Notre Dame players run through smoke before the game against Grundy County Thursday at Notre Dame.Players doused Notre Dame football coach Charles Fant with the contents of an ice bucket Thursday night. They didn't know T-shirts would be available for them or the coach after they beat Grundy County 68-13 in their District 7-AA finale.
The shirts said, "2014 Notre Dame District Champions."
The Irish needed no luck Thursday. They had more than enough talent and preparation on Jim Eberle Field.
"They're a powerhouse," Grundy coach Nick Bryant said. "We knew what they brought to the table. They have bigger size and more athletes, and their second team is a lot better than what we have.
Notre Dame (9-1, 5-0) dominated both sides of the ball, scored almost at will -- by its offense, defense and special teams -- leaving Grundy County (5-5, 3-2) without many answers.
"When they're dropping and and bringing three linemen, and we still can't run the ball," Bryant said, "that shows you where they are size wise."
The Irish had no problems scoring.
They scored rushing touchdowns. They scored passing touchdowns. They scored on an interception return and a free-kick return. They added a field goal as well as a safety.
And all that happened in the first half.
The Irish defense matched the dominance on offense. Notre Dame limited Grundy County to 18 rushing yards and three first downs before the dance teams took the field. Grundy scored after it already trailed 51-0. Christian Brown caught a 36-yard pass from Houston Mainord, resulting in a few cow bells ringing from fans on the Grundy side.
Notre Dame opened with a long drive -- by Thursday night's standards -- that lasted six plays, ending in a pass from Alex Darras to Patrick Martin.
The Irish needed on snap for its second score -- a 70-yard run by Auston Banks. He capped another drive with a 22-yard touchdown by somehow keeping his feet. He tallied 192 yards on his first five carries, including another one-play drive of a 62-yard run.
Kareem Orr, who is likely headed to Louisville to continue his career, scored on a 35-yard receiver screen.
Notre Dame scored 35 points on just 15 snaps.
The Irish defense got in on the act when Jared Andrews stepped in front of a pass from Mainord and returned it 42 yards down the Grundy sideline.
"When you score 42 points in the first quarter, you don't want people to get hurt and you start thinking about how quickly we can get other guys in," Fant said. "The more experience we get guys, the better team we can be."
Notre Dame scored again when Joe Dossett scored a safety for tackling Greg McDaniel in the end zone.
Kealey Green got in on the act when he had a 3-yard touchdown run while Banks watched from the sideline. But he hooked up with Orr following Grundy's kickoff. Banks caught the kick, jogged 10 yards and flipped it to Orr, who went the rest of the way. A 23-yard field goal by Thompson sent teams into halftime with the Irish leading 61-7.
"it was real fun," Dossett said. "They let me do things I don't normally get to do in a game. I got to drop back and I got my first safety."
The Notre Dame reserves got in on the fun -- some early as the second quarter, and almost everybody in the second half -- including Calvin Sims with a 15-yard touchdown run. Alex Nunley capped Grundy County's scoring with a 15-yarder of his own.
"The playoffs will hopefully be a long experience," Fant said. "You need to have all hands on deck, so it's great to get those kids extra experience."
Contact David Uchiyama at duchiyama@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6484. Follow him at twitter.com/UchiyamaCTFP.