SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Desmond Ridder swung the black Cincinnati flag in the south end zone, with backup offensive lineman Cody Lamb right behind his quarterback with the red version. They were having a moment. The entire Cincinnati football program was having one at the expense of Notre Dame, which has taken the Bearcats’ best and brightest for more than a decade. So it was understandable to watch Cincinnati players embrace one another and the hordes of fans in red who came to witness the biggest win in school history.
From the other end zone, Brian Kelly could only watch his old program knock his current one out of realistic contention for the College Football Playoff. Of the two top-10 teams that met in Notre Dame Stadium, one arrived with an identity and a plan to maximize it. The other was Notre Dame, 24-13 losers to a Group of 5 powerhouse, falling at home for the first time in 27 games and suddenly without a clear direction at quarterback.
“You have to match your play with a high level of competency in terms of the mundane things,” Kelly said. “We didn’t take care of the basics today, and all we needed to do was be efficient at the basics today, and we weren’t efficient at the basics.
