Notre Dame gets its season rolling against Wisconsin in Lambeau Field tomorrow, and the opener comes with enough bite to tell us something real about this team right away.
This is not the kind of game the Irish can treat like a tune-up. Wisconsin is a Big Ten opponent, the setting is Lambeau Field, and Notre Dame is being asked to prove it can handle a solid first test without stumbling out of the gate.
Most of the staff doesn’t see a blowout here, just a strong win as the Irish push toward another run at the College Football Playoff. The bigger dream, of course, is a national championship.
For Notre Dame to avoid an early-season upset, three things stand out.
The first is simple: don’t get away from the run game.
Yes, there are new pieces on the offensive line, with left tackle Will Black the biggest of them. And yes, CJ Carr gives Notre Dame a proven quarterback to help smooth that transition. But the loss of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price leaves a major void at running back, and Aneyas Williams is the one expected to help fill it.
It’s tempting to lean pass-heavy when you’ve got a top-end quarterback, but that would be the wrong move here. Notre Dame needs to test the line, lean on multiple backs, and keep building that part of the offense. That approach also gives the Irish their best path to success against Wisconsin.
The second key is on the other side of the ball: contain Wisconsin quarterback Colton Joseph.
Joseph won the fall competition and brings real dual-threat ability to the matchup. Last year at Old Dominion, he accounted for 2,624 passing yards and 1,007 rushing yards. The jump in competition will be significant, but the skill set is still there.
There’s already evidence of what he can do when he gets rolling. Against Virginia Tech last year, Joseph completed 72.7% of his 22 attempts for 276 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions, while also adding 44 yards on the ground. He wasn’t sharp throwing the ball against Indiana, but he still ran for 179 yards and two touchdowns in a 13-point loss to the eventual national champions.
Notre Dame will likely put a spy on him early, trying to cut off the run and force him to win from the pocket. That would play into the Irish secondary’s hands and could end up shaping the game.
The third edge belongs to Notre Dame’s depth.
That’s the separator here. The Irish have a kind of depth that most teams in college football simply don’t. On the two-deep, Notre Dame has players who would start elsewhere, and that matters in a game like this.
If the Irish can rotate early and keep the first-team group fresh, they should be in a better position to take over in the second half. Marcus Freeman has never been afraid to play the guys he believes belong on the field, so expect plenty of movement as Notre Dame tries to wear Wisconsin down.
In Other News...
Notre Dame May Be Catching A Huge Break Before Miami Showdown
Miamis defensive picture just got a little murkier heading into its meeting with Notre Dame, with coach Mario Cristobal saying cornerback OJ Frederique will be sidelined for an extended stretch after suffering a significant left shoulder injury against Stanford. Frederique had been a key piece for the Hurricanes, and junior Damari Brown has already stepped in and is expected to keep handling that role over the next few weeks.
For Notre Dame, the timing could hardly be better with the matchup looming. Any absence in the secondary matters when a game against a ranked opponent is on the horizon, and Miami now has to sort through that adjustment while trying to keep its coverage intact. The Fighting Irish still have work to do on their end, but this is the kind of break that can change the feel of a big early-season showdown. [Read more 🡒]
Leonard Moore Made Wisconsin Back Down From Its Pregame Talk
Leonard Moore came into Notre Dames game against Wisconsin with a lot of attention on his side of the field, and the Badgers seemed to take the hint. After pregame chatter from Luke Fickell that Wisconsin should not shy away from Moore, the game plan still leaned the other way, with the Badgers targeting the star defensive back only four times and finding limited success when they did.
Colton Joseph finished 19 of 30 for 217 yards with a touchdown, but Notre Dames defense still came away with the more memorable plays, including an interception returned for a score. Even with the passing numbers on the board, Wisconsins reluctance to test Moore said plenty about how the Irish cornerback is being viewed right now, and it left Fickells earlier challenge hanging in the background. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Answered One Big Question While Another Suddenly Looms
Notre Dame left Lambeau Field with a convincing 41-13 win over Wisconsin, and the biggest takeaway was how the Irish took over after a tighter-than-expected first half. Notre Dame led 13-10 at halftime before rolling through the final two quarters, with CJ Carr throwing two touchdown passes and Aneyas Williams powering the ground game with 90 yards and two scores.
The defense also helped turn the game in Notre Dames favor, as Wisconsins two turnovers opened the door for Irish points. Even so, the broader mood coming out of the victory was not entirely celebratory, because Notre Dame lost two defensive players to injuries during the game, including preseason AP All-America second-team safety Brauntae Johnson and defensive lineman Jason Onye. [Read more 🡒]