Michigan State is walking into South Bend with one clear problem staring it in the face: Notre Dame’s secondary.
The Spartans are 2-0 and heading into a Saturday night matchup with the third-ranked Fighting Irish, who are also 2-0. Kickoff is set for 7:36 p.m.
ET on NBC and Peacock. It’s a big stage for MSU, but it also looks like a brutal matchup, especially if the game turns into a downfield passing battle.
Notre Dame has talent everywhere, but the cornerback room is the part that jumps off the page. That’s bad news for a Michigan State offense that has already had trouble creating separation at receiver. Through two weeks, the Spartans have not consistently found easy windows in the passing game, and that issue only gets sharper against a defense like this.
At the center of it all is junior corner Leonard Moore, who may be the toughest cover MSU will see all season. He was a unanimous All-American last year, piled up five interceptions, and posted a 92.5 coverage grade from Pro Football Focus - the best among FBS cornerbacks.
He also comes into this one fresh, after playing just 14 defensive snaps in Notre Dame’s 52-0 win over Rice. The week before, against Wisconsin in Green Bay, he allowed only two catches for 14 yards on four targets.
MSU offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan didn’t hide the respect Tuesday.
"I just think certainly the physical skill set, the length, the size, the athleticism," MSU offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan said Tuesday about what makes Moore a great corner. "He's a physical corner; he'll tackle, which sometimes you don't always get that --- he will. And he can catch; he catches the ball."
"His ball skills for a corner, I think, are rare. His ability to track and adjust to the ball in the air [is great].
He has all the makings of a great player, and he's well-coached. So all of those things make him, yeah, a tremendous player, and I have a ton of respect for him, for sure."
Moore is not alone, either. Notre Dame can also lean on DJ McKinney and Christian Gray at corner.
McKinney, a Colorado transfer, started for the Buffaloes in 2024 and 2025 and already made a loud impact for the Irish with a pick-six against Wisconsin. On3 ranked him No. 116 overall in the transfer portal this offseason and eighth among cornerbacks.
Gray brings a different kind of résumé. He’s a third-year starter in his fourth year with Notre Dame, was part of the secondary that helped the Irish reach the national title game in 2024, and has five career interceptions. Last season, he added a team-high 11 pass breakups.
The problems do not stop at corner, either. Notre Dame’s safeties have already shown they can change a game in a flash.
Against Rice, safety Adon Schuler delivered a hit that forced a fumble on the second play of the game, and Boubacar Traore took it back for a touchdown just 14 seconds in. Rice coughed the ball up three times in the first four minutes.
Michigan State has protected the ball reasonably well so far, with its only turnover coming on a fumble against Eastern Michigan after the game had already been decided. But Notre Dame is a different animal, and the Spartans are going to have to be much sharper if they want to keep the game from slipping away early.
That’s the real issue here. MSU’s receivers have not been getting much clean separation, and the Spartans have already had a pair of sacks against Eastern Michigan that felt like coverage sacks.
Those problems were against MAC secondaries. Notre Dame’s defensive backs are operating on another level entirely, and that’s where the Fighting Irish appear to hold their biggest edge on Saturday.
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