchdown underdog, the Irish managed to respond with every blow the Bulldogs delivered and led the entire first half. But the luck eventually ran out when Georgia took a 13-point lead that Notre Dame was unable to
overcome, ultimately leaving Athens with a 23-17 loss and a lot of questions regarding the team’s playoff eligibility. “We were one possession away, one play away from winning the game,” senior wide receiver Chase Claypool said following Saturday’s loss. This back-and-forth play was filled with exciting moments established from the opening snap. In his first appearance for the Irish this season after suffering a broken collarbone at preseason camp in early August, junior tight end Cole Kmet corralled three consecutive passes totaling 33 yards. However, back-to-back penalties on senior offensive lineman Liam Eichenberg and several incomplete passes eventually brought on freshman punter Jay Bramblett, who buried the ball within the 10-yard line, bringing on junior quarterback Jake Fromm and the Bulldogs offense. Two years ago, Fromm made his first career start as see LOSS PAGE 3
Kmet makes splash in first game of season By CHARLOTTE EDMONDS Managing Editor
Saturday night belonged to Cole Kmet. In his first game back for the Irish following a broken collarbone, the junior tight end looked unstoppable. Yes, Georgia came away with the win and preserved their perfect record, but Kmet came up with play after play to silence the deafening crowd in Sanford stadium. He recorded a game-high 102 yards and averaged 12 yards per catch. For Irish head coach Brian Kelly, Kmet’s return had a stabilizing effect on his team. “Obviously we feel like he’s a difference maker because as a player, he kind of sets a tone in the game with the physical run,” Kelly said. “… The guy that gets us feeling like this is the way we can play this game. He opens up a lot of things for us. Obviously he’s a guy that needs balance, we see KMET PAGE 2