Erin Go Blah: Irish Faithful Wonder What Went Wrong

From USAToday:

Few can dispute that Notre Dame football has become a national punch line.

The question is how did things get this bad, this quickly.

The Irish, the second-winningest program in major college history and 10-3 last season, are 0-3, having been outscored 102-13. The offense has not scored a touchdown, and the team is last (119th) in total offense, rushing offense and scoring offense. The Irish also lead the nation in sacks allowed per game (7.67).

Notre Dame is averaging 115 yards, 65 yards fewer than No. 118 Florida International. Some point to poor recruiting making the team unable to replace key starters. The team now starts freshman Jimmy Clausen at quarterback. Demetrius Jones, who started the opener, is transferring.

Some fans blame former coach Ty Willingham. Some blame Weis. Others get down to fundamentals.

"The season isn't over by a long shot, but the direct answer is that they lost 15 starters from last year, lost one of the premier quarterbacks in college football in Brady Quinn and they opened up with three difficult teams for new offensive linemen to play against," says Pat Haden, an analyst on NBC for Irish telecasts. "Everybody talks about skill positions, but if your offensive line doesn't play well, none of those guys will get a chance to display their talents."

Jerry Palm, an analyst whose CollegeRPI.com replicates the BCS standings, agrees: "The surprising thing is just a complete inability to block anything. They can't pick up a blitz. They can't block to run the ball. They can't protect their quarterback even when teams don't blitz. It is an unmitigated disaster."

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The only other time the Irish began 0-3 was 2001, Bob Davie's final season. They've never been 0-4.

Still, it is not surprising given the schedule and the holes they had to fill that the Irish opened winless. What is shocking to the observers and supporters in perhaps the nation's largest fan base is that the Irish have not been competitive.

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With upcoming games against Michigan State, Purdue, UCLA, Boston College and USC, it is possible Notre Dame will be 0-8 before it plays Navy, a team the Irish have defeated 43 consecutive times.

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