Notre Dame football: USC RB Redd limited in second half by Irish
SOUTH BEND -- When the Trojans were rolling, so was Silas Redd.
Playing in just his second game of the season because of a knee injury, the former Penn State running back powered the USC offense in Saturday night’s 14-10 loss to Notre Dame.
Following behind fullback Soma Vainuku, who was a last-minute switch to starter, Redd allowed the Trojans to dictate the intensity through most of the first half.
On USC’s first possession, following a Trojan defense of the goal line, Redd helped take his team from the shadows of one goal post to the other. The drive of 96 yards ended in a one-yard touchdown plunge, his first of the season.
Redd rushed six times for 40 yards, with another 15 yards coming from a personal foul on Notre Dame’s Prince Shembo.
Redd continued to make an impact on the ensuing USC drives in the second quarter.
He tallied another 51 yards before halftime, for a total only three yards less than the 94 passing yards for the Trojans in the half.
“I love Silas Redd,” said USC head coach Ed Orgeron after the game. “I love his family, what he stands for, his toughness. (He’s) the type of running back that we want at USC along with other guys.”
The carries disappeared for Redd in the second half with the Trojans trailing. In the third quarter, Redd received just two handoffs for a total of five yards.
Orgeron wasn’t ready to abandon his tailback in the fourth quarter. After USC safety Su’a Cravens recovered a fumble by ND running back Cam McDaniel with 6:47 left in the game, Orgeron was ready to ride Redd to the end zone.
“There was one series that I felt we were going to give the ball to Silas and we were going to go ahead and score,” Orgeron said.
On the first play, Redd gained seven yards to push USC to Notre Dame’s 27-yard line. Then the Trojans derailed with two holding penalties and a false start before turning the ball over on downs.
“They stopped us,” Orgeron said. “Stuffed us.”
Redd finished with just 26 yards in the second half to give him 117 yards on 19 carries for the game. He declined to talk to reporters after the loss.
Orgeron credited the Notre Dame defensive front led by 357-pound nose guard Louis Nix.
“We knew that was a good front coming in,” Orgeron said. “(They brought) a lot of pressure. It just seemed that we couldn’t get things going. Those were big guys to block.”
The Trojan offensive line was unable to consistently root out the anchors of the ND defense.
“We made some mistakes,” Orgeron said. “We didn’t do the things that we like to do at a high level.”
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