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Notre Dame survived a scary day on Saturday and remains an important factor in the playoff hunt.
Here are three takeaways from the 19-15 Irish victory over Pittsburgh at Notre Dame Stadium.
1. Julian Okwara was everywhere.
Okwara caused problems for quarterback Pitt Kenny Pickett. The six-foot-and-a-half-pound defensive end of 241 pounds was seven quarters of a quarter.
He also had a major tackle in the fourth quarter, stopping Darrin Hall for a 3-yard loss on a pass and two-pass game. Okwara made six tackles.
"The game that he did on the third try says more about his match in general," said Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly. "His ability to withdraw from the cover and make such a match on a half-offensive is a very special player.
"It does a lot of things that sometimes do not appear on the statistics sheet, in itself, nationally, but it is a dynamic player."
Okwara was part of the defense that controlled Pitt after his first training. The Panthers had 88 yards on that road, then 154 the rest of the game.
2. The task forces played a vital role for both teams.
Our Lady has made mistakes. An offside penalty as Pitt prepared to lend a hand extended the first possession of the Panthers, and they capitalized with a touchdown. And Pitt's Maurice Ffrench scored 99 yards for the second period kick for a touchdown.
It was not good news for the Panthers. They missed goals of 47 and 36 yards.
And leading late, the Irish were not surprised to sleep when the Panthers tried a wrong road. Acting quarterback Jeff George Jr. kicked an incomplete pass in 2 minutes and 9 seconds.
"We have a team we call" Magic "that is prepared for fake bets and offensive sets," Kelly said. "It's a group that's designed for that, so it's prepared for the fake ones."
3. The Irish had another test.
After three consecutive victories in eliminations, Notre Dame showed that she was able to make a comeback in the fourth quarter.
"We can pull a lot of good things," said Kelly. "We obviously can not play like this week and we feel like winning every game. But you will have some, and you have to develop them, and I like our football team a lot. They will grow from that. "
Recruitment note: Angolan halfback Isaiah Rutherford has committed to Notre Dame on Saturday. According to the 247Sports.com composite standings, the 6-foot, 175-pound Rutherford is No. 22 in the 2019 class. He comes from the Jesuit High School in Carmichael, California, in the suburbs of Sacramento.
"From Bag to South Bend," writes Rutherford on Twitter.
Twitter @lamondpope
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