ND has somehow become the team that magically snatches Defeat from the Jaws of Victory. The list of improbable losses with the game seemingly within our grasp is long and terrible. The fact that any one of those losses happened is mind-boggling. The fact that this long list of maddening losses ALL HAPPENED is certifiably insane. THE ODDS ARE SERIOUSLY SO SLIM THAT I DON’T KNOW HOW TO COMPREHEND IT. If these hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t believe it possible, at all.
2000 vs Michigan State – ND has this game all but wrapped up, but MSU steals it with a huge pass play in the closing minutes. Closing out games with the lead becomes something ND fans fear. And for good reason.
2004 vs Boston College – ND has a lead similar to this past weekend, up 20-7 and looking dominant. Slowly but surely BC creeps back into the game, and steals the W with seconds left on the clock. Feels familiar.
2005 vs MSU – The team that ND has been owned by most in the past decade and a half or so (ND is only 4 of 14) takes the game in overtime, their fans and players storm the field and knock over band members, and they plant the flag at midfield. When does ND get to win in OT?
2005 vs USC – The Bush Push. ND has USC pinned on 4th and long deep in their own territory. Defensive coverage play is solid, as is execution. But SOMEHOW Leinart sneaks a ball through a 1 inch space, and USC is off to the races. Fumble on the 1, yadda yadda yadda, Bush Push with time expiring, we lose. These terribly painful losses have to stop pretty soon, right?
2007 – The entire season hurts. Nothing is good.
2008 vs Pitt – We tanked in ’07 to lose to Navy for the first time IN FOREVER (remember when that was the case?) in triple overtime. We lose another Triple OT game to Pitt, in a game that we could have won 5-6 times. Burns.
2008 vs Syracuse – The game that really ended Weis’ time at ND. Senior Night. ND has a 13 point lead and appears to be walking away with this one. But no, miraculous comeback by a horrible 2-8 team with a lame duck Coach. We lose the game with a Cuse TD with only 42 seconds left on the clock.
2009 vs Michigan – The first in a 3-part series that is the same game played over and over and over, except that each loss is more inexplicable than the previous. In 2009, it was actually a pretty even game, and the refs literally made that happen. Despite the blatant cheating, ND has UM on the ropes and the skunkbears have to go the length of the field with almost no time left. THE FORCE happens, we get juked with our jocks on the grass, and UM is in the end zone celebrating a few moments later with just a few seconds remaining on the clock.
2009 vs USC – ND fights back after being down and drives the length of the field with just seconds remaining. Weis dials up 3 shots and the last one is batted down out of Rudolph’s capable hands as time runs out on the Irish.
2009 vs UCONN – Double OT loss to a team that shouldn’t have been able to touch ND. Felt a lot like Syracuse.
2010 vs Michigan – Back and forth game where ND is dominating with Crist in the game, horrible without him. Crist and Rudolph ‘end it’ with a crushing TD blow with just over a minute remaining in the game. All we have to do is stop the Denard Show one more time. The Shoelaceless One scores the winning TD with 27 seconds left. The Forcier/Robinson connection own ND in the final minutes. This will continue.
2010 vs MSU – ND has this game. MSU is lucky to be in it, and they’re stuck with a really long FG attempt to tie it up in OT. ND defenders inexplicably slip at the line of scrimmage and all come tumbling down, as MSU’s fake goes for a TD and the win. This makes no sense.
2011 vs USF – ND comes out on fire and moves the ball at will. Turns it over for a 99 yard TD for USF. ND moves the ball at will, turns the ball over. ND moves the ball at will…you know how this goes. We double USF in yards, but are horrible on TOs and STs, and lose.
2011 vs Michigan – You already know this one too. But it’s remarkable how UM is 3-0 vs ND out of the last 3, all 3 games were down to the final seconds, and ND has come out on the short end all 3 times. In the long run, these should end up 50/50…
Which brings me to my point:
AT SOME POINT THIS ALL HAS TO FREAKING EVEN OUT DOESN’T IT?!?!?!?!? THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A CURSE. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS INSTITUTIONAL LUCK OR WHATEVER YOU WANT TO CALL IT. AT SOME POINT, THE TEAM STARTS WINNING THESE GAMES. WHY??????
BECAUSE THERE IS NO WAY THIS CAN GO ON FOREVER. IT’S LITERALLY UNPOSSIBLE. YOU CANNOT FLIP A COIN AND GET A THOUSAND HEADS IN A ROW. YOU JUST CAN’T, THE WORLD DOES NOT WORK THIS WAY!!!!!!
Sure, we’ve had a few miracle wins in these years. Like: All of Ty’s Wins because he never figured out an offense. Like the dramatic comeback against MSU away (the Johnelle Slap game), when we were down by a million and somehow pulled it out. Like the great finish against UCLA at home where Quinn to Shark became ingrained in our brains forever. Like last season’s final play victory against USC. We’ve gotten a few, but man the SCALES ARE CERTAINLY TIPPED OVER THE LAST DECADE.
And it’s time that we TIP THOSE EFFERS BACK. This is not karma. This is not luck. This is not fate. This is not predetermined and it’s not the case that it HAS to keep happening. It will stop happening when the players and coaches stop LETTING IT HAPPEN. Winning is a choice in these close, dramatic, insane games. You have to choose to win, and then make that happen. Just as losing is a choice. Of course if you choose to win you won’t win every time, but the scales will tip back in your favor. It’s time for ND to MAKE THAT CHOICE.
Choose to win. Until we do, this feeling is going to continue.
I am on a flight to Asia. I will be as far away from ND Football as possible on Saturday. I hope I like the view from there better.
HT: IRISH96
- (Re)Introducing: DANCING LEPRECHAUNS - August 29, 2019
- Ticket Auction: ND vs USC - August 22, 2019
- No Respect! - December 14, 2018
tjak
Last Saturday night was surreal. I had a bit to drink!!! and the wife and kids were at Grandma’s house. My wife figured if the Irish lost I would be useless to the family. It was a good thing that they were not home as my fist had a conversation with one of the doors in the house.
Please do not judge me as I think many of us care a little too much about Notre Dame. I have taken two things from this past weekend. First, I need to get a life and temper my enthusiasm for all things Irish; not stop caring, but trying not to take these things so seriously.
Second, I recant my jaded, bitter, pessimistic, negative feelings of Saturday night. If you are a fan then you must be one through thick and thin. This team does not want to lose, they want to win and yes the scales must tip back again and when they do I want to be able to say that I was always there supporting this team. That I did not leave for a while and only started cheering for them again when they started winning.
Even though I never attended the school, Notre Dame has been a huge part of me and my family’s life; I am sorry for my comments of last Saturday night. If I could I would apologize to the team. Fighting Irish through thick and thin, always…..the scales will balance out. Go Irish!! Beat MSU!!!
daybreakboys
In my humble opinion, Notre Dame fans who never attended the school are in general more dedicated fans. Why? Because many (if not most) Notre Dame students only became fans once they attended the school, while many, including myself, were fans from the time we could walk.
Welcome back.
genobrown
tjak, I can’t agree with your comments more. My wife and I were at a wedding and I checked the score the entire time I was there. When I saw we were up in the 4th and were doing good on Defense I figured it was in the bag and put my phone away…On the drive home I noticed my phone was blowing up with texts and missed phone calls-then a terrible feeling of dread came over me. I taped the game and was looking forward to watching it all night and when I found out what the score was I was angry and frustrated. Like you, being a fan and not an alum I just have to say to myself, there’s always next season. The winds of change will favor us and the scales of justice will smile on us and our golden domes!
Erik '04
Welcome back, tjak!
tjak
Thanks Erik.
kyndfan
Never a good idea to text, call, blog, or any other sort of potential mass communication while under the influence.
tjak
Yeah a good reminder to the thousands that did so Saturday night.
DeepTeaKup
The thing that always gets me with ND fans is that this attitude that they are “better” than teams they lose to. Looking at this thread, it would almost appear as though you are blaming bad luck for ND not being a perennial BCS team. Fact is, it is not luck, it is not karma, for the past decade or so ND has been at times horrible, at times above average, at times well above average but all in all an average team. Average teams lose a lot of games. Why were you “better” than UConn in 09 or UM in 2010? Based on what evidence?
Like you said, for just about moment of karmic injustice, you cite an example of ND playing like the heroes you think they are. BTW, you forgot about the BS safety call or phantom fumble TD you got against UM in 2002 and or the refs somehow not seeing Henne cross the goal line once but twice in 2005. It’s evened out, it’s time just own up to the fact that you are what your record says you are.
tjak
Not at all. Most of us are just like you and want our team to be the best it can be. It has been a frustrating time since our last National Championship. Wolverine fans must have felt this same angst when they went through 49 years without a National title.
Whatever your opinion of Irish Football is nothing takes a way from the fact that we were up 24-7 and through our own mistakes let you guys back in. Our mistakes cost us the first two games we had no business losing; that is a fact.
Thanks for coming out and I wait for your insights before next years game.
canuck75
To the victor go the spoils etc. You have a right to comment, but you are wrong. We have had an inordinate share of these types of losses. I will add two more that really rankle me because in this day and age the refs should not miss an obvious call.
2 years ago against Mich Armando Allan scored a long td-ruled a td on the field and then overturned on review. The evidence was clear that he did not step on the line.
But I am even angrier about last year MSU. Nevermind the phantom block from behind, on the last play-the fake field goal-the play clock had expired. I have watched football closely for 30 yrs and I have never seen it missed.
Biscuit you are right. We are due for many phantom holds and wierd bounces to go our way.
Dave
Nice straw man. The point is that ND has let a lot of games slip away. Yes ND was better than some of these teams (do you really believe that a team cannot lose to a worse team?). ND was also worse than some of these teams (see Bush Push).
kyndfan
So what is your reaction when um dominates a team for 3+ quarters and then has an unbelievable meltdown giving up more points in a few minutes than they did all day.
These teams play ten times this year and ND wins eight. Congrats your boys won. It only took getting stuffed at the goaline, fumbling, only to have the ball bounce right into denards hand so he can walk into the endzone. It also took another 4 turnovers by the Irish. I could go on and on. Enjoy the moment. Now go enjoy big ten teams zeroing in on those wounded ducks denard is throwing up and picking him off 4 times a game. Dangit Gray, we only needed one more pic off of that jump ball that was thrown to ya.
DeepTeaKup
About the TO’s though, you act as if they were all unforced, two were but what about the others? What about the terrible PI call that ND got? What about Gallon not knocking the ball away from Gray? A lot of things happened in this game, not all “flukes”.
For me, bottom line is this. ND is a good 0-2 and UM is an average 2-0, I don’t expect ND’s losing to continue, and as much as I would like to see it, I highly doubt UM goes 13-0 this year.
kyndfan
And without those two unforced to’s, Irish win. That is my point. Enjoy your moment
SDI
You know what they mean DTK. More talent, not necessarily a better team–kind of like when you lost to App St. Michigan was a better team, but they laid an egg and lost. Besides arguably Mike Martin and Shoelaces, which position group for Michigan was more talented than their ND counterpart?
Also, the full season means something. Last year Michigan beat ND, but please do not tell me that Michigan was a better team last season–they were horrendous for most of the season other than the against ND and the dredges of the Big Ten schedule. The year Michigan lost to App St, I believe they won 10 games or so right?
DeepTeaKup
If you isolate one game, absolutely this can happen. My point is that this has been going on at ND for years, if you keep losing to “inferior” teams then maybe you are not as good as you think.
In terms of which position groups are more or less talented, interesting ?. I would give ND an advantage at RB and WR, UM at QB, the rest (based on what I saw on Sat) are basically a push. ND played a great game for 3 Q’s but you have to look at the whole game, and in the end the ND Defense was horrible.
SDI
ND isn’t good. All ND fans admit their teams have produced mediocre results for 20 years with a few exceptions. They consistently under perform and lose to less talented teams. That is the main source of frustration.
Please, ND rushed for 200 yards and didn’t give up a single sack with a completely immobile QB. The ND offensive line was far superior, and Michigan was completely incapable of running the ball so ND’s D line should get the nod also. Rees completed 70 percent of his passes, DRob hit what 40 percent? He did have some nice runs, but if he doesn’t hit that miracle 65 yarder that even you could have completed, I guarantee Michigan fans would not have been happy about his performance.
The Biscuit
‘maybe you are not as good as you think’. Where did I say that I think ND has been good?????
The Biscuit
I wrote pretty clearly that it is not luck. At all. UM reading ccomprehension I see. (also see that you tutored DMQ)
Irish96
Thanks Biscuit for expounding on my 4am Sunday morning rantings better than I could. Like tjak, I am trying to gain persepctive this week. It’s hard though- part of me wishes that if we were going to lose 3 in a row to Michigan (sucks), they would have all just been by 20 points. Those are the games that are quickly forgotten in the history of a series. No, these last 3 games will be remembered forever, and that last TD will become part of the permanent highlight reel every time we play them, right alongside Desmond Howard’s catch.
Oh, and I’m also a Bills fan, so my football life since I started watching in 1989 has been pain, frustration, gut-punches, agony, all mixed with long stretches of mediocrity.
But I keep crawling back for more, so despite my rantings, I’m sure I’ll be tuned in on Saturday. Go Irish! Beat Spartans! (PLEASE!)
tjak
Irish96, I hear you. My Irish have not won since 88′, my Niners have not won since 95′ and my CFL Winnipeg Blue Bombers have not won since 90′. If not for Canada winning a couple men’s hockey golds in that time I would be one completely messed up fan. Of course the Olympics are every four years and cheering for these teams is every year.
Wilhelm ND '80
At least I have the Irish. My team made it to the Super Bowl for the first time in its history only a few years ago and they are now back to less than mediocre. But you will find me with my ND gear on as well as my Seahawks gear. After all, I am a fan THROUGH THICK AND THIN – Dear Lord, please let it be fun this wekeend!
fakechow99
karma or whatever you want to call it, bottom line is they need to step up and perform. i agree that they have caught an unbelievable amount of horrible breaks but how long can it go on for?? they have the talent, i think they have the coach, now lets just put the week 1 and week 2 bed crappings behind us and next week not be talking about what if. all they need to do is figure a few small things out and 8 or 9 wins is do able. at the begining of the year i would have said 8 or 9 wins is a bad year, but now its a solid goal and a respectable season.
go to a jan 1 bowl and punish someone and then we can get excited for the gauntlet that is the 2012 schedule(minus floyd and co.)
go irish!!
daybreakboys
Am I the only one on this site that did NOT expect better than 9 wins this season?
I must be a realist.
tjak
Irish fans must me a lot like Cubs fans…..there is always next year mentality.
GB
I thik luck happens sometimes. However, this was on the team. They might think they can win and say they can win but don’t really feel it. I think it was summed upon the last kickoff. I think at least 5 players touched the ball but no one picked it up. They subconsciously thought they were done. They have to mentally envision they arre going to make a touchdown every play. It’s engrained until they change it.
Brad
DTK,
There is a big difference between thinking you have a more talented team, and thinking you had a better team. A lot of ND fans feel as though (with an astronomical ncaa leading 10 turnovers, 7 inside the opponent 30) the only team to beat ND this year is ND.
That’s a fair statement. ND held UM to 150ish yards with 2 minutes left in the 3rd. Then we fell apart. And we deserved it. ND is a team that plays 95% of a game great, and spends the rest of the time making some of the worst football plays you will ever see.
You can laugh at it now. You deserve to. Hoke is a good coach, and I think he will get UM in the right direction. But I think ND is much closer to being a really good team than UM is. Don’t judge me on that, just sit back and watch your season. NDs biggest problem is they need to kick the ‘oh here we go again’ attitude out of its players. That has been a part of the teams culture for a long time, and its hard to work through.
But the difference between this team and the past few decades worth is ND used to not be CAPABLE of controlling the line, getting of the field on third down, running the ball, or stopping the runagainst UM. They can do that now.
They just need to learn to stop killing themselves with dumb penalties, blown coverages, and horrific penalties, and this can be a damn fine team. Watch the first 3 quarters againd and tell me you disagree.
Huck Finn
Even ASSUMING that those losses and problems are attributable to luck, I think you’ve fallen prey to the gambler’s fallacy.
http://www.fallacyfiles.org/gamblers.html
In fact, they do NOT “have” to even out.
The Biscuit
I know – one event is not dependent on the other, etc. But my point isn’t really on the weird/bad bounces. It’s on the team. That, at some point, this program should, somehow, be good again. It’s happened every time in the past. Granted, ND doesnt HAVE to ever be good again. But the pieces are, finally, in place for that to be the case. So I think the players choosing to make it happen, is all that’s left. They now have the means to make it happen (didnt for a long long while) but now they have to do so.
Huck Finn
I’m in favor of it. Also, I know what you were driving at with your post. It’s just tough to KEEP dismissing these things as ones that “will pass” or “will even out,” even though that fumble recovery TD by Robinson was beyond ridiculous.