Someone’s perfect run has to give in Week 7, and the spotlight falls on a top-10 showdown in Provo as No. 2 Notre Dame visits No. 8 BYU.
For Notre Dame, this is the first real proving ground on a schedule that still includes two more ranked opponents: No. 3 Miami on November 7 and No.
24 SMU on Nov. 24.
The numbers suggest Saturday night could tell us a lot. If the Fighting Irish win, they’ll be viewed as a legitimate National Championship contender.
If BYU keeps rolling, its undefeated start gets another major boost.
CJ Carr is part of the reason Notre Dame has risen so fast. He’s now in the Heisman Trophy conversation, third on the odds board at +1200 behind Jeremiah Smith (-210) and Darian Mensah (+1000).
Through the air, he’s been sharp and efficient, completing 70.8% of his passes for 1,378 yards, 16 touchdowns, and just one interception. Saturday gives him his toughest assignment yet against a BYU defense that will try to slow down a quarterback who has looked increasingly comfortable.
The advanced metrics paint a strong picture for the Irish. Notre Dame leads the country in net adjusted EPA per play, while BYU sits 16th in that category. On the other side of the ball, the concern for the Cougars is clear: their defense ranks 29th in opponent success rate and has had real trouble against the run.
That matchup plays right into Notre Dame’s strengths. The Irish defense ranks ninth in rush success rate and 15th in EPA per rush, which sets up a tough night for BYU if it can’t control the line of scrimmage.
The prediction here is simple: BYU’s undefeated record, both straight up and against the spread, ends on Saturday night.
In Other News...
BYU Is Asking Bear Bachmeier To Do Too Much Right Now
LJ Martins injury has changed the shape of BYUs offense in a hurry, and it has left Bear Bachmeier carrying far more than a normal quarterback workload. With Martin expected to miss four to six weeks, the Cougars have leaned harder on Bachmeier as both a passer and runner, and that was clear in the 24-10 win over Iowa State, when he produced the bulk of the offense and helped steady the game from start to finish.
Bear Bachmeier has already shown he can keep BYU moving when the load falls on his shoulders, but the question now is whether that formula can hold up for long. Relying so heavily on one player is always a dangerous way to live, and the concern gets sharper with Notre Dame looming, because the Cougars may need more than a single high-level quarterback effort to keep the offense functioning at the same level. [Read more 🡒]
Baylor Heads Into Rivalry Week With One Big QB Question
Week 6 in the Big 12 delivered another reminder of how quickly the quarterback conversation can change, with Bear Bachmeier putting together a strong outing for BYU and Noah Fifita throwing for 300 yards in Arizonas latest game. The leagues most important position has been driving the story every week, and the latest review of individual performances only sharpens the focus as the conference heads into another slate packed with ranked matchups and quarterback duels.
For BYU, Bachmeiers performance keeps the Cougars in the mix when the leagues best passers are being stacked up heading into Week 7. The updated ranking of the top eight Big 12 quarterbacks reflects recent form more than preseason expectations, and with several marquee games on deck, every throw now carries a little more weight as the race for position in the conference race tightens. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Finally Gets The Notre Dame Showdown Provo Waited Years For
BYU finally gets the Notre Dame showdown it has been waiting years to stage in Provo, with the Fighting Irish set to visit LaVell Edwards Stadium for the first time since 2004. It is the kind of matchup that has long carried extra weight for the Cougars, not just because Notre Dame remains one of the sports biggest brands, but because the two programs have spent years trying to get a game on the calendar that actually stuck.
Scheduling friction has been part of the backdrop all along, from Notre Dame previously backing out of a planned trip to Provo to the schools working through a neutral-site meeting in Las Vegas in 2022. Recently, Notre Dame reached out about a two-game series, a move tied in part to the Irish needing a game that could help strengthen their playoff resume after USC backed out of their rivalry, giving BYU another high-profile opening in a series that has not always been easy to pin down. [Read more 🡒]