It took a lot longer than expected for #10 Notre Dame to win at NC State today, on account of the lightning storm delay. As bad as these conditions were in Raleigh, it was still miles better than what happened the last time ND went to NC St.
“Ill-advised” doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of describing what a poor decision it was to play that game back on Oct. 8, 2016.
That Notre Dame football team lost 10-3, to fall to 2-4 at the time, halfway to their eventual 4-8 finish. The pitchforks came out for then Head Coach Brian Kelly, who fired his then defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder in order to save his job.
That contest, dubbed the Hurricane Bowl because it was played about a mile and a half west off the edge of Hurricane Matthew, which at that point was still designated a Category 1 storm at kickoff.
Why they actually chose to persist in playing this contest….Lord only knows. The entire competition had so much rain water that it was more a swim meet than football game.
When there wasn’t a lightning delay, you still had a persistent monsoon. It took fours to complete, and it saw Brian Kelly call out his own long-snapper. Because hey, snapping the ball in a hurricane is so easy to do. What an awesome guy this Brian Kelly is.
Truly, a nice, stand up dude.
“Although I was very pleased with our physicality, toughness and tackling, I’m just extremely disappointed in the offensive execution and lack of ability to manage the snapping of the football,” Brian Kelly said then.
“I don’t know that there was anything [we could have done to make snapping better],” he added.
“The conditions were atrocious, so snapping the football was difficult, to say the least.”
Credit the Notre Dame football radio team for telling it like it is in the midst of that one- as they said during the broadcast that whoever scored one touchdown that would be enough.
On another level though, it was highly entertaining, because it provided all kinds of GIFs. Twitter blew up for it with Brian Kelly, #NDvsNCSU and Notre Dame football all top five to top ten trending terms nationally that morning and into the afternoon.
Here were some of the more interesting and entertaining Tweets.
Notre Dame now drops to 0-1 all time in games played 1.5 miles west of a Hurricane. #HurricaneMatthew #NDvsNCSU
— Paul M. Banks (@PaulMBanks) October 8, 2016
I bet Notre Dame regrets not simulating hurricane like conditions this week at practice. #NDvsNCSU
— Chelsea (@MrsChelseaT) October 8, 2016
Every play in #NDvsNCSU is a GIF.
— Duke's Mayo Bowl (@DukesMayoBowl) October 8, 2016
#NDvsNCSU Final Score:
NC State: 10
Notre Dame: 3
Hurricane Matthew: 72534— NOTSportsCenter (@NOTSportsCenter) October 8, 2016
A live look at the head groundskeeper on the sidelines… #NDvsNCSU pic.twitter.com/EHhYq0Yjd3
— Jonny Loquasto (@JQuasto) October 8, 2016
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now. Follow the website on Twitter and Instagram.