Bulls safety Jerrell Young pried the ball loose and the startled Irish spectated for too long as the lightning-quick d-back hightailed it 96 yards the other way and suddenly the early seven was on the Other Guys' side of the scoreboard.
 
The weather was freaky -- lightning bolts firing across the dark gray sky, carrying what should have been an afternoon game into a mid-late night finish.
 
But the Irish were completely discombobulated by the early developments.
 
The Irish outgained South Florida 508-254 in yards, exactly a 2-1 margin, but that damn scoreboard...
 
Last time any football stats freak looked, there was no turnover statistic column on the big board. The five Irish turnovers, three in the ever-popular red zone, told the rest of the tale.
 
By halftime, Notre Dame trailed 16-0. Turnovers.
 
Crist, the talented Southern California kid who was going to be the latest Golden State sunshine boy to guide the Irish back to national prominence had a disastrous first half, giving way to Tommy Rees, the Lake Forest, Ill. sophomore with adequate potential.
 
Even reliable place kicker David Ruffer was a victim, missing a key third-quarter 30-yard field goal which at least would have forced overtime.
 
On the sideline, coach Brian Kelly was reduced to Charlie Weis-esque kvetching, some of it x-rated. Who knew?
 
"There was an accumulation of mistake after mistake after mistake," he told South Bend Tribune columnist Al Lesar.
"It wasn't just one play, it was one mistake after the other."
 
There were hopeful signs. Rees had a big league second half, going 24-for-32 passing (with the tough Bulls defense knowing the Irish would have to take to the air) in the second half. He threw for 296 yards, but also threw inexperience-telling interceptions. Still, there were some elements to build on there.
 
But Kelly wasn't particularly consolable or looking ahead to, ulp, a visit to Ann Arbor. Hey, schedule says...
 
"We've been down this road before," he told Lesar. "The disappointing thing is that we thought going into a year where we had some experience, that we wouldn't have to go through this.
 
"But it looks like we're going to have to make sure our players are understanding what it takes to win football games."
 
A latter-day version of the famous Vince Lombardi speech to his Packers after his team fell behind to the huge underdog Cardinals -- "Gentlemen, this is a football."
 
And so the Irish trudge forward. And their legions hope there are no backward steps at Michigan. History is unkind, but it is always changing. That much the Irish can count on.