Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr appeared to be inadvertently giving Texas A&M defenders an idea of what to expect during the No. 8 Fighting Irish’s 41-40 loss to the No. 16 Aggies.
Sunday morning, the Athletic’s Pete Sampson noted after rewatching the game that Carr’s stance in the shotgun was consistently different based on if it was a pass or throw.
And sure enough, Carr was giving A&M some subtle hints throughout the game. Just look at some of the highlights that Notre Dame posted to social media throughout the game. If he was throwing, the first-year starter would typically stand in the backfield with his left foot slightly behind his right foot. If it was a run play, Carr would typically have his feet squared up.
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In the first quarter, Carr had his feet even with each other before taking the snap ahead of a 43-yard pass to Eli Raridon. But a trend starts to emerge from there.
On a second-quarter run by Jadarian Price, Carr has his feet squared up. But on the Irish’s next drive, Carr started with his left foot behind his right before throwing a TD pass to RB Jeremiyah Love.
Carr is squared back up ahead of Price’s third-quarter TD run.
Then his left foot is behind his right when he gets the snap late in the third quarter on a pass to Jaden Greathouse.
And finally, Carr’s feet are square before handing off to Love for the go-ahead TD with 2:53 to go.
Carr’s stances are a trait that we’re sure Notre Dame’s coaches will have corrected ahead of the Irish’s Week 4 game against Purdue, though we’re a bit surprised that they didn’t notice Carr’s feet and correct them before or during Saturday night’s game.
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Notre Dame’s offense wasn’t the reason the Irish lost on Saturday night, either. The Irish scored 33 offensive points and averaged over six yards a play. The Notre Dame defense, however, gave up over seven yards a play and allowed the winning touchdown on fourth down with 13 seconds to go when A&M quarterback Marcel Reed found tight end Nate Boerkircher in the end zone.
That play wasn’t without controversy either. Especially if you’re a Notre Dame fan. Watch how Notre Dame’s Donovan Hinish got blocked on the play. It could have easily been called a hold.
The loss dropped Notre Dame to 0-2 for the second time in four seasons. The Irish will be heavy favorites against the Boilermakers in Week 4 and could be favorites in every game the rest of the season.