End of the Game - That will do it for me. Thank you for joining us here at VAVEL USA. Thanks again and take care.
End of the Game - Here are the final stats for the game:
End of the Game - That is it for this game. Notre Dame deserved to win this game. Their offense was more threatening overall, but this went as expected. Strong defense and lots of big hits.
GAME OVER - Due to the penalty, the 10 second run off is enforced, which ends this game.
4th Quarter (0:06 left) - Hogan is foced to get rid of the ball under heavy pressure. It appears he will be called for intentional grounding.
4th Quarter (0:11 left) - Stanford calls their final timeout.
4th Quarter (0:11 left) - Hogan hits Wright for a 14 yard gain to the 49 yard line of the Irish.
4th Quarter (0:28 left) - Hogan hits Pratt for a first down.
4th Quarter (0:47 left) - Hogan hits Cajuste for an 8 yard gain, but he stays in bounds after the tackle.
4th Quarter (0:54 left) - Hogans goes deep for Rector, who had a step, but it was bit too long.
4th Quarter (1:01 left) - The ball sails out of the end zone.
4th Quarter (1:01 left) - The Irish lead 17-14 after the extra point. One last chance for the Cardinal.
4th Quarter (1:01 left) - TOUCHDOWN IRISH!!!! Golson hits Koyack in the back of the end zone. Great job by him to keep his feet in bounds and strong hands.
4th Quarter (1:09 left) - Golson tried to run up the middle on the draw, but runs into his own man and the Irish now face a 4th and 11.
4th Quarter (1:14 left) - Golson throws the ball away and it will be 3rd and 7 at the Stanford 19.
4th Quarter (1:43 left) - Golson hits Robinson for a 3 yard gain.
4th Quarter (1:50 left) - Golson looks for Fuller but is interfered with on a near TD for the Irish. Should have been a TD for the Irish there.
4th Quarter (2:18 left) - Golson hits Robinson this time to the Stanford 36 yard line. Big play by the Irish there.
4th Quarter (2:26 left) - Golson overshoots Robinson who was wide open. Irish facing crunch time right now on 3rd and 10.
4th Quarter (2:30 left) - Golson throws a bit behind Carlisle, but he should have caught that.
4th Quarter (2:48 left) - Golson hits Fuller for a 12 yard gain.
4th Quarter (2:55 left) - Golson tries to throw to Robinson, but he is hit and it falls incomplete.
4th Quarter (3:01 left) - The kickoff by Stanford goes out of bounds and the Irish will start at their own 35.
4th Quarter (3:01 left) - Stanford now leads 14-10 and Notre Dame needs a TD to win.
4th Quarter (3:01 left) - TOUCHDOWN STANFORD!!! Wright goes up the middle for the 11 yard run.
4th Quarter (3:04 left) - Stanford calls their second time out as the play clock was running out.
4th Quarter (3:30 left) - Montgomery gets the pitch and the Irish are there to stop him for no gain. Good defense by the Irish there.
4th Quarter (4:16 left) - Hogan is stopped for a 1 yard loss on first and goal. Looks like Stanford wanted to try a shovel pass.
4th Quarter (4:47 left) - Hogan hits Cajuste on the high deep pass for 22 yards. Perfectly placed ball.
4th Quarter (4:53 left) - The Irish bring the house, but Hogan gets out of the sack and somehow is not taken down for a loss. 3rd and 8 for the Cardinal.
4th Quarter (5:48 left) - Young picks up 2 yards on the first down run.
4th Quarter (6:05 left) - Hogan hits Rector on the 5 yard slant to get the first down.
4th Quarter (6:40 left) - Young picks up 6 yards on the carry to get to the ND 40 yard line.
4th Quarter (7:18 left) - Hogan throws the ball to Cajuste and it barely gets to him. It is a 12 yard pickup that showed off Hogan's strong arm.
4th Quarter (7:25 left) - Montgomery gets his first chance at a return and he takes it out to the 42 yard line. That is what makes him so dangerous.
4th Quarter (7:32 left) - There is still 7:32 left, but that could be the difference. Stanford has struggled to move the ball this game.
4th Quarter (7:32 left) - IT IS GOOD!!! Smith gets the hold and Brindza knocks through the 45 yard field goal.
4th Quarter (8:13 left) - Golson tries to run for the first down but is stopped 2 yards short. Another FG attempt for ND.
4th Quarter (8:55 left) - McDaniel gets one yard on the carry up the middle. Another 3rd and long in this game for the Irish.
4th Quarter (9:00 left) - Golson had all day to throw, but excellent coverage forces him to throw the ball away.
4th Quarter (9:27 left) - Golson hits Robinson for 15 yards and Stanford is called for a facemask. That puts the Irish at the 35 yard line.
4th Quarter (10:06 left) - Bryant tries to go to the sideline, but loses 2 yards.
4th Quarter (10:22 left) - Wow!! The play stands for ND and this author is baffled at the call.
4th Quarter (10:22 left) - Golson throws to Robinson again and the ball appeared to hit the ground, but the officials gave it to him. Replay coming up.
4th Quarter (10:28 left) - Golson looks for Robinson who should have caught the ball. Right off his hands... More dropped passes today.
4th Quarter (11:01 left) - McDaniel gets away from the scrum and picks up 4 yards on first down.
4th Quarter (11:11 left) - Riggs bobbles the punt but is able to get his hands on it and prevent a disaster for the Irish.
4th Quarter (11:19 left) - Hogan's pass to Cajuste is over his head and Notre Dame survives the bad FG attempt.
4th Quarter (11:59 left) - The second down carry goes for a 2 yard loss by Montgomery.
4th Quarter (12:05 left) - Hogan's pass to Montgomery falls incomplete.
4th Quarter (12:08 left) - It was said earlier that even the short kicks were not a gimme and that came true. Big missed chance by the Irish.
4th Quarter (12:08 left) - BLOCKED!!! Once again, Smith has trouble handling the snap and it is blocked. Stanford returned the ball all the way to the 44 yard line and will have a chance to take the lead.
4th Quarter (12:50 left) - Fuller tries to make a move to get the first down, but is stopped 3 yards short. FG attempt for ND.
4th Quarter (13:37 left) - Stanford brings the blitz and Golson gets the ball out wide for a 2 yard loss.
4th Quarter (14:21 left) - McDaniel gets 2 yards on the carry.
4th Quarter (14:36 left) - Golson hits Hunter on the catch for a 12 yard gain. Lyons had great coverage, but was called for the PI. Notre Dame is at the 17 yard line.
4th Quarter (14:41 left) - Golson throws across his body and over his receiver. 3rd and 10 just like that for the Irish.
4th Quarter (14:47 left) - Golson went for Fuller in the end zone, but the ball is knocked away at the last second by the safety.
4th Quarter (14:53 left) - The refs confirm the call and ND is now in great position to score at the Stanford 29 yard line.
4th Quarter (14:53 left) - The ball may have hit the ground. It is hard to tell if the ball hit the ground.
4th Quarter (14:53 left) - INTERCEPTION!!!! Hogan throws the pick to Cole Luke who may have gotten there a tad early.
End of the 3rd Quarter - Here are the stats after 45 minutes:
3rd Quarter (0:13 left) - Montgomery gets the short pass and picks up 4 yards to run out the clock on the 3rd quarter. Montgomery leaped over an Irish defender, but he was corraled soon after that.
3rd Quarter (0:41 left) - It is a 1 yard loss for Young.
3rd Quarter (0:52 left) - It feels as if Notre Dame is more likely to score, though that is entirely due to the better field position. Stanford needs a drive that will flip the field in their favor right now.
3rd Quarter (0:52 left) - Montgomery calls for a fair catch at his own 15 yard line.
3rd Quarter (1:01 left) - Golson under heavy pressure and throws it away. ND will punt yet again in this field position battle.
3rd Quarter (1:40 left) - McDaniel is stopped for no gain and it is now 3rd and very long for the Irish.
3rd Quarter (2:19 left) - Golson keeps on the option read but loses 2 yards on the play.
3rd Quarter (2:42 left) - Golson hits Fuller on the hitch route. Lots of cushion by the DB on that one. Better throw by Golson as well.
3rd Quarter (3:19 left) - McDaniel picks up only 2 yards on the carry.
3rd Quarter (3:46 left) - McDaniel picks up 7 yards and they are at the Stanford 45 yard line.
3rd Quarter (4:24 left) - Carlisle gets the pass from Golson and icks up 8 yards.
3rd Quarter (4:30 left) - This game will come down to the kickers. In these conditions, that is not automatic even from short distances. We are in for an exciting final 19:30 of this game.
3rd Quarter (4:30 left) - Notre Dame will start at their own 40 after the punt.
3rd Quarter (4:41 left) - Hogan goes for Montgomery again and Luke was close to picking it off. The ball was too low for Montgomery and Stanford will punt.
3rd Quarter (5:12 left) - Seale gets two yards on the carry. 3rd and medium for Stanford.
3rd Quarter (5:59 left) - Sanders picks up 2 yards on first down.
3rd Quarter (6:05 left) - Notre Dame punts away again and it is kept away from Montgomery.
3rd Quarter (6:49 left) - McDaniel is stopped in the back field on the read option for a one yard loss.
3rd Quarter (7:15 left) - McDaniel lunges forward for 5 yards. 3rd and 5 up next for the Irish.
3rd Quarter (7:20 left) - Golson's throw is too high and it falls incomplete.
3rd Quarter (7:38 left) - McDaniel picks up 14 and Notre Dame is into Stanford territory.
3rd Quarter (8:09 left) - McDaniel picks up 2 yards on the carry.
3rd Quarter (8:20 left) - BLOCKED PUNT!!! Tranquill blocked the punt, but the punt still went 24 yards for the Cardinal.
3rd Quarter (8:32 left) - Hogan goes for Montgomery again, this time on the WR screen, but Butler was all over him. ND will get the ball back after a Cardinal punt.
3rd Quarter (8:35 left) - Hogan goes for Montgomery, but he drops the ball. 3rd and 17 coming up next for the Cardinal.
3rd Quarter (9:20 left) - Trombetti gets the sack on Hogan for a loss of 8. Hogan needed to get rid of that ball.
3rd Quarter (9:55 left) - Hogan throws the ball to Trojan for an 8 yard gain on the sideline. It results in another first down.
3rd Quarter (10:35 left) - Montgomery limps off the field after a 5 yard gain.
3rd Quarter (11:15 left) - Young gets no gain.
3rd Quarter (11:56 left) - Young picks up 5 yards and a first down for the Cardinal.
3rd Quarter (12:29 left) - Hogan hits Cajuste for a 9 yard gain on the first down play.
3rd Quarter (12:35 left) - ND punts the ball into the end zone.
3rd Quarter (12:42 left) - Golson goes for Brown but it goes through his arms and ND will punt.
3rd Quarter (13:10 left) - Bryant picks up another yard on second down.
3rd Quarter (13:45 left) - Bryant gets 4 yards on the carry.
3rd Quarter (14:25 left) - Golson hits Carlisle for a 26 yard gain.
3rd Quarter (14:54 left) - Folston picks up 2 yards on the first play of the second half.
3rd Quarter (15:00 left) - The ball is kicked out of the end zone.
End of the First Half - This game is going as expected with stingy defenses and a low scoring affair. If not for Golson's two turnovers, Notre Dame could be up 10 or 14 points.
End of the First Half - Here are the stats at halftime
End of the First Half - That is how the first half ends. Stanford and Notre Dame are tied at 7 after 30 minutes. Notre Dame will start with the ball in the third quarter.
2nd Quarter (0:39 left) - Wright gets 3 yards and it will be 3rd and 16.
2nd Quarter (1:02 left) - Hogan is sacked by Smith on the overload blitz.
2nd Quarter (1:07 left) - Montgomery calls for the fair catch at his 35.
2nd Quarter (1:13 left) - Torii Hunter Jr picked up 13 yards on the WR screen, but ND will be punting the ball away to Stanford.
2nd Quarter (1:17 left) - McDaniel gets one yard and Stanford calls their first TO of the half.
2nd Quarter (1:46 left) - Golson picks up 7 yards on the draw.
2nd Quarter (2:18 left) - Prosise gets the ball on the end around but ND is flagged for holding. Prosise only got a yard on the run.
2nd Quarter (2:23 left) - Riggs calls a fair catch at his own 22 yard line.
2nd Quarter (2:26 left) - Notre Dame calls a timeout, their second of the half.
2nd Quarter (2:47 left) - Hogan goes to Wright on the dump off but he only gets 7 and Stanford will punt.
2nd Quarter (2:53 left) - Hogan goes to Hooper, who cannot get the ball. 3rd and 10 for Stanford next.
2nd Quarter (2:56 left) - Hogan goes down the middle and it was into heavy traffic. He is lucky that ball was not picked.
2nd Quarter (3:01 left) - Ward gets the shallow kick and Stanford will start at their own 30 yard line.
2nd Quarter (3:06 left) - TOUCHDOWN NOTRE DAME!!! Golson hits Brown on a little underneath pattern and Brown runs in for the score untouched. 7-7 late in the second quarter.
2nd Quarter (3:12 left) - Golson's ball is low again, this time to Fuller.
2nd Quarter (3:41 left) - Golson keeps the ball and picks up 35 yards with his feet! Great call by Kelly with a wide open lane for Golson.
2nd Quarter (3:49 left) - Golson's pass is knocked down at the line and ND is faced with yet another third and long.
2nd Quarter (3:56 left) - Golson's pass to Brown is too low.
2nd Quarter (4:15 left) - The replays being shown are inconclusive as to when the ball came loose.
2nd Quarter (4:15 left) - Folston pushes the pile for 7 yards and the ball came loose, but he is ruled down.
2nd Quarter (4:21 left) - Golson throws the ball in the direction of Hunter, but Stanford is called for offsides.
2nd Quarter (4:26 left) - A bad snap on the field goal does not even allow an attempt. Jordan Williamson falls on the ball and Notre Dame will taker over at their own 38 yard line.
2nd Quarter (4:29 left) - Hogan goes for Cajuste but the ball is tipped and Stanford will try a field goal from 42 yards out.
2nd Quarter (4:34 left) - The ball goes right through Montgomery's hands.
2nd Quarter (5:14 left) - Young gets leveled after 3 yards.
2nd Quarter (5:45 left) - McCaffrey gets open on the wheel route. Hogan finds him and he picks up 18 yards.
2nd Quarter (6:26 left) - Wright gets only 1 yard on the carry.
2nd Quarter (7:03 left) - Montgomery gets the pitch and picks up 5 yards.
2nd Quarter (7:30 left) - Hogan hits Trojan for a 3 yards and a first down again. Nice catch on the sideline by Trojan.
2nd Quarter (8:13 left) - Sanders picks up 8 yards on the first down carry and the Stanford line is having their way with the ND defensive front.
2nd Quarter (8:47 left) - Hogan picks up 10 yards on the keeper and Stanford has another first down.
2nd Quarter (9:30 left) - Sanders Jr. picks up 2 yards on the first down run.
2nd Quarter (9:36 left) - That kick was awful and wide right. The snap was poor and Notre Dame continues without any points.
2nd Quarter (9:40 left) - Golson throws the ball away and Notre Dame will try a field goal.
2nd Quarter (10:28 left) - Bryant gets 3 yards before getting stacked up.
2nd Quarter (10:34 left) - Golson was going for Carlisle but the ball was too far out in front.
2nd Quarter (10:50 left) - Well, he got the first down and this author needs to get his eyes checked.
2nd Quarter (11:01 left) - Golson hits Koyack for 4 1/2 yards, but he is short by about half a yard it appears.
2nd Quarter (11:39 left) - Bryant picks up 5 yards on the second down carry.
2nd Quarter (11:46 left) - Golson hits Brown in the hands, but Brown drops it. No excuse there.
2nd Quarter (11:49 left) - Riggs takes the punt back about 10 yards before running into his own man. ND has a great chance for points here... If Golson does not turn it over again.
2nd Quarter (11:59 left) - Hogan goes for Montgomery, but Riggs is all over him and Stanford will punt from their own end zone.
2nd Quarter (12:43 left) - Wright gets two more yards and Stanford faces another third and long.
2nd Quarter (13:22 left) - Wright picks up one yard on the carry.
2nd Quarter (13:28 left) - Notre Dame is shooting themselves in the foot right now.
2nd Quarter (13:28 left) - INTERCEPTION!!!! Richards picks the ball off at his own 2 yard line. Poor throw by Golson across his body.
2nd Quarter (14:12 left) - Folston picks up 5 yards.
2nd Quarter (14:19 left) - Golson throws the ball away on first down.
2nd Quarter (14:54 left) - Prosise gets a big gain of 26 and then Stanford is called for a late hit.
End of the 1st quarter - Here are the stats from the first quarter:
End of the 1st quarter - Golson hits Brown for a pass play of 21 yards to end the first quarter.
1st Quarter (0:16 left) - Riggs calls the fair catch at his own 31 for ND.
1st Quarter (0:22 left) - Hogan goes for Cajuste, but it is just out of his reach. Stanford will punt.
1st Quarter (0:45 left) - Young gets 3 yard on the carry.
1st Quarter (1:08 left) - Hogan hits Trojan for a 2 yard gain.
1st Quarter (1:43 left) - ND punts and Stanford lets the ball go. They will start at their own 28 yard line.
1st Quarter (2:33 left) - McDaniel nearly gets the first down, but he is about half a yard short.
1st Quarter (3:00 left) - Bryant picks up 2 yard on second down.
1st Quarter (3:43 left) - Golson hits Folston for a 6 yard gain.
1st Quarter (3:50 left) - Carlisle takes a knee in the end zone on the kickoff.
1st Quarter (3:50 left) - TOUCHDOWN STANFORD!!! The Cardinal get a rare red zone touchdown on the option keeper to waltz into the end zone. Stanford takes a 7-0 lead.
1st Quarter (4:27 left) - Montgomery only gets 2 yards on the first down catch. 2nd and 8 coming up.
1st Quarter (4:34 left) - FUMBLE!!! Golson keeps the ball, but is hit and loses the ball. Stanford recovers at the Irish 12 yard line.
1st Quarter (4:41 left) - INTERCEPTION!!! Hogan floats the ball down the sideline and it is intercepted by Lucas. Hogan was going for Montgomery, but he was blanketed. Poor decision by Hogan.
1st Quarter (5:03 left) - Hogan escapes a sack, but only gets one yard. 3rd and long up next for Stanford.
1st Quarter (5:11 left) - Hogan goes deep, but the ball was underthrown and it was nearly picked by ND, but it fell incomplete.
1st Quarter (5:40 left) - Hogan dumps the ball of for Skov on the screen and he gets 17 yards and another first down for Stanford.
1st Quarter (6:09 left) - Stanford is called for a false start, their 3rd of the game.
1st Quarter (6:32 left) - Montgomery goes in the wildcat and picks up 6 yards and another first down.
1st Quarter (7:09 left) - Montgomery gets the ball and runs for 5 yards.
1st Quarter (7:33 left) - Hogan hits Cajuste for a 17 yard gain to move the chains.
1st Quarter (7:40 left) - The punt goes back for a touchback.
1st Quarter (8:19 left) - Golson gets sacked by Anderson and loses 7 yards. Irish punt coming up.
1st Quarter (9:02 left) - Brown gets to the Stanford 45 for a gain of 7. 3rd and 3 coming up for the Irish.
1st Quarter (9:33 left) - McDaniel is stuffed for no gain.
1st Quarter (9:50 left) - Golson hits Prosise for a gain of 18 to the 48 yard line.
1st Quarter (9:58 left) - Riggs calls for the fair catch.
1st Quarter (10:31 left) - Wright picks up 4 yards and Stanford will punt away.
1st Quarter (10:38 left) - Stanford is called for another false start.
1st Quarter (10:38 left) - Hooper is called for the false start.
1st Quarter (10:38 left) - Hogan went deep to Rector but the ball is nowhere close.
1st Quarter (11:14 left) - Stanford uses the delayed handoff, but Young only picks up 2 yards.
1st Quarter (11:20 left) - Golson tried to hit Fuller on the slant but it is a bit high and they turn it over on downs.
1st Quarter (11:23 left) - Notre Dame will think this 4th and 7 over with their first timeout.
1st Quarter (11:23 left) - Golson is forced to throw the ball away and he was overrun by blitzers. Notre Dame to go for it apparently.
1st Quarter (11:52 left) - McDaniel gets the ball and runs for 3 yards on the edge.
1st Quarter (11:58 left) - Golson throws the ball away and it will bring up 2nd and 10.
1st Quarter (12:29 left) - Brown gets the pass on an out route for 16 yards and first down.
1st Quarter (13:07 left) - McDaniel gets the hand off and picks up 3 yards.
1st Quarter (13:12 left) - Golson passes to Fuller, but he is out of bounds.
1st Quarter (13:17 left) - Riggs takes the return, is hit, and then fumbled, but he gets back on the ball. Stanford is called for an illegal formation. Notre Dame will start at their own 39 yard line.
1st Quarter (13:27 left) - Hogan's pass to Rector is well behind him and Stanford is going to punt.
1st Quarter (14:18 left) - Montgomery gets the pass out wide, but is taken down right away for only 1 yard.
1st Quarter (14:54 left) - Wright picks up two yards on the first play of the game.
1st Quarter (15:00 left) - A touchback will have Stanford start at the 25.
3:30 PM EST - Just about to get underway here in South Bend. This should be a low scoring, defensive affair. Stanford is sitting as the 2.5 point favorite with the over/under at 46 points.
3:25 PM EST - The weather is nasty, but some would call it GREAT football weather. It is 40 degrees and rainy in South Bend with the rain expected to end at some point during the game. It will interesting to see how the boys from Nor Cal handle this early on.
3:20 PM EST - Austin Hooper has 15 catches for 189 yards and a touchdown while Devon Cajuste has caught 11 passes for 155 yards and 3 touchdowns.
3:15 PM EST - Montgomery is also a big part of the return game for the Cardinal. He has returned 6 punts for 131 yards and a touchdown this year. He also has 5 kick returns for 149 yards and can easily flip the field in Stanford's favor with one return.
3:11 PM EST - Speaking of Ty Montgomery, he is the top receiver with 26 catches for 275 yards and 3 touchdowns. He is also used in several different ways when running the ball. He can run sweeps, be the quarterback, or line up as the tailback. He has 9 rushes for 62 yards and a touchdown.
3:08 PM EST - It is interesting to note that no true running back has a rushing touchdown, which is one down part of the offense. Hogan has two rushing touchdowns, Ty Montgomery has one, and fullback Patrick Skov has one.
3:05 PM EST - One area that has been a bit down for Stanford is at tailback. Barry Sanders Jr. has 21 carries for 153 yards, but he usually comes in to relieve Remound Wright and Kelsey Young. Wright has 29 carries for 151 yards while Young has 144 yards on 26 carries.
3:00 PM EST - For Stanford, Kevin Hogan is the signal caller. He has been very good this year throwing, just like his counterpart Golson. He has gone 71 of 100 for 883 yards with 8 touchdown and 2 interceptions.
2:57 PM EST - William Fuller is the top target for Golson. He has caught 25 passes for 344 yards and 5 touchdowns. Corey Robinson has 13 catches for 190 yards and 2 touchdowns. C.J. Prosise has caught 9 passes for 142 yards and a touchdown. More good news for the Irish is that Amir Carlisle is probable for this game. He has 11 catches for 117 yards and 2 touchdowns.
2:54 PM EST- Notre Dame will need to get the ground game going or Stanford will have no trouble forcing the Irish into 3rd and long situations.
2:49 PM EST - Notre Dame uses a running back by committee. Greg Bryant is the leading rusher with 174 yards and a touchdown on 33 attempts. Tarean Folston has 151 yards on 39 attempts while Cam McDaniel has 33 rushes for 130 yards and a touchdown.
2:46 PM EST - Notre Dame will be led by Everett Golson. He has gone 94 of 135 on his pass attempts with an outstanding completion percentage of 69.6. He has thrown for 1,142 yards with 11 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions. Golson can also use his feet with 104 yards rushing and 4 touchdowns on 39 attempts.
2:41 PM EST - Back to Saturday's matchup. Stanford has only allowed 6.5 points per game, which is the best in the nation. Notre Dame has allowed only 11.5 points per game, which is ranked as 4th best in the country. This is exactly why most feel this game will be a defensive battle.
2:38 PM EST - Notre Dame won 7 straight games between 2002 and 2008 when Stanford's football team was not very good.
2:35 PM EST - These two teams have met on the gridiron 28 times. Notre Dame leads the all-time series 18-10, but Stanford has won 4 of the last 5 games.
2:31 PM EST - If Stanford's offense performs like that against Notre Dame, they will be falling to 3-2. They must capitalize on their trips, even if it is only field goals. They at least need SOME points when they get into the final 20 yards.
2:28 PM EST - Those failures in the red zone were on display against USC in the second game of the season. This writer covered that game as well and this stat led to the Cardinal loss: "The red zone offense was particularly troublesome for Stanford. Only 10 points in a game where they were inside the 25 yard line on 8 separate drives. That is horrendous."
2:23 PM EST - Stanford has been particularly putrid in the red zone. They are 12 of 19 on their red zone attempts (63%) and have only scored a touchdown 8 times (42%). The defense can only hold up their end of the bargain so long before the offense needs to step up.
2:18 PM EST - Stanford enters this game coming off a tough win on the road against Washington last Saturday. Stanford won 20-13, but the offense has struggled this year.
2:13 PM EST - Those 4 teams are a combined 7-12 entering Saturday's games. The signature win would probably be the Michigan game in which the defense created 4 turnovers.
2:09 PM EST - A lot of people have harped on the schedule that Notre Dame has played. The Irish beat Rice 48-17, Michigan 31-0, Purdue 30-14, and Syracuse 31-15.
2:04 PM EST - This game is a dandy between the 3-1 Cardinal and 4-0 Irish. Many expect this game to a defensive battle, including this writer.
2:00 PM EST - Matthew Dixon here and welcome to VAVEL USA's LIVE coverage of Saturday's game between the Stanford Cardinal and Notre Dame Fighting Irish!