Notre Dame takes to the road on Saturday afternoon to play the University of Virginia in the first of six games this season against Atlantic Coast Conference opponents. The Irish are coming off an impressive opening night performance against Texas, while the Cavaliers traveled to the Rose Bowl last week where they fell to highly ranked UCLA by 34-16. This contest is the first ever appearance in the State of Virginia by Notre Dame, and the highly anticipated event sold out in just 25 minutes. The game will be nationally televised on ABC beginning at 3:30 PM Eastern time.

Coach Mike London is in his sixth season in Charlottesville after a successful run at Richmond. London is 23-39 for the Cavs and 47-44 overall in his career. In the loss to the Bruins, Virginia ran for only 98 yards and did not score a touchdown until late in the fourth quarter. Defensively, the team surrendered 503 yards and allowed UCLA’s freshman quarterback Josh Rosen (28 for 35) to pick them apart.

The Cavaliers do have some talented players who will play hard in front of a home sellout crowd. Quarterback Matt Johns, a 6’5” junior, is a solid passer and can scramble for positive yardage when pressured. Tailback Taquan “Smoke” Mizzell is the main offensive threat, leading the team both in rushing and receiving last week. Senior captain Canaan Severin is the best wideout on the team and tight end Evan Butts played well in his first-ever game action. Virginia has suffered injuries on its offensive line at left guard and right tackle, leaving lone senior right guard Ross Burbank as the best of Saturday’s starting group.

The Irish were forced to fill a significant hole at running back when Tarean Folston went down for the season in the first quarter against Texas. Freshman Josh Adams had a storybook debut by running for two touchdowns in spot duty behind C.J. Prosise, who racked up 98 yards in 20 carries after being thrust into the lead role. The rest of the squad managed to get through its first game with only one other notable injury to safety Avery Sebastian, who fractured his foot and could miss up to six weeks.

NOTRE DAME’S OFFENSE vs. VIRGINIA’S DEFENSE

After witnessing his team get dissected by UCLA and watching film of Malik Zaire’s nearly flawless passing performance against Texas, Virginia Defensive Coordinator Jon Tenuta will try to devise ways to bring pressure. Notre Dame’s pass protection was crisp for the most part last week, but a few Longhorn blitzes were effective and Zaire made a couple of poor decisions by taking a loss rather than throwing the ball away. Tenuta will try to rattle Zaire and also challenge Prosise and Adams to handle a variety of pass blocking challenges.

The Cavs run a 4-3 defense built around defensive tackle David Dean and middle linebacker Micah Kiser. Other key players are senior ends Trent Corney and Mike Moore, along with veteran cornerbacks Demetrious Nicholson and Maurice Canady. Free safety Quin Blanding and nickel back Wilfred Wahee played well last week, although the lack of a strong pass rush made it a long day for the Virginia secondary overall.

The Irish match up well with this defense across the board, and Virginia must counter Notre Dame’s size and outside speed with calculated risks in order to generate turnovers and negative plays. The Cavalier secondary had problems staying with UCLA’s receivers and are likely to afford large cushions to Will Fuller and others in order to prevent the long ball. Zaire’s poise and decision making will be put to a greater test this week than last, if for no other reasons than the hostile environment and the fact that the opposition has actual game film to study. Still, Brian Kelly has enough offensive weapons and versatility to score 30+ points if his quarterback takes care of the football.

VIRGINIA’S OFFENSE vs. NOTRE DAME’S DEFENSE

The Cavaliers were unable to establish a running game last week, managing fewer than three yards per carry. The team did record 19 first downs, mostly on the strength of short, accurate passes from Johns to Smoke Mizzell and Canaan Severin. The offense is more methodical than a quick strike variety, and the Irish back seven has sufficient ability to contain Virginia’s skill position threats. The Cavs will have to earn their way down the field in order to put points on the board.

Notre Dame’s defensive line should once again be able to dominate and force Virginia into third and long situations. Pass rushers must account for safety valve passes to Mizzell and scrambles by Johns, who is not prone to force risky throws downfield. Johns will attempt to get rid of the ball quickly to keep the rush at bay, so the Irish defensive backs should play accordingly. In defending the run, Notre Dame must account for 260 pound fullback Vincent Croce as an imposing lead blocker and occasional ball carrier.

A positive for the visitors is the defensive depth they showcased against Texas. Liberal substitution will help combat the afternoon heat and humidity in order to keep the core starters fresh should they be needed in the fourth quarter. A point of emphasis for Notre Dame this week should be the generation of a pass rush with only four players.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Punter Tyler Newsome and kicker Justin Yoon enjoyed successful debuts for Notre Dame, and it’s now time for them to compete on foreign soil. Yoon did miss one field goal attempt last week, but there was no glaring error in its execution. Both specialists and their respective units appeared poised and efficient. Conversely, the Irish return game was forgettable. Amir Carlisle’s kickoff return was a disaster and punt returner C.J. Sanders had no room to maneuver. He caught a break when Torii Hunter recovered his fumble on one ill-advised attempt to return a punt under extreme pressure. In evaluating the risk versus reward based on the evidence to date, Notre Dame would do well just to fair catch every punt and take a touchback on all kickoffs.

Virginia has an accomplished kicker in Mike Frye, who converted his three field goals at UCLA. Punter Nicholas Conte averaged 50 yards on four attempts, and dropped two of them inside the 20. The Cavalier coverage and return teams could not muster many yards against the Bruins, despite having Mizzell and backup tailback Albert Reid catching the ball.

SUMMARY

It will be interesting to see how Virginia attacks Notre Dame now that London and Tenuta have had an opportunity to study this year’s Irish. That said, the Cavaliers do not appear to have the athletes or the depth to pull off an upset unless Zaire and company are very sloppy with the football. One should commend the hosts for scheduling back to back games against nationally ranked opponents when most large conference teams are playing glorified scrimmages. While this matchup will help Thomas Jefferson’s University financially, it may not be what London needs to improve his win-loss record.

The Irish offensive line stands out and should be the dominant unit in this game. This group enabled Zaire to settle in and play well last week and also allowed Prosise, Adams and Dexter Williams to take on more responsibility in the running game. The Cavs have a decent defensive line and nothing to lose by trying to pressure Notre Dame into mistakes, but Zaire’s running ability and stable of talented receivers can hurt them.

Here are a few questions that will provide insight into the outcome:

Will Zaire demonstrate the poise to counter the pressure brought by Tenuta’s defense?

Can Virginia’s offensive line handle Sheldon Day and his posse?

Will Prosise and Adams continue to run the ball effectively?

Which team will achieve more plays of 20 yards or more?

Will Notre Dame be able to contain Smoke Mizzell?

After failing to force a turnover last week, which defense will break through in this game?

Can either team’s punt or kickoff return men generate a positive play?

PREDICTION

The Irish should still be considered an unknown commodity, and opponents will continue to look for ways to penetrate their massive front line to pressure Zaire into showing that he is only human. Brian VanGorder’s defense is improved, especially in the secondary, but its performance last week was more about Texas being inept. Although Johns is a more accomplished quarterback than Tyrone Swoopes at this stage of their careers, the Cavaliers do not have enough talent on their roster to take full advantage of any weaknesses Notre Dame may have.

NOTRE DAME 34 VIRGINIA 13