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- Sep 28, 2017
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Pasted the links but added some familiar snippets:
Athlon Sports
While quarterback Brandon Wimbush continues to get better with each snap, the unquestioned strength of Notre Dame’s offense is its ground attack and offensive line. The Fighting Irish are pounding opponents for 324.8 rushing yards per game this season, with rushers averaging a whopping 7.04 yards per carry. Junior running back Josh Adams is having a terrific (and potentially worthy of Heisman consideration) season. Adams has rushed for 1,191 yards and nine touchdowns on 137 carries, averaging 132.3 per contest and 8.7 a carry. He also leads all players at the FBS level with seven rushes of 60 yards or more in 2017. Adams was banged up in the win over Wake Forest but is expected to be ready to go by Saturday night. When Adams needs a rest, Deon McIntosh (367 yards), Dexter Williams (280) and Tony Jones (198) are capable options.
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Left tackle Mike McGlinchey and guard Quenton Nelson anchor the offensive line, which is one of the best in college football through the first 11 weeks of the season. In addition to the success of the offensive line in clearing the way for rushers, this unit has allowed only 14 sacks in nine games.
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How will Notre Dame’s offensive line match up against a fast and athletic front seven for Miami? This is likely to be the key to Saturday night’s game.
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Miami has the speed and athleticism to match Notre Dame’s strength and power in the trenches. Can the Hurricanes keep Adams in check and prevent the junior from breaking big plays on the ground? Not only is big-play prevention key, Miami has to put Notre Dame’s offense into obvious passing situations and force Brandon Wimbush to win this game with his arm.
Notre Dame SB Nation
The most critical member of the Miami offense is QB Malik Rosier, a first year starter who has all the tools and who has shown flashes of brilliance, but who has also been very inconsistent. Rosier has thrown for 2,273 yards on the year so far, completing 56.2% of his throws while accumulating 19 TDs and 7 INT. If he’s able to get into a groove early, it could be a long game for the Fighting Irish defense, as Rosier’s performances are usually streaky and feed off of momentum and confidence-gaining early on (like most young quarterbacks).
Thus, it will be absolutely crucial for the Notre Dame front seven to put pressure on Rosier. As a young QB, he’s shown the ability to get rattled and fall into a funk if things aren’t going smoothly, and so guys like Daelin Hayes (25 tackles, 6.5 TFL, 3 sacks, 3 QBH), Julian Okwara (1.5 sacks, 1 INT, 7 QBH, 1 FF), and Khalid Kareem (14 tackles, 5.5 TFL, 3 sacks, 5 QBH) need to have huge days getting into the backfield to wreak havoc and force mistakes by Miami’s QB.
DT Jerry Tillery (37 tackles, 5.5 TFL, 3 sacks, 8 QBH, 1 FF) and DL Jay Hayes (21 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 1 sack, 4 QBH) will need to get a good push up the middle as well, and it should be interesting to see how much heat Mike Elko brings from guys at the second level of the defense, like Te’von Coney and Drue Tranquill.
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The Hurricanes won’t be able to throw at-will out there on Saturday evening, though, as Notre Dame’s secondary, although not elite, has been incredibly strong this season against some pretty good passing attacks (Sam Darnold and USC, Ryan Finley and NC State, John Wolford and Wake Forest).
The group is led by sophomore corner Julian Love, who has been playing at an All-American level this year (37 tackles, 14 PBU, 3 INT — 2 for TDs and the 3rd just barely not a TD). Love is 3rd in the country in passes defended, 4th in pass breakups, and 1st in interception return yardage.
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The Irish are 5th in the country in ESPN’s offensive efficiency metric, 6th in the S&P+ rankings, 13th in total offense, 5th in rushing offense, and 7th in scoring offense. Essentially, no matter how you want to slice the data, the Notre Dame offense is elite in every sense of the word — except in passing, where ND is 109th in the country in passing offense.
So, what the aggressive, chances-taking Miami defense will look to do under defensive coordinator Manny Diaz is take away the Notre Dame running game, contain Brandon Wimbush to the pocket, put pressure on him, and make him win the game with his arm. All of that sounds really good, except for one problem — no team, save for Georgia, has come even remotely close to shutting down the Notre Dame running game.
The Irish have rushed for at least 200 yards in 7 of 9 games, and have run for at least 180 in 8 of 9. Just Georgia was able to completely shut down the running game, allowing just 55 yards to the Irish. Otherwise, Notre Dame’s offensive line, led by All-Americans Quenton “Destroyer of Worlds” Nelson and Mike McGlinchey, have been absolutely wrecking opposing defenses, opening up truck-sized running lanes for Josh Adams to run through on his way to 1,191 yards (8.7 per carry) and 9 TDs on the season.
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However, I’ve seen enough of the ND offense this season to know that this offensive line and stable of running backs and Wimbush will continue to pound the ball until the defense just can’t withstand the attack anymore, and the floodgates will begin to open late in the 3rd and early in the 4th.
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The Miami defense is stingy, so my final score below might be considered extremely aggressive. However, knowing that this is a very aggressive Hurricanes defense that will certainly be taking some chances in order to try to force turnovers, and knowing how demoralizingly strong the Notre Dame offense is once it’s had a couple quarters to wear away at a defense, I think the Irish fire on all cylinders in the second half and just explode for lots of points.
One final note: This score prediction was something I really talked myself into, as I got scared of my truest of opinions about how this game will go, and didn’t know as much about the Miami defense and how good it’s been as I do now.
However, in my heart of hearts, I look at Miami’s opponents this year and know that their stats, although impressive, are still somewhat a product of their extremely soft schedule, and so I’m skeptical they will completely hold up against a very proven elite entity in the Notre Dame offense. To put it simply, I think this one could end with Notre Dame winning by 3+ scores if the offensive line comes out snatching people’s souls.
Athlon Sports
While quarterback Brandon Wimbush continues to get better with each snap, the unquestioned strength of Notre Dame’s offense is its ground attack and offensive line. The Fighting Irish are pounding opponents for 324.8 rushing yards per game this season, with rushers averaging a whopping 7.04 yards per carry. Junior running back Josh Adams is having a terrific (and potentially worthy of Heisman consideration) season. Adams has rushed for 1,191 yards and nine touchdowns on 137 carries, averaging 132.3 per contest and 8.7 a carry. He also leads all players at the FBS level with seven rushes of 60 yards or more in 2017. Adams was banged up in the win over Wake Forest but is expected to be ready to go by Saturday night. When Adams needs a rest, Deon McIntosh (367 yards), Dexter Williams (280) and Tony Jones (198) are capable options.
...
Left tackle Mike McGlinchey and guard Quenton Nelson anchor the offensive line, which is one of the best in college football through the first 11 weeks of the season. In addition to the success of the offensive line in clearing the way for rushers, this unit has allowed only 14 sacks in nine games.
...
How will Notre Dame’s offensive line match up against a fast and athletic front seven for Miami? This is likely to be the key to Saturday night’s game.
...
Miami has the speed and athleticism to match Notre Dame’s strength and power in the trenches. Can the Hurricanes keep Adams in check and prevent the junior from breaking big plays on the ground? Not only is big-play prevention key, Miami has to put Notre Dame’s offense into obvious passing situations and force Brandon Wimbush to win this game with his arm.
Notre Dame SB Nation
The most critical member of the Miami offense is QB Malik Rosier, a first year starter who has all the tools and who has shown flashes of brilliance, but who has also been very inconsistent. Rosier has thrown for 2,273 yards on the year so far, completing 56.2% of his throws while accumulating 19 TDs and 7 INT. If he’s able to get into a groove early, it could be a long game for the Fighting Irish defense, as Rosier’s performances are usually streaky and feed off of momentum and confidence-gaining early on (like most young quarterbacks).
Thus, it will be absolutely crucial for the Notre Dame front seven to put pressure on Rosier. As a young QB, he’s shown the ability to get rattled and fall into a funk if things aren’t going smoothly, and so guys like Daelin Hayes (25 tackles, 6.5 TFL, 3 sacks, 3 QBH), Julian Okwara (1.5 sacks, 1 INT, 7 QBH, 1 FF), and Khalid Kareem (14 tackles, 5.5 TFL, 3 sacks, 5 QBH) need to have huge days getting into the backfield to wreak havoc and force mistakes by Miami’s QB.
DT Jerry Tillery (37 tackles, 5.5 TFL, 3 sacks, 8 QBH, 1 FF) and DL Jay Hayes (21 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 1 sack, 4 QBH) will need to get a good push up the middle as well, and it should be interesting to see how much heat Mike Elko brings from guys at the second level of the defense, like Te’von Coney and Drue Tranquill.
...
The Hurricanes won’t be able to throw at-will out there on Saturday evening, though, as Notre Dame’s secondary, although not elite, has been incredibly strong this season against some pretty good passing attacks (Sam Darnold and USC, Ryan Finley and NC State, John Wolford and Wake Forest).
The group is led by sophomore corner Julian Love, who has been playing at an All-American level this year (37 tackles, 14 PBU, 3 INT — 2 for TDs and the 3rd just barely not a TD). Love is 3rd in the country in passes defended, 4th in pass breakups, and 1st in interception return yardage.
...
The Irish are 5th in the country in ESPN’s offensive efficiency metric, 6th in the S&P+ rankings, 13th in total offense, 5th in rushing offense, and 7th in scoring offense. Essentially, no matter how you want to slice the data, the Notre Dame offense is elite in every sense of the word — except in passing, where ND is 109th in the country in passing offense.
So, what the aggressive, chances-taking Miami defense will look to do under defensive coordinator Manny Diaz is take away the Notre Dame running game, contain Brandon Wimbush to the pocket, put pressure on him, and make him win the game with his arm. All of that sounds really good, except for one problem — no team, save for Georgia, has come even remotely close to shutting down the Notre Dame running game.
The Irish have rushed for at least 200 yards in 7 of 9 games, and have run for at least 180 in 8 of 9. Just Georgia was able to completely shut down the running game, allowing just 55 yards to the Irish. Otherwise, Notre Dame’s offensive line, led by All-Americans Quenton “Destroyer of Worlds” Nelson and Mike McGlinchey, have been absolutely wrecking opposing defenses, opening up truck-sized running lanes for Josh Adams to run through on his way to 1,191 yards (8.7 per carry) and 9 TDs on the season.
...
However, I’ve seen enough of the ND offense this season to know that this offensive line and stable of running backs and Wimbush will continue to pound the ball until the defense just can’t withstand the attack anymore, and the floodgates will begin to open late in the 3rd and early in the 4th.
...
The Miami defense is stingy, so my final score below might be considered extremely aggressive. However, knowing that this is a very aggressive Hurricanes defense that will certainly be taking some chances in order to try to force turnovers, and knowing how demoralizingly strong the Notre Dame offense is once it’s had a couple quarters to wear away at a defense, I think the Irish fire on all cylinders in the second half and just explode for lots of points.
One final note: This score prediction was something I really talked myself into, as I got scared of my truest of opinions about how this game will go, and didn’t know as much about the Miami defense and how good it’s been as I do now.
However, in my heart of hearts, I look at Miami’s opponents this year and know that their stats, although impressive, are still somewhat a product of their extremely soft schedule, and so I’m skeptical they will completely hold up against a very proven elite entity in the Notre Dame offense. To put it simply, I think this one could end with Notre Dame winning by 3+ scores if the offensive line comes out snatching people’s souls.
