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Losing the opener against a top 10 team on the road. Not really a big deal in my mind. Someone has to lose and those are tough ones but at least it was to a quality opponent. What sticks out most is, this is why you don't knowingly make the choice to go into a significantly more difficult schedule (vs. last year) with a QB that is unknown and has only thrown three college passes. It just most likely puts yourself in position to start out from behind the eight ball, whether it works out or not. So now we start from behind the eight ball. Not that big a deal but not ideal either - when it could have been avoided.

1. The offensive game plan was horrible. There's no other way to put it. Greathouse not getting a look and a non-running QB getting more carries than your Heisman hopeful "best back" in the country is pretty much the most retarded gameplan I've ever seen. Not to mention, it wasn't adaptive and most importantly, did not breed confidence in the ability of CJ. From the start, you could tell there was a play-it-safe, we aren't sure if he can pass mentality. You are screwed when you build a plan around this. CJ can throw, so let him throw. Who cares if he throws picks 20 yards down the field. You can't try to protect against that by throwing 9 out of 10 passes behind the line of scrimmage. It was the definition of insanity. The game is played vertically. Scrap all the West Coast offense stuff. It doesn't work. DBs have faced it since pee-wee; they know how to defend it now, and it was clear in the first quarter last night. Denbrock gets an F. I'm still not sold he's a good OC, and game plans like this don't help stop me from questioning his abilities. He simply doesn't adapt. That's a problem when you are breaking in a QB.

2. We might be in trouble with Ash. His scheme is neither aggressive nor downhill. The D looked on their heels most of the night and weren't anticipating anything. Zone is the fastest way to get picked apart by a decent QB. Especially when you have no DL presence. ND hasn't had a DL since, well, I can't remember when. There simply was no fire last night. No arrogance, swagger, or cockiness that we saw in the defenses under Golden. This is the most troubling sign. This D and O, for that matter, is in MAJOR need of a leader with swag.

3. We have to find a replacement at TE. Raridon can't run or catch

4. Give the ball to Love and Price no less than 30 touches a game between the two.

5. The OL really missed Coogan's fire and his pre-game motivation. We need to find more Coogan's - bad

6. The punter looked pretty good

7. Spend some NIL on serious pass rushers. Gonna be watching Bryce Young. He looked a little to heavy and noticably less impactful - no speed rush. On that note Bethelo seemed to not play much which is odd given the lack of impact talent on the DL.

8. It's pointless to have a WR room if every throw is less than three yards. Said above, CJ can throw. Take off the training wheels. Take 5 to 10 shots a game. It works. It would have had an impact at OSU as well. Greathouse is made for this; he showed it in the playoffs. To not stretch the field in this day and age is seriously stupid.

9. The loss of experienced leadership was very visible - Watts, Kiser, Coogan, Leonard (even though I wasn't a fan). Remedy this fast and find a few players who have the heart to show it passionately. The team last night was the old ND with no fire.

10. It's a long season. There was plenty of good in the loss, but some really glaring bad. Particularly in the coaching areas. OC and DC could be an Achilles heel. The talent is there.