Hats off to Crespi, and Notre Dame

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As Notre Dame Coach Kevin Rooney tipped his cap to Crespi, so I say hats off to him.

It would have been so easy for Rooney to qualify his team’s 23-3 loss to Crespi on Friday night by pointing out that the Knights’ offense was short-handed in the absence of senior quarterback Dayne Crist, who missed some of the second quarter and all of the second half with a concussion.

But true to the kind of even-keeled, matter-of-fact coach Rooney has always been, he took the post-game talk in another direction.

‘They outplayed us,’ he said. ‘We knew they were a very good football team and we knew we’d have to play a great game to beat them, and we didn’t do it. We just didn’t get it done.’

And as for Crist’s presence, or lack thereof?

‘It’s a factor, obviously, but it’s not an excuse to lose,’ Rooney said.

-- Lauren Peterson

-- Image from www.fotosearch.com