Notre Dame’s availability report tells you almost everything you need to know about where this matchup can be attacked.
The Irish are dealing with major losses on defense, and the names on that list are the ones that matter most. Francis Brewu, their best defensive tackle, and Jason Onye, a starter inside, are both questionable with knee injuries, though Notre Dame reporters expect both to miss.
Drayk Bowen, the middle linebacker and captain who wears the green dot, is out with an ankle injury. Safety Brauntae Johnson, viewed as a potential top-100 pick, is out with a foot injury.
Cornerback DJ McKinney, the No. 2 corner opposite Leonard Moore, is also out.
That’s a heavy hit to the middle of the defense. Coming into the season, Notre Dame’s back seven was supposed to be its strength, but losing its best linebacker, best safety and second corner - with both top interior linemen also in doubt - changes the picture fast. That’s the area to go after.
On paper, this is a heavyweight matchup. Our offense is No. 1 in scoring, while Notre Dame is No.
- We’re third in yards per play, and they’re seventh.
We’re fifth in total yards; they’re first. The biggest edge, though, shows up on third down.
We’re second in conversion rate, while Notre Dame ranks 64th in stopping it.
The passing numbers are just as interesting. We’re third in yards per pass and sixth in passing yards.
Notre Dame is 22nd in yards per pass allowed and fifth in passing yards allowed, which says teams haven’t exactly been eager to throw at them. Up front, the sack numbers are fairly ordinary on both sides: we allow sacks on just 4.17 percent of dropbacks, and Notre Dame gets sacks on 7.18 percent of dropbacks.
Notre Dame’s offense brings its own challenge. It ranks 10th in yards per play and third in scoring, but only 24th in yards per pass and 29th in passing yards.
The bigger concern is how hard it is to get to CJ Carr. Notre Dame is No. 1 in the country at avoiding sacks, and between the line and how quick Carr is mentally and physically, he’s nearly impossible to bring down.
That makes the game’s central battle pretty clear: Notre Dame’s passing game against our pass defense. That’s the matchup of the night.
Carr has made his living escaping trouble, and BYU showed a path for making him uncomfortable by bringing speed from linebacker and mixing up blitz looks. They got home.
The question now is whether that can be duplicated with disguised pressure, broken tendencies and hands in passing lanes.
The turnover battle could decide the whole thing. Notre Dame is No. 1 in the country at avoiding turnovers, and we’re third.
By Mike Ryan’s count, our first-team offense has turned it over once all season. These are two teams that protect the ball well and two defenses capable of changing the game when they create one.
Mike’s view is simple: whoever wins the turnover battle wins the game. A strip sack like Marquise Lightfoot’s at North Carolina is the kind of play that can drain the life out of that building.
There’s also a sense that this is the week to expand the playbook a little. Mike thinks we open things up here.
Malachi Toney has mostly been used in conventional ways this season, with only the occasional wrinkle, but BYU found success against this defense by leaning into its best players in creative ways. That points to a gadget-heavy game for Toney.
Elija Lofton is another name to watch. He’s finally healthy, and Mario Cristobal said this week there’s more that they’ve seen from him in practice.
Toney can catch, run, throw, return and block. Lofton can block, catch and take a handoff or a screen.
Even with Bowen out, Notre Dame’s linebackers are still good, but the injuries at safety and linebacker make that part of the field worth attacking.
The broader belief is that this team tends to rise under the lights. Last year, the first week of November became a turning point, and the team came out of it playing its best football.
The questions this year are different, but the culture and the staff handled that stretch well then. Clean up the tackling, win the turnover battle and get the ball back to the best offense in the country.
In Other News...
Notre Dame Suddenly Hands Miami A Huge Opening In South Bend
Notre Dames injury report ahead of its matchup with Miami gives the Hurricanes a little more reason to believe they can walk into South Bend and make things uncomfortable. The Irish are dealing with a cluster of absences on both sides of the ball, including defensive tackle Francis Brewu, who is questionable with a left knee injury, and captain linebacker Drayk Bowen, who has already been ruled out with a right ankle injury. Add in the loss of multiple other defensive linemen and a pair of offensive linemen, and the depth chart suddenly looks a lot thinner than it did a few days ago.
For Miami, the timing matters. Any trip to Notre Dame Stadium is a major test, but the Hurricanes now have a clearer path to attacking a front that may not be at full strength and a defense missing one of its most important leaders. The full picture still depends on how Notre Dames questionable players respond closer to kickoff, but the opening is real, and Miami will know it has a chance to press an Irish team that is already shorthanded in some critical spots. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Faces Its Toughest Test Yet With Everything On The Line
The stage could hardly be bigger for Miami, which heads to South Bend on Nov. 7 with the No. 1 ranking and a matchup against No. 4 Notre Dame that carries the feel of a season-defining November night. It is the kind of game that brings the rivalrys history back into focus, while also putting the spotlight on the players who have driven both teams into the national championship conversation.
For the Hurricanes, Darian Mensah and Malachi Toney will be central to whatever they do offensively, and Notre Dame has its own answer in quarterback CJ Carr. With both teams arriving highly ranked and playing with plenty on the line, this one has the ingredients of a playoff-caliber measuring stick, even before a single snap is taken in South Bend. [Read more 🡒]
Elija Lofton Is Giving Miami A New Reason To Feel Dangerous
Elija Lofton has quietly become one of the more interesting pieces in Miamis offense over the last six games, and the junior tight ends expanded role has started to show up in the kind of moments that matter. Against UNC, he caught three passes for 48 yards and helped keep a key drive alive with a 12-yard grab that extended the lead, a sequence that fit the growing sense that Miami has found another reliable option in the passing game.
Offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson singled out Loftons work on that scoring drive, a sign that the Hurricanes are beginning to trust him in bigger spots. For an offense looking to keep defenses honest, having a tight end who can step into a pivotal role changes the picture a little, and Loftons recent usage suggests Miami may have found another matchup problem to lean on as the season moves forward. [Read more 🡒]