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Marcel Reed and No. 16 Texas A&M took down CJ Carr and No. 8 Notre Dame 41-40 in a high-scoring prime-time recreation Saturday.
In a back-and-forth contest, the Aggies took their last lead with 11 seconds left on a fourth-down 11-yard landing cross from Reed to tight finish Nate Boerkircher. Reed accomplished 17-of-30 passes for 360 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 37 yards, whereas Le’Veon Moss rushed for 3 touchdowns.
Carr handed for 291 yards and a landing, whereas Jeremiyah Love rushed for 94 yards and a landing, and Jadarian Price added 68 yards and two touchdowns.
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No. 16 Texas A&M survives slugfest vs. No. 8 Notre Dame with game-winning drive: Takeaways
After their finest street win in latest reminiscence, the Aggies are rewarded with a bye after which three house video games to start out SEC play: towards No. 24 Auburn, Mississippi State and Florida. Later, they’ll have robust street matchups at LSU and Texas, each of whom are ranked within the prime 10 and can probably nonetheless be after they host Texas A&M.
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Subsequent week, Notre Dame hosts Purdue, which simply misplaced to Preventing Irish rival USC in the present day. Then Notre Dame goes on the street to play Arkansas in Fayetteville earlier than returning house to host Boise State, which was a Faculty Soccer Playoff staff final 12 months.
The street will get simpler for the Preventing Irish developing, however not by a lot.
Notre Dame most likely must win out to get into the playoff.
10-2 with losses by a mixed 4 factors to 2 groups that I think are additionally going to be waist deep within the CFP race makes a reasonably good case.
Wouldn't damage if USC, Arkansas and Boise State have been all fairly good.
Leonard Moore requested about what was improper with the protection towards Texas A&M:
💬 “Leverage, eyes, understanding your project in sure formations.”
What a working again duo Notre Dame has at its disposal.
Within the first half, Jadarian Value regarded like higher of the Irish’s two backs, displaying a powerful mixture of imaginative and prescient, burst and energy. He completed the evening with 12 carries for 68 yards and two touchdowns.
On his second rating, he properly bounced a run to the perimeter, noticed daylight and turned on the jets for an 18-yard sprint into the tip zone, even throwing a pleasant stiff arm to purchase him some house.
Even with Jadarian Value having a stellar recreation, Notre Dame nonetheless leaned closely on Jeremiyah Love, particularly within the fourth quarter. The junior working again completed the evening with 27 whole touches, dashing for 94 yards and a landing on the bottom whereas including 4 catches for 50 yards and a rating as a cross catcher.
Down the stretch, he was featured usually, together with a bunch of wildcat formations and direct snaps. In reality, Love gave Notre Dame the lead within the last minutes with a robust, 12-yard landing run.
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Texas A&M didn’t simply win a recreation, it discovered lots about its offense and quarterback.
Final season, first-year starter Marcel Reed’s manufacturing spiked late within the season after a gradual begin. He appears like a way more developed passer in his second season as a starter.
Reed racked up a career-high 360 yards on 17-of-37 passing for his first profession 300-yard recreation within the win towards the nation’s runner-up a season in the past, boasting two of the nation’s prime corners in Leonard Moore and Christian Grey. No completion was larger than Reed's scrambling landing cross — his second of the evening — to tight finish Nate Boerkircher that gave the Aggies the win.
Reed was exhibiting anticipation, throwing with accuracy and hitting throws he not often hit constantly final 12 months. And it helps that he’s bought an upgraded group of speedy receivers in KC Concepcion from NC State, Mario Craver from Mississippi State and Terry Bussey. Craver hauled in an 86-yard catch and run within the first half from Reed, who accomplished the cross rolling left. Craver’s seven-catch, 207-yard evening made him the Aggies' first 200-yard receiver since Mike Evans in 2013. That may’t occur with an improved passer like Reed.
Moore and Grey have been battling accidents, however Reed is exhibiting the type of progress that offers A&M an offense balanced sufficient to contend for the SEC.
Notre Dame constructed final 12 months’s run to the nationwide championship recreation round its protection beneath coordinator Al Golden and a veteran backbone that included two sixth-year seniors and a two-time All-American. It’s proving a lot tougher to switch all that than Marcus Freeman would have anticipated.
The Irish have been picked aside by Marcel Reed, who put Notre Dame in unfamiliar and uncomfortable territory. By halftime, the Irish protection allowed the identical variety of touchdowns by six quarters (seven) than it did within the first six video games of final season. Obvious accidents to cornerbacks Leonard Moore and Christian Grey didn’t assist. Neither did the Aggies’ pace at large receiver, which bought behind the Irish secondary all recreation.
The shock of Notre Dame’s protection taking this huge of a step again this shortly ought to ship up alarm bells as first-year coordinator Chris Ash has but to seek out the suitable formulation for a protection anticipated to select up the place final 12 months’s left off. The Irish didn’t sack Reed after taking down Carson Beck simply as soon as within the loss at Miami. Notre Dame pressured its first turnover of the season however completed with simply the Moore interception. And the Irish posted only one sort out for loss all evening.
Notre Dame’s protection received’t be examined by pace like Texas A&M for the following month, maybe not till USC visits on Oct. 18. However with a protection that’s placing some vexing materials on tape, it’s not clear how a lot Notre Dame can depend on it’s protection transferring ahead.
As soon as a identified amount, the Irish protection is now a riddle that Ash wants to unravel as quickly as attainable. Notre Dame received't make the Faculty Soccer Playoff until he does.
Marcus Freeman, who is among the highest-profile defensive-mined head coaches in faculty soccer, says there is no such thing as a consideration to altering play callers on protection away from defensive coordinator Chris Ash.
Let’s hear from Notre Dame followers after that absolute heartbreaker in South Bend:
Matt B: Nice recreation. Texas A&M was higher they usually actually received the sport twice, given the kickoff return. They’d higher safety up entrance and that was the distinction on this one, I feel. ND made a number of good performs, however in key moments, A&M blocked higher and their dynamic receivers made some key performs that led them to victory. The Irish have lots to play for — Arkansas in Fayetteville, USC at house in October, and many others. — however they don’t belong anyplace close to the playoffs with two losses and no convention championship to play for.
Zach Y: So disappointing to lose again to again video games like this. Shocked by the defensive play this far this season. 1 sack solely. None tonight. Reed was slinging.
Milan P: We are able to nonetheless make the playoffs if we win out. Early losses are waaayyy higher than late season losses.
Positive, CJ Carr may have performed higher tonight, nevertheless it’s laborious to put the blame utterly on him in both of Notre Dame’s two season-opening losses towards ranked opponents. Carr had some errors, together with a foul interception late within the first half and a botched snap on fourth down when he clapped out of frustration and despatched the improper sign to his middle.
However he additionally engineered 5 Notre Dame landing drives and 7 scoring drives altogether. If not for a botched maintain on Notre Dame’s last further level and defensive miscues all evening lengthy from the Preventing Irish, Notre Dame would have received.
Carr completed 20-of-34 passing for 293 yards, one landing, and one interception. That needs to be ok to defeat most opponents with a staff just like the one Carr has round him. It simply barely fell brief tonight.
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Nate Boerkircher, a fifth-year senior who transferred from Nebraska within the offseason, had simply 21 catches and one landing in his profession earlier than scoring the game-winner for A&M.
It was his third catch this season and first landing since 2022.
At one level tonight, Mario Craver was on tempo for over 300 yards of receiving.
Whereas that didn’t come to fruition, his statline in Texas A&M's win was nonetheless absurd. Craver caught seven of his 12 targets for 207 yards, together with an 86-yard landing.
On that lengthy rating, he made a leaping seize earlier than accelerating down the sideline. He was met by a cloud of Notre Dame defenders however by some means absorbed the contact, spun to remain on his ft and sprinted the remainder of the best way untouched for the landing.
Texas A&M wouldn’t have received this recreation with out Le’Veon Moss’ manufacturing within the first two quarters.
The working again rushed for three touchdowns within the first half, ending the sport with 73 yards dashing on 18 carries.
None of his touchdowns have been lengthy runs, however they have been bodily, incomes his means into the tip zone with drive.
Georgia 44, Tennessee 41 (OT) and Texas A&M 41, Notre Dame 40 on the identical day was an absolute deal with.
Texas A&M completed with 360 yards passing and two touchdowns towards a protection that completed No. 1 nationally in cross effectivity final season. Simply laborious to get your head round what's occurred to this protection. Simply two TFLs tonight and one sack.
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Lower than two years in the past, Mike Elko returned to Faculty Station as head coach of a proficient however perennially underachieving program.
Underachievers no extra. Right here’s Elko to NBC on the sector at Notre Dame Stadium:
💬 “Unbelievable. Marcel Reed, our two large receivers Mario (Craver) and KC (Concepcion) stored making performs. Nate Boerkircher makes an unbelievable play. We didn’t play nice, however we made all of the performs we wanted to make to win the sport.
“That is the following step. We’re a 3-0 soccer staff, we bought a number of huge video games left, that’s what it’s like enjoying on this league, however we needed to go on the street at evening and beat a ranked staff, and we did that tonight.”
Marcel Reed simply led the Aggies to a street win over Notre Dame with a last-second landing cross that might have stymied the Irish's playoff hopes already.
The sophomore out of Nashville completed the evening with 360 yards passing, two touchdowns and one interception, including one other 37 yards on the bottom.
On the game-winning landing, he rolled out to his left as he was pressured earlier than lofting a 50/50 ball to Nate Boerkircher, who high-pointed the soccer superbly. His quarterback gave him an opportunity and the tight finish made a play.
Notre Dame’s hopes of returning to the Faculty Soccer Playoff at the moment are on life assist — thanks to 2 video games they misplaced towards ranked opponents by a complete of 4 factors.
