USC in L.A. every other year as the last game of the season?!!? In the 27 games that have been played since Ara's first year in 1964, ND's record has been dismal: 9 wins, 16 losses and 2 ties. Although I think that this team is the most athletically gifted ND has fielded in the last 25 years, and although if you dropped the "1" from Ian Book's #12 jersey you could easily mistake him for the great Tom Clements #2, BEWARE OF L.A. IN NOVEMBER !!!
It doesn't matter what Notre Dame's record is in L.A. over the past 40-plus season. The fact of the matter is that if you go back through the most recent games in L.A., any time there is a clear favorite they've won the game in the 2000s. It's not like loaded ND teams have been going to L.A. lately and getting upset by SC teams that played over their head.
You have to go back to '98 for an upset in L.A., but that one has an asterisk because of Jarious Jackson's injury and I'm not sure ND was even favored. The '96 game was the missed PAT game, which was unquestionably an SC over ND upset.
Long story short, Notre Dame is way better than USC and will win. Nothing from the recent history of this rivalry indicates a 5-6 USC team with a frosh QB and lame duck coach is going to beat an ND team that's undefeated and really good on both sides of the ball.
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this team appears to be trending up this month so I'm a little bit cautiously optimistic right now, but there's still time fer ol' man Kelly to pop his head out of the cave...so I'm not ready to count the chickens just yet.
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the great Dave Casper many times during the season. One in particular against Alabama in the 1973 national championship. Clements put up for grabs when Casper was surrounded by three defenders and still came up with the completion on the drive that resulted in our winning field goal. This was prior to the catch that Robin Weber caught at the end of the game which he almost dropped.
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I saw every game that Clements played. I simply don't recall his receivers like Casper constantly bailing him out. Clements was a damned good passer. Keep in mind that Notre Dame ran an entirely different passing scheme for Clements than what Notre Dame is running for Book. Clements did not have the many high percentage short passing routes that Book has called for him. A much higher percentage of Clements pass plays were downfield throws. Again, different offenses for Clements and Book.
I will say that Clements is the quarterback that Book most reminds me of. I think that Book could run the Clements offense very well, and I think Clements could run the current offense as well with no problem.
Clements was. Downfield passing? He threw a ton of short passes to Pete Demerle who had great, great hands. Casper was the most dominant tight end of ours by a long shot. He is in the NFL Hall of Fame and was voted the best tight end of the decade in the 70's. Go view the Alabama game in 1973 and watch the play Casper made on the lollipop pass Clements threw on one of our key drives and how Casper fought through coverage to somehow turn an interception into a reception.
That may explain your rose-colored adoration of Book. If not, you may want to remove your mouth from Ian's organ and see what his career amounts to before you compare him to two all time ND greats.
Theismann? Are you crapping me? The comparison to Clements is probably more apt (if incredibly shallow) than any wet dream of your comparing him to Theismann. And I have seen Clements play in person as well as during three years of practice. The funniest thing is in your comparison is that Book is not a good downfield passer at all so saying the Clements wasn't in comparison is really goofy. How you could conclude anything re: their respective arm strengths when you never saw Clements play in person is nothing short of idiocy.
Noting that Clements didn't play in the NFL as evidence of anything is equally as goofy since Book will never even see an NFL practice squad much less play in the CFL where Clements happens to be a CFL Most Outstanding Player, led that league in passing once, won two Grey Cups and was a 7 time all star. His career completion rate in the CFL is 60% so saying he wasn't an accurate passer may be one the dumbest things you've posted. I wouldn't even start comparing him to Theismann.
All in all, trying to compare across generations of football is really fucking stupid. You don't know how Clements would function is this era of pass happy offenses any more than you know how Book would function in Clement's era.
Book is much closer to Clements that Theismann as a quarterback. In Theismann you are talking about a guy who played 11 years in the NFL and is a former NFL Most Valuable Player, and arguably one of the 3 or 4 best quarterbacks to have ever played at ND. While no Theisman, Clement was a good enough passer to be a 7 times CFL all-star, a CFL mvp winner, voted one of the 50 greatest players in CFL history and a member of the CFL Hall of Fame. He also played one year with the Kansas City Chiefs as a backup quarterback. Again, you are vastly underrating Clements as a passer.
Book is also closer to Clements as a runner. Both could/can scramble and keep plays alive and were also good runners when they ran/run the ball. However Theismann was a much better and dangerous runner. Theismann even returned punts a few times when he was with the Redskins. I don't know many NFL quarterbacks and can claim that distinction.
So I stand by my position that Book is much closer to Clements as a player than he is to Theismann. But that is not a bad thing, as Clements is one hell of a player to be compared to.
Yeah comparing anyone to Theismann is a stretch, he truly had it all. Book has moxie like Clements did, but I see a stronger more consistent accuracy in him. Both were good runners who could make a play with their feet too. I did not mean to be quite as harsh on Clements as I sounded. Another thing I did not see Clements on TV if not in person, as much as I see Book.
Not saying Book isn't, he's been terrific to date...but Clements had that swagger about him when he trotted out with game on line..In '74, after the title season, Clements had to pull out many a game,as the Irish had many tight scrapes...and the two wins over Bama in the bowls by 1 and 2 points are forever in Irish lore
As you said , he had a little luck too...that ball to Casper leading to winning FG against Bama hung there a long time...and I think the pass to Weber, Clements himself said he thought a pick was coming..I loved the competitive spirit of Clements..
handling. Like I said he could not make it in the NFL but did have a very good Canadian career.
We got one, a good one. They've got a bad OL. That's all you need to know.
Avoid catastrophic big plays and ND Nation can pop the champagne early in the 4th quarter.
..multiple losses coming into the game vs. teams that were say 11-0 or 10-1?
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the talent was in our favor. We are better, our defensive line will make mince meat of their QB. They may make a few big plays but our offense will be far more consistent.
Ill take 9-1-1..
The year of the loss. ND's record and its ranking going into the USC game.
1964 9-0 #1
1970 9-0 #4
1972 8-1 #10
1974 9-1 #5
1976 8-2 #13
1978 8-2 #8
1980 9-0-1 #2
1982 6-3-1 NR
1996 8-2 #13
1998 9-1 #9
2002 10-1 #7
2004 6-4 NR
2006 10-1 #6
2008 6-5 NR
2014 7-4 NR
2016 4-7 NR
The 2006 team was overrated at #6 and got pounded by a #3 USC team that was obviously better. ND should've had a couple more losses entering that game, but pulled fluke wins over MSU and UCLA out of its butt.
The 2002 team was #7, past its sell-by date and got crushed by a loaded, peaking #6 USC team that was in the midst of a stretch when USC won 45 of 46 games.
The 1998 team lost Jarious to a knee injury at the end of the LSU game the previous week and had to play Eric Chappell and frosh Arnaz Battle at QB.
You have to take the opponent and circumstances into account. 1996 was the only remotely similar ND vs. USC matchup in L.A. over the past 37 years that one could use as a "warning" for this week. You REALLY have to look hard for reason to be afraid this week.
not quite as intimating, but still significant enough that the W shouldn't be taken for granted.
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I'm just not going in with that as my expectation of what will actually happen.
But hey, here's to being pleasantly surprised!!!