NOTRE DAME -- No one knew quite what to expect Saturday from Notre Dame, which was breaking in a new quarterback and a revamped defensive scheme.
And yet somehow, the Irish managed to come out of their season opener with more questions than they had going in.
The biggest one: Where in the world, after the most lopsided season-opening loss in the program's history -- a 33-3 drubbing by Georgia Tech at Notre Dame Stadium -- do the Irish go from here?
"We're going to get better or we're going to get worse," Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis said, "but we're not staying even, that I can promise you."
Worse doesn't seem like an option. The Irish rushed 41 times for minus-8 yards, fumbled three times, were outgained 386-122 and failed to score a touchdown for the first time in 26 games under Weis. He said he couldn't remember the last time an offense he directed couldn't reach the end zone in a game.
Demetrius Jones started at quarterback for Notre Dame but didn't make it out of the first half, and relief appearances by Evan Sharpley and Jimmy Clausen only provided the aggressive, lightning-quick Yellow Jackets defense with fresh targets. Georgia Tech recorded nine sacks in the game, blowing repeatedly past the helpless Irish offensive line.
"We're going to blitz you, we don't care who you are," said Tech coach Chan Gailey.
Notre Dame knew that blitz was coming, but seemed unprepared for its speed and the way it attacked from every possible angle.
"That's what happens when an aggressive defense executes and an offense doesn't execute," Irish center John Sullivan said.
Jones' start at quarterback was meant to be a surprise, but Gailey said Tech expected Jones to be the center of Notre Dame's offense and prepared accordingly. The sophomore from Chicago was chosen specifically for this game because of his running ability, and while he rushed 12 times for 28 yards and was only sacked once, he fumbled twice and was just 1-of-3 passing for 4 yards.
Fans cheered when Sharpley was inserted in Jones' place with 2 1/2 minutes to play in the first half.
"Today it was rather embarrassing and it wasn't the best effort in a lot of parts of the game," Jones said. "But that's what football is about, and that's why we have coaches who are going to get it corrected so we can come out with a better performance next weekend."
Weis said he'll announce the starter for next Saturday's game at Penn State on Tuesday. Neither of Jones' backups made a particularly strong case for the job. Sharpley was 10-of-13 for 92 yards, but was sacked seven times and fumbled once. Clausen, the freshman, was 4-of-6 for 34 yards with one sack, but he didn't play against Tech's first-string defense.
"All around, it was probably one of the best performances I've ever been around since I've been at Tech," said Yellow Jackets senior defensive end Adamm Oliver. "You could tell the Notre Dame quarterbacks were very uncomfortable in the pocket. They knew we were coming after them on every play. I don't think they were very quick with their reads. They couldn't really read our defense or tell where we coming from. I think we had them all messed up."
Nothing went right on offense for the Irish, who came into the game determined to play a power-running style, but got minus-7 yards rushing on seven carries from starting halfback Travis Thomas. Tight end John Carlson, who had to stay at the line to try to slow Georgia Tech's pass rush, had only 29 yards on three receptions.
Yellow Jackets senior running back Tashard Choice, meanwhile, rushed for a career-high 196 yards on 26 carries and topped the 100-yard mark for the eighth consecutive game, setting a school record. He scored a pair of touchdowns -- a 22-yard run down the sideline that made it 16-0 just before half and a 7-yarder up the middle that increased Tech's lead to 26-3 early in the fourth quarter.
Due to turnovers and special teams mistakes, the Yellow Jackets had good field position for most of the game and their average starting spot was their own 42-yard line. They settled for field goals four times and had one kick blocked or the outcome could have been worse.
If there's a bright spot for Notre Dame, it's that the Irish don't have far to go to get back to square one.
"We can't change that we got beat and we're going to go into Penn State to play and win, and we will win," said Irish senior linebacker Anthony Vernaglia.
Contact Ben Ford at bford@etruth.com.