No. 2 Notre Dame heads into a showdown with No.
8 BYU later tonight needing the kind of offensive performance that can travel. The Irish want the win for their playoff resume, and it would also hand them their first road victory over a Top 10 team since 2012.
For Notre Dame, the formula starts with CJ Carr settling in early. A loud BYU crowd is expected to be part of the scene from kickoff, and the Irish can’t afford an offense that spends the opening series finding its footing. If the line controls the line of scrimmage, Carr gets time, and the run game gets rolling, Notre Dame can change the feel of the night quickly.
That opening stretch matters because the Irish have to keep BYU from getting comfortable. Notre Dame’s offense is at its best when it wins early downs, stays ahead of the chains and lets the rest of the call sheet open up.
Over the last two games, the Irish have been terrific in that area on the ground, piling up 374 rushing yards, averaging 7.2 yards per attempt and posting a 73.1-percent efficiency rate on first and second down. That kind of early-down production keeps drives alive and gets the offense into scoring range.
Carr’s role in that has to be clean and decisive. BYU is expected to bring pressure and challenge Notre Dame’s receivers with man coverage, so the quarterback has to read it fast and throw with precision. An early rhythm for Carr would do more than just settle the offense; it would force BYU to adjust.
The run game itself will need to stay varied. Notre Dame has been effective recently mixing its zone concepts, including Midzone and Outside Zone, with Gap and Man schemes like Counter and Duo.
That balance needs to hold up here. BYU can line up in ways that fit better against some run looks than others, so the Irish have to be ready for the negative plays that come with facing a defense this aggressive and talented.
But that same diversity should also give Notre Dame chances to hit big runs if it catches BYU in the right look.
There’s also a wrinkle element to that ground game. Notre Dame has to be smart about how it gets to those runs, using formations and motions or shifts to create leverage or a numbers advantage. Self-scouting the recent film and adding answers that go against what defenses have already seen could pay off.
The passing game brings its own challenge. BYU may mix in softer coverage and try to bait Notre Dame into a quick-game parade, then break on the ball.
Or it may lean tighter and ask the Irish receivers to win down the field. Most likely, Notre Dame will have to handle both.
That means patience when the deeper routes need time, and the willingness to take the checkdowns and shorter throws instead of forcing the issue.
At the same time, Notre Dame needs some creativity if it wants chunk plays. The source of those opportunities can come from a few places: post-snap switch routes, running back routes out of the backfield, stack/bunch/cluster formations and more high-low concepts. There are chances for big plays in the base offense too, especially if receivers win quickly at the line, but the Irish need to mix in enough variety to keep BYU guessing.
None of it will matter, though, if Carr is left exposed. BYU is expected to throw a lot at the quarterback on third down, including heavy pressure looks, delayed pressure and deception from depth.
The Irish also need to be prepared for the kind of zone-fire pressure that produced an interception for BYU against Arizona. That puts the burden on both protection and play design, from screens to built-in hots, so Carr isn’t forced to sit back and absorb constant heat.
For Notre Dame, the night belongs to the offense if it can start fast, stay on schedule, keep the run game diverse, handle BYU’s coverage games and protect Carr when the pressure comes.
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