What a game!  Say what you will about ND’s porous defense and its inability to put teams away, but there is no mistaking that this is a fun team to watch.  It took overtime, but the Irish managed to pulled off a 37-30 rain-soaked victory against the Washington Huskies on Saturday, pushing ND to 4-1 as it heads into its bye week ahead of an October 17th showdown against mighty USC.  For those counting at home, that’s three straight victories where the Irish had to dig down and snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in the game’s final minutes.  This team is growing and maturing before our very eyes and it’s a delight to watch.  No world-beaters by any stretch, these guys play hard and desperately want to win.  And I love that.

Some post-game thoughts:

• Jimmy Clausen was fantastic – again.  Save for a boneheaded backwards pass that UW returned for a touchdown, Jimmy put on yet another superb performance.  The official stat line was: 23 of 31 for 422 yards, 2 TD and 1 INT, which pushed Jimmy to the top of the national QB ratings, but it should’ve read much better.  His INT was the result of a dump pass slipping through Armando Allen’s hands, a play where, if completed, Allen probably would’ve scampered for a good 20 yards.  Plus, Jimmy lobbed a perfect TD pass to Robby Parris only to see it bounce off the WR’s facemask (seriously?).  And he had Kyle Rudolph trip on another TD pass that he probably would’ve caught.  Moreover, Jimmy threw at least three balls away while being chased out of the pocket.  Put all that together and you can begin to appreciate how good – and accurate – Jimmy is.  He truly is a special QB.  Here’s hoping he sticks it out one more year at ND!
• As special as Jimmy is at the QB position, Golden Tate may be his equal at the WR position.  That kid is a gamebreaker, a highlight reel waiting to happen.  I can’t recall the last time the Irish had a player as dynamic as him.  Put him anywhere on the field and get the ball in his hands – he’s going to make players wherever he lines up.
• Another solid performance from Robert Hughes.  And kudos to the offensive line for an all-around good game.  I especially enjoyed the caravan that Hughes rode as the entire team appeared to be willing him into the endzone for that two-point conversion.
• Upon review, it turns out Hughes’ knee hit the ground on that two-point conversion.  But, as ND knows, them’s the breaks.  The Irish were due for some karmic payback, let’s be honest.
• I loved the rotation in the defense.  Not only did we get our first full dose of Manti Te’o, but we also got to see guys like Steve Filer and Zeke Motta get into the mix.  And I thought the decision to insert Kapron Lewis-Moore at DT in place of Ian Williams on the goal line was superb.
• Speaking of the goal line, those three stands the Irish made were simply amazing.  Washington had something like twelve plays inside the Irish 5-yard line and got stuffed on each of them.  Wow.
• I love Kyle Rudolph.
• Manti Te’o played very well in his full-time debut.  He made some mental errors, which is to be expected of a freshman, but on the whole he was ND’s second-best player on defense (behind only Kyle McArthy).  Te’o ended up with 10 tackles on the day, pretty much eclipsing Toryan Smith’s cumulative total for the season (in fairness, Smith played great in spot duty, particularly on those goal line stands).  Te’o is an athlete with a nose for the ball.  He needs to be on the field as mush as possible, which this coaching staff is finally beginning to realize.  Just seeing him out there makes me feel better about the next play’s snap.  He’s my new security blanket.
• Good game by Kerry Neal.  Finally.
• I really like Washington coach Steve Sarkisian.  He strikes me as a good guy.  Calm, level-headed and respectful.  And he’s a great playcaller.  He’s going to be special.  I also like Jake Locker.  He’s a very talented QB who’s got top-caliber athleticism.  The kind of guy that excels at every sport he plays.  Washington may very well turn out to be my #2 college football team.  Maybe it’s because I like Seattle.  And because Irish fans should pull for the Huskies since they too have to rebuild after being gutted by the inept Tyrone Willingham.  There’s a fraternity that should arise from that.
• Thank you, Nick Tausch.  Thank you.  Having a money FG kicker is a feeling Irish fans don’t often get to enjoy.

The updated AP poll came out this morning and the Irish are ranked #34.  Of course, some Irish faithful are lambasting the rankings as further evidence of a national media bias against ND.  Such a bias no doubt exists, but #34 sounds about right to me.  The Irish are clearly a team with a great, dynamic offense, decent athletes and solid coaching.  But their defense is simply too pedestrian to warrant a more serious ranking.  The only thing that could catapult them into the top-20 would be an upset of USC in two weeks, but that is unlikely to happen.  In fact, my guess is that USC wins that game pretty easily, reminding us just how bad that defense is.  I would then expect the Irish to lose at least one more game – and maybe two – before ending the season with a decent 9-3 or 8-4 record.  They’ll then play in a respectable bowl game and win, which will set them up for a solid run at the BCS next year (assuming Tate, Clausen et al. return for one more season).  Whatever the case, I’m generally happy with this Irish squad.  I love the effort and the grit, things that have been sorely absent from Irish squads in recent years.