Any remaining playoff hopes for the Fighting Irish came crashing down in Tempe this past Saturday when Arizona State emerged with a 55-31 victory. The Sun Devils played a great game, despite a second half comeback from Notre Dame. Ironically, Arizona State was outnumbered in many stats including first downs, passing yards, and total yards but the Sun Devils hung onto their biggest win of the season.
After several impressive games and an amazing comeback season thus far, Notre Dame quarterback Everett Golson posted his worst performance of his senior year, which included four interceptions and only two touchdown passes. His biggest errors came in the first half when he recorded three turnovers which gave the Sun Devils a 21-point lead in the second quarter. In addition to Golson’s turnovers, Notre Dame’s offensive line allowed seven sacks on the day.
Although the Fighting Irish rallied in the second half and managed to put a decent amount of points on the board, it was not enough to outweigh the mistakes and missed opportunities from the first half of the game. Despite racking up nearly half as many passing yards as Golson, Arizona State quarterback Taylor Kelly certainly proved his ability on his home field this weekend. Kelly completed 17 of 28 passes, throwing three touchdowns and only one interception. Particularly in the first half, Arizona State’s offense ran through the struggling Notre Dame defensive line.
Although the Sun Devils had an amazing performance in the first two quarters of the game, the third and fourth quarters proved to be a bigger challenge. Notre Dame put up 21 of their 31 total points in the second half and cut the deficit to three points with 6:37 remaining in the game. Arizona State responded with 21 unanswered points to put the Irish away for good.
Although this was one of the biggest wins the program has seen in years, it does not guarantee them a slot in the College Football Playoffs. The Sun Devils managed a win at home, but Notre Dame also looked worse than it has in any other game this season, both offensively and defensively.
This matchup certainly proved to be a game of elimination. Notre Dame no longer has any realistic chance of securing a spot in the first year of the College Football Playoffs, and it seems Everett Golson is no longer a contender in the Heisman Trophy race.
*Section Photo credit to Christian Petersen, Getty Images; Featured Photo (above) credit to Matt York, AP.
