Former Hurricanes wide receiver Ahmmon Richards spent the week breaking down Notre Dame's film ahead of our matchup on Saturday, and he came away with a game plan for both sides of the ball.
The flip side is that Carr sometimes tries to do too much. On one play a BYU lineman who knew he wasn't getting home got his hands up and batted the ball. Carr caught his own deflection instead of knocking it to the ground and took a five-yard loss.
It's also a lesson for our defensive line: when you aren't getting home, hands up.
To the boundary against condensed sets, Notre Dame plays a Cover 4 look with Leonard Moore pressing and the safety responsible for the run fit. BYU's answer was a crack block: the receiver comes inside and takes the safety, Moore stays on his man, and the alley behind him opens up.
That's a play for Fletcher and Javian Mallory, but Ahmmon stressed the receiver has to sell it. Daylyn Upshaw or Cooper Barkate has to crack with urgency off the snap. If he loafs, the corner feels it, comes off and lands right in the run lane.
At the goal line, he expects it to come down to man-on-man. BYU ran QB power straight at Notre Dame and won the pile. We did the same thing on fourth-and-1 against UNC. Our guys versus theirs.
His pick for the guy who can take advantage is Barkate. Notre Dame sits in Cover 3 on standard downs, so if we go three-by-one, Barkate gets hitches and speed outs backside. When Notre Dame goes man, he gets go routes.
"Cooper Barkate is going to have a really good chance to put out some really good film against some quality players," Ahmmon said.
When Carr sees no middle-of-the-field safety, he knows it's Cover 0 and pressure is coming, and he goes to Jaden Greathouse on the slot fade. The tell is the running back. If he's aligned up near the line instead of beside the quarterback, he's staying in to protect, and a shot is coming. When you're the middle receiver in trips, Ahmmon said, you're running one of two routes: slot fade or slant.
Free first downs. On a third-and-3 with 49 seconds left before half, BYU played its corner eight yards off and Notre Dame ran a simple speed out at the sticks. "That right there is where you lost the battle," Ahmmon said. The field-side speed out is the hardest throw for a quarterback, and BYU still gave it away. Press up, or at least delay the release.
The fake clap. Carr claps at the line to get the defense to show its hand, then adjusts. Ahmmon credited BYU for holding its disguise through the clap. That's how you make Carr think.
Jordan Faison. He's the receiver Ahmmon worries about most, not because he's a burner but because of how we play. Faison is a good route runner, he rarely drops the ball and he's slippery after the catch. Against a defense that doesn't jam, he's the worst matchup you can draw.
Empty on third down. Notre Dame goes five-wide with no back on third downs to spread the field, get our linebackers and corners in space and let Carr pick the coverage apart. Mohamed Toure and Chase Smith will be asked to cover.
Turn around. Notre Dame's receivers pluck the ball out of the air, which makes our habit of trailing and playing through the hands a recipe for flags.
"If you're in phase, please just turn around," Ahmmon said.
BYU's Isaiah Glasker did exactly that on one throw. He turned, high-pointed it and nearly picked it off, turning a sure touchdown into a breakup.
Rush through the inside hip. Carr stepped up through a free rusher on a nickel pressure and delivered a strike, the kind of play Billy Edwards Jr. made against us when Ahmad Moten Sr. had him dead to rights. Even if you're overrunning, Ahmmon said, you have to angle back down to that inside hip.
Defense: Marquise Lightfoot. Notre Dame spreads it out instead of max-protecting, which means one-on-ones for Lightfoot and Damon Wilson II. Lightfoot is going home to Chicago with first-round buzz and Ahmmon expects him to play with a fire under him.
He's also watching the nickel. Whoever plays there, whether Bryce Fitzgerald, Omar Thornton or Zechariah Poyser, is going to see Faison and Greathouse, and Notre Dame threw four slot fades against BYU.
Ahmmon's full film session, with every clip, is on the CanesInsight YouTube channel. Subscribe so you don't miss him back Friday before kickoff.
The quarterback
Ahmmon's first point was that Carr plays the position the right way. He isn't flashy, but he identifies coverages pre-snap, steps up through pressure and puts the ball where it needs to be. He reminded Ahmmon of Fernando Mendoza on a back-shoulder throw into a tight window.The flip side is that Carr sometimes tries to do too much. On one play a BYU lineman who knew he wasn't getting home got his hands up and batted the ball. Carr caught his own deflection instead of knocking it to the ground and took a five-yard loss.
It's also a lesson for our defensive line: when you aren't getting home, hands up.
How to run on Notre Dame
Notre Dame's base defense is Cover 3, and Ahmmon says its drops are so deep that it gives away five free yards in the flat. BYU took it all night, slipping their receiver Legend Glasker out of the backfield on first down.To the boundary against condensed sets, Notre Dame plays a Cover 4 look with Leonard Moore pressing and the safety responsible for the run fit. BYU's answer was a crack block: the receiver comes inside and takes the safety, Moore stays on his man, and the alley behind him opens up.
That's a play for Fletcher and Javian Mallory, but Ahmmon stressed the receiver has to sell it. Daylyn Upshaw or Cooper Barkate has to crack with urgency off the snap. If he loafs, the corner feels it, comes off and lands right in the run lane.
At the goal line, he expects it to come down to man-on-man. BYU ran QB power straight at Notre Dame and won the pile. We did the same thing on fourth-and-1 against UNC. Our guys versus theirs.
How to throw on Notre Dame
Notre Dame loves man coverage in the low red zone, and Ahmmon says the motion will tell you. BYU ran a reverse-action rub to try to spring its fastest receiver. Christian Gray read it, went over the top of the traffic and met him at the goal line, a high-IQ play. Ahmmon wouldn't be surprised if we dial up a Malachi Toney reverse in the same spot.His pick for the guy who can take advantage is Barkate. Notre Dame sits in Cover 3 on standard downs, so if we go three-by-one, Barkate gets hitches and speed outs backside. When Notre Dame goes man, he gets go routes.
"Cooper Barkate is going to have a really good chance to put out some really good film against some quality players," Ahmmon said.
How Notre Dame will attack us
Three-by-one slot fades. Notre Dame's trips look puts a detached tight end, a slot and an outside receiver to one side, with a single receiver backside.When Carr sees no middle-of-the-field safety, he knows it's Cover 0 and pressure is coming, and he goes to Jaden Greathouse on the slot fade. The tell is the running back. If he's aligned up near the line instead of beside the quarterback, he's staying in to protect, and a shot is coming. When you're the middle receiver in trips, Ahmmon said, you're running one of two routes: slot fade or slant.
Free first downs. On a third-and-3 with 49 seconds left before half, BYU played its corner eight yards off and Notre Dame ran a simple speed out at the sticks. "That right there is where you lost the battle," Ahmmon said. The field-side speed out is the hardest throw for a quarterback, and BYU still gave it away. Press up, or at least delay the release.
The fake clap. Carr claps at the line to get the defense to show its hand, then adjusts. Ahmmon credited BYU for holding its disguise through the clap. That's how you make Carr think.
Jordan Faison. He's the receiver Ahmmon worries about most, not because he's a burner but because of how we play. Faison is a good route runner, he rarely drops the ball and he's slippery after the catch. Against a defense that doesn't jam, he's the worst matchup you can draw.
Empty on third down. Notre Dame goes five-wide with no back on third downs to spread the field, get our linebackers and corners in space and let Carr pick the coverage apart. Mohamed Toure and Chase Smith will be asked to cover.
Turn around. Notre Dame's receivers pluck the ball out of the air, which makes our habit of trailing and playing through the hands a recipe for flags.
"If you're in phase, please just turn around," Ahmmon said.
BYU's Isaiah Glasker did exactly that on one throw. He turned, high-pointed it and nearly picked it off, turning a sure touchdown into a breakup.
Rush through the inside hip. Carr stepped up through a free rusher on a nickel pressure and delivered a strike, the kind of play Billy Edwards Jr. made against us when Ahmad Moten Sr. had him dead to rights. Even if you're overrunning, Ahmmon said, you have to angle back down to that inside hip.
Who's on the spot
Offense: Barkate, for the reasons above. And both backs. Notre Dame's run defense isn't its strength, and it may be without middle linebacker Drayk Bowen and defensive tackle Francis Brewu. Control the line of scrimmage, establish Fletcher and Mallory early, and then take the shot plays when the looks are there.Defense: Marquise Lightfoot. Notre Dame spreads it out instead of max-protecting, which means one-on-ones for Lightfoot and Damon Wilson II. Lightfoot is going home to Chicago with first-round buzz and Ahmmon expects him to play with a fire under him.
He's also watching the nickel. Whoever plays there, whether Bryce Fitzgerald, Omar Thornton or Zechariah Poyser, is going to see Faison and Greathouse, and Notre Dame threw four slot fades against BYU.
Ahmmon's full film session, with every clip, is on the CanesInsight YouTube channel. Subscribe so you don't miss him back Friday before kickoff.
