Chapter 45

The network finished its halftime show and returned to Brett and Tom in the booth.

“Welcome back to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, where the Trojans of USC are leading the number-three-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish 21 to 10.

“Let’s look at the first-half stats. USC has outgained Notre Dame in passing, and the two teams are about even in rushing. What’s interesting is the first downs are almost even despite the score. That’s due to the Trojans’ two long scoring plays,” Tom said.

“USC has averaged 5.9 yards per play so far this season, but they’re doing well beyond that today. Notre Dame’s defense has been holding opponents to an average of 4.7 yards per play, but they haven’t given up the big plays that they have in this game,” Tom continued.

“You’re right, Tom,” Brett said. “It’s those two long scores that really hurt the Irish. USC’s 21 points are the most Notre Dame has given up in one half this season, and it’s only the second time the Irish have trailed at halftime. Their defense is going to have to tighten up if they’re going to win this game.

“And the offense is going to have to perform better. This Irish offense really isn’t built to be an explosive, high-scoring machine. They’re going to have to step up to come from behind. The good news for Notre Dame is that USC’s defense has been equally unspectacular, so the Irish should have the opportunity to come back.”

“Thanks, Brett. Let’s go down to Kelly Ann on the sidelines.”

“Thank you, Tom. As the teams were headed into the locker room, I spoke with Notre Dame head coach Neil Brian. He said he was disappointed in his team’s defensive performance, that it was out of character for them. Coach Brian said they would be making adjustments at halftime, and he expected to see his team back to their usual selves in the second half.

“I also spoke with USC interim head coach Wyatt Thomas, who was on the USC coach’s show this week. On that show, Coach Thomas talked about David Dawson’s running ability, throwing accuracy, and football smarts. I asked the coach about that as the team was coming out onto the field after half. He said the toss to Eshete for the score and the scoring pass to Hendricks showed off all of those qualities. Dawson executed to perfection, and Coach Thomas was ecstatic. You said it, Brett: David Dawson is the wild card here.

“I asked Coach Thomas about the audible Dawson called on the pass to Craig Hendricks and whether that was on his list of permitted plays. The coach said that because of Dawson’s howitzer arm, he’s permitted to audible some deep passes.”

“Thanks, Kelly Ann,” Tom said. “We’ll be back for the second-half kickoff after these messages.”

During the third quarter, USC kicked a field goal, and Notre Dame scored a touchdown to make the score 24–17. On the next possession, David handed the ball off to Marcus, who was hit at an odd angle, causing the ball to pop free. A Notre Dame defender picked it up and scored to tie the game at 24. That was how the third quarter ended.

During the TV time-out, Coach Thomas brought the team together.

“Notre Dame is shitting themselves right now. They’re one quarter away from losing their spot in the College Football Playoffs. If we can make that happen, we will become part of USC lore and become gods to our fanbase. I personally want to send them packing!”

The team roared their agreement.

Coach Thomas quickly gathered the offense.

“It’s time to unwrap the special plays. Let’s run them off the field.”

David couldn’t agree more.

As the broadcast returned to the game, Brett and Tom took a moment to set the stage.

“Today, Michigan lost, and anyone watching college football right now is aware that the Irish are on the ropes. If two of the top four teams go down, it will send the College Football Playoff selections into chaos. My guess is that every true football fan is tuned in to see what happens,” Tom said.

“I agree, but this is where Notre Dame’s running game wins it for them. USC has to figure out a way to stop the inside run if they plan to win, and we haven’t seen that yet today,” Brett said.

David stepped out onto the field, feeling calm and confident as he fell into the zone. It was a state that blocked out everything except what was in front of him. He looked to the sideline to get the play, then checked the defense and saw they were in their standard 4-2-5 alignment, showing zone coverage.

USC had Marcus and Chuy lined up on either side of David in the backfield.

“Set!” David called out and then clapped his hands.

Up until this point, when they called ‘set,’ USC had looked over to the sideline to see if another play was being called. Snapping the ball so soon caught the Irish still moving people to react to USC’s alignment. Referring back to the OODA Loop, this was called ‘getting into your opponent’s loop.’ It meant you had responded faster than they could, giving you an advantage.

The play was an option where David had to make several reads. The first was whether he should hand off to Chuy, who would run up the middle. If not, David would run down the line, where he had to decide whether to toss the ball to Marcus. The third option was to pass the ball to Craig, who was running a deep slant. Finally, David could keep the ball himself.

When David ran down the line, he saw Bear demolish the Irish’s star defensive tackle, DeShawn Narcisse, who had containment on the play. David stepped around Bear and cut upfield. Marcus followed him and made himself available for the pitch. When Dallas Lawson, Notre Dame’s star linebacker, got close, David tossed the ball to Marcus.

The linebacker raced to stop Marcus as two safeties closed in on him. Marcus glanced back and saw David had found open grass, so he tossed the ball back to his quarterback.

“Eshete pitches back to Dawson, who has a clear field in front of him. He’s at the 40 ... the 20 ... TOUCHDOWN, USC!” Tom bellowed.

“That’s the second time USC has used that lateral play, both times for a score,” Brett said. “This time, it was for 70 yards. Notre Dame was worried about Dawson’s running, and they were right. Look at this on the replay. Once Dawson got loose, no one was going to catch him. It’s hard to believe that someone that size has such explosive speed. That’s another one for tonight’s highlight reels.”

“No other team has scored more than 30 points against the Irish this season, and it’s largely due to Dawson’s performance. He remains cool, calm, and collected in the pocket, and nothing Notre Dame has done, including sacking him twice, has rattled him,” Tom said.

“I hate to repeat myself, but David Dawson is clearly the wild card in this game,” Brett said. “Now we have to see if the Irish have an answer.”

On the next series, Notre Dame handed the ball off to Jessup, their running back, who found a crease and was gone to tie the score at 31.

With just over three minutes left in the game, the score was tied at 45. Notre Dame had to punt but had pinned the Trojans at their own two-yard line when their kick returner didn’t catch the ball and allowed it to roll inside the five-yard line. The plan had been to let it tumble into the end zone, but it took a funny bounce and found its way out of bounds.

“What does USC need to do in this situation?” Tom asked.

“First, they must get out from under the shadow of their own goalposts. If they can get a few first downs, they can run out the clock and take their chances in overtime.”

“This just feels like one of those games where whoever has the ball last will win.”

“Neither defense has shown much in the fourth quarter, so it may come down to which one can make a stop,” Brett said.

David led his team out, had them huddle up to make sure they knew their assignments, and walked them to the line. He had less than three minutes and ninety-eight yards to go to lead his team to victory.

On the snap, David turned to hand the ball off to Chuy. He was their big power back who’d been pounding the Irish’s run defense all game. Everyone was confident he could pick up three to five yards and make the next play manageable.

Chuy had his arms backward to take the handoff, and the ball bounced off his bicep and fell to the ground. David made the smart move and fell on the ball as an avalanche of Irish players buried him and tried to dig the ball free.

David crawled out from under the pile and saw that the referee had called it a safety. That meant that not only were they now trailing 47–45, but they would have to kick off to the Irish from their twenty-yard line.

With the lead, all the Irish had to do was handle the kickoff return and gain a couple of first downs to run the clock out.

David was sick to his stomach as he went to the sideline.

“USC’s Alex Sandoval places the ball on the tee while his teammates line up for the kick, and ... IT’S AN ONSIDE KICK! USC receiver Nick Collins recovers the ball at their thirty-one-yard line,” Tom said, making the call. “What an unbelievable play! Alex Sandoval executes a perfect onside kick and gives his team new life.”

“You know, most people don’t realize you actually can kick onside after a safety. But you can, folks; it’s perfectly legal.”