Brian Kelly tells Notre Dame secondary it has to ‘compete’ vs. Purdue
BY LAMOND POPE Sun-Times Media September 13, 2013 9:32PM
Saturday
No. 21 Notre Dame
at Purdue
The facts: 7 p.m., Ch. 7, 890-AM.
The records: ND 1-1, Purdue 1-1.
The line: Notre Dame by 201⁄2.
Related Stories
Updated: September 14, 2013 2:14AM
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame’s defense needed a stop.
The Irish trailed Michigan by four points. Less than nine minutes remained in the fourth quarter last Saturday. The Wolverines were on the move.
Michigan faced third-down situations twice. Both times, the drive was extended because of pass-interference calls. The 10-play, 75-yard drive ended with a Devin Gardner touchdown pass that capped the Wolverines’ 41-30 victory.
No. 21 Notre Dame (1-1) looks to tighten up defensively on Saturday night at Purdue (1-1).
“We have a high standard as a defense,” senior cornerback Bennett Jacksons said. “We feel like we haven’t played to that level or the level that we expect of ourselves.”
Notre Dame is 88th nationally in passing defense (261 yards per game).
“If something happens, you’ve got to play for the next play,” Jackson said. “You can’t get yourself caught up in the previous plays. You just have to pick it up for the next one.”
The Irish face a Purdue team that is 99th nationally in passing offense (155.5 yards per game). Coach Brian Kelly said confidence is the key for the secondary.
“They have to compete, and they’ve got the ability to do it,” Kelly said. “We’ve got to compete in practice and we’ve got to carry that over to Saturdays.”
