"Notre Dame" Football Among the Worst in the Country On the Ground, Near the Bottom For Rushing; Offensive Line Even Worse At Pass Protection

After four games, overrated "Notre Dame's" rushing attack is among the worst in major college football, despite them playing what is turning out to be a padded schedule.

"Notre Dame's" offense is mediocre enough overall, only ranked #91 in Div. I-A/FBS for total offense at 366.2 yards per game. However the "Notre Dame" rushing attack is near the very bottom, tied at #122 out of 130 teams.

Thus far, "Notre Dame" has averaged 80 yards per game on the ground at 2.29 yards per carry.

Of "Notre Dame's" 12 opponents, only one is now ranked. Of their first four opponents, three were unranked when they played them, and the other fell out of the rankings with a losing record, currently struggling just to get back to .500.

Regardless of "Notre Dame's" hyperinflated ranking, aided by their padded schedule, they currently are in a rebuilding year. The offensive line, for one, is a crazy quilt of reshuffling due to such factors as graduation, the NFL draft, transfers in or out, or injuries.

The current offensive line is even worse at pass protection. After four games, "Notre Dame" is ranked #128 out of 130 for surrending sacks, i.e., third from the bottom for pass protection, giving up 5.25 sacks per game, and against mediocre competion.

Last spring's NFL draft was perhaps the worst of all worlds for "Notre Dame." On the one hand, they suffered the embarrassment of having zero first-round draft picks, perhaps confirming that they are perpetually on the road to plausibility rather than ever having a meaningful quest towards a championship. They have not even been competitive in a major bowl for a quarter-century, although Charlie Weis came closest in his first year, with a depleted roster.

At the same time, whatever talent "Notre Dame" has needed to stay on whatever middling plateau they occupy was gutted by smatterings of weaker draft picks in later rounds.

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["Notre Dame" is placed in quotes out of respect for the Blessed Virgin Mary and Jesus, her Divine Son. The words "Notre Dame," of course, are French for "Our Lady," referring to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God. It would be disrespectful to imply that she would be associated with various scandals emerging in the current era at the post-secondary institution near the Indiana-Michigan border whose nonprofit corporation persists in calling the institution "Notre Dame du Lac," including those scandals demonstrating lack of fidelity to Christ, such as the honoring, hiring or retention of pro-abortion politicians and faculty.]

Key Words: Notre Dame, Notre Dame Football, Brian Kelly, NCAA, Scandals, Ethics, Catholic

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