Notre Dame hosts the University of Massachusetts on Saturday in the first ever football game between these schools. The Minutemen represent the Mid-American Conference, and are 0-2 on the season after losing to Temple last week in heartbreaking fashion. The Irish are 3-0 and hope to enjoy a breather of sorts before what promises to be a challenging slate of opponents in October. The game will be televised on NBC starting at 3:30 PM Eastern time. Tom Hammond will do the play-by-play as Dan Hicks is covering FedEx Cup golf for the network.
The highly regarded Mark Whipple is in the second season of his second tour with UMass. He left the school in 2003 after a very successful stint that included three Atlantic-10 Conference Championships and an NCAA 1-AA National Championship. In trying his hand as an offensive coach in the NFL, Whipple earned praise for his work and a Super Bowl ring with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2005. He is in his eighteenth season as a college head coach, with a 124-70 overall record and 52-37 in his seven plus years at UMass.
The Irish will try to avoid a letdown after an inspired effort against Georgia Tech. Their motivation is to settle the matter quickly and get their starters off the field before the dreaded injury bug bites again. Coach Brian Kelly would also like to see his backup quarterback, freshman Brandon Wimbush, get extended action during this contest even though starter DeShone Kizer is hardly a grizzled veteran.
Fifth year senior quarterback Blake Frohnhapfel is the unquestioned leader for the Minutemen. Standing at 6’6” and 240 pounds, Frohnhapfel is a strong pocket passer who has averaged over 300 yards per game this season. While the backs and receivers are also veteran players, the offensive line is not very experienced. Center Matt Sparks is the only senior in the group. Defensively, a pair of seniors, linebacker Jovan Santos-Knox and safety Khary Bailey-Smith, are the key playmakers.
NOTRE DAME’S OFFENSE vs. UMASS’ DEFENSE
The Irish will enjoy a significant size advantage in the trenches, and should be able to run the ball effectively even if C.J. Prosise is used sparingly. The Minutemen employ a 3-4 alignment anchored by nose tackle Robert Kitching III and inside linebackers Shane Huber and Santos-Knox. UMass opponents have averaged 228 rush yards per game in this young season, and Notre Dame is by far the most talented offensive team that UMass will face this year. Any attempts to stack the box or double cover Will Fuller will come at a price for the Minutemen, who gave a spirited effort against Temple before faltering in the final moments.
The UMass secondary features four senior starters. In addition to the safeties, transfer Kelton Brackett has performed well at cornerback and recorded six tackles last week with an interception and a fumble recovery. The Minutemen have some ability and will be inspired to play at Notre Dame, so the Irish will have to put some effort into this contest to avoid a protracted struggle. Kizer needs to work on his passing accuracy, and it would not be prudent for him to be running the ball in this game. Instead, breakout games for the likes of Alize Jones, Corey Robinson and Torii Hunter would be most welcome.
UMASS’ OFFENSE vs. NOTRE DAME’S DEFENSE
Senior wide receiver Tajae Sharpe is the most talented player on the UMass roster. He grabbed 11 passes for 156 yards last week after recording another 11 catches for 138 yards in the opener against Colorado. Sharpe has a 37 consecutive game streak with at least one pass reception. While Sharpe is more of a possession type receiver, Marken Michel represents the speedy target in this offense. Frohnhapfel also mixes in many short passes to his backs, including fullback Rodney Mills and tailbacks Jamal Wilson and Shad Abrokwah.
Notre Dame will need to defend the passing game by applying pressure, which will motivate the relatively immobile Frohnhapfel to get the ball out quickly and settle for short gains to maintain possession. The lack of consistency in the running game has hurt the Minutemen despite their plus sized offensive line, and the Irish should be able to cover the passing routes with superior athletes.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Freshman Irish kicker Justin Yoon rekindled the worst fears of fans by clanking an extra point attempt last week, but rebounded to boot a third quarter field goal without difficulty. He won’t be called upon to win the game this week, but he needs to get through an entire contest without a miss. Kickoff returns remain an embarrassing problem for Notre Dame, and it’s difficult to assess whether the failure is due to poor blocking or ineffective running by Amir Carlisle.
UMass does not have much of a return game, either. The team has forced twelve punts but has not returned one yet, although diminutive freshman James Oliphant has shown some skill in returning kickoffs. Punter Logan Laurent is a consistent performer for the Minutemen while kicker Blake Lucas has experienced intermittent struggles.
SUMMARY
The Irish can help themselves this week by sticking to the business at hand, or they can become their own worst enemy by coming out flat and allowing UMass to gain a toehold. The Minutemen proved against a very respectable Temple team that they can cause problems when playing their best football. Notre Dame needs to expand Kizer’s command of the offense for the upcoming teams on the schedule, and players other than Fuller and Prosise need to become more consistent contributors.
Here are a few questions that will shed light on the outcome:
Will the Irish maintain the level of play they established last week against Georgia Tech?
Can Kizer complete a high percentage of his passes and make way for Wimbush?
Will Josh Adams and Dexter Williams produce quality rushes when called upon?
Can UMass improve upon its third down conversion rate of 27%?
Will UMass linebacker Kassan Messiah play inspired ball when he sees his likeness on the Notre Dame Library?
PREDICTION
Notre Dame has a distinct edge in the trenches and in overall athleticism, but the Irish cannot fall into the trap of playing down to the level of their opponent. Frohnhapfel and Sharpe can play in any league, but they will need time to make things happen. Sheldon Day and his mates will have other ideas, and the Irish should be able to gain complete control by halftime.
NOTRE DAME 41 UMASS 14
2015 says:
MAC team. Win or lose, embarrassing to play these types of teams (Ohio State-esq). Will skip this week. Bring on Clemson.
mick says:
Skip this week? what kind of fan skips a game? Go Irish! To compare our schedule to Ohio state’s is asinine.
HURLS says:
For 2015, an explanation.
This is my explanation, nothing official. But this UMass game was scheduled only a few years ago, after Charlie Molnar had become coach at UMass. He had been part of BK’s crew. I didn’t follow Molnar’s progress (even though I’m a resident of Mass) but suffice to say it wasn’t successful. (current coach is Mark Whipple) HOWEVER, UMass scheduled this ND match-up when Molnar’s was coach – that’s likely why they were even considered by ND. That is how college athletics works, in an “old boy” sort of way.
Of course this is speculation by me. But it’s the best explanation I can think of for how UMass found its way onto ND’s schedule.
NDBonecrusher says:
I wil NOT be skipping this week, and do NOT disagree with an occasional opponent like UMass (not “power 5”). You can’t play Clemson and Ga Tech every week. Our schedule is plenty damn hard.
Vannie last week I hoped you were wrong and now I hope you are spot on. 2015 you brought up OSU-let us take a lesson from them, and from ourselves at Virginia. PUT THIS THING AWAY EARLY!!! If we let these guys hang around by committing foolish mental errors and getting 3s when we should be coming away with 7s, it’s going to be a frustrating experience. ND has the chance to rest some guys, and in the process get valuable experience for Wimbush et al. If the rest of the year goes anything like the start, the younger guys will need to play ready or not. So let’s make ’em ready.
Cmon IRISH-remove all doubt by halftime and, dominate a team that you have every reason to dominate!
Jerrod says:
The Steelers did not win the Super Bowl in 2010, they lost to Greeen Bay.
NDBonecrusher says:
Umm…Ben was a SB 50 and 53 winner. Lions and Cardinals. Yes lost to Green Bay but coach from GB is from Pittsburgh so it could have been worse.
Either way your logic clearly demonstrates that Kizer did a poor job against Ga Tech. My apologies.
NDBonecrusher says:
Oops Seahawks. In Detroit. Whole defense got Dick LeBeau jerseys. It was awesome.
Pineapple says:
Ben wins SB 50 and 53? Sweet! Can’t wait to watch those games when they are played in 2016 and 2019.
John Vannie says:
Thanks. It was the 2005 season.
bobnd80 says:
How bout Alabama-esque or any other good team esque ? Show me one team in the country that doesn’t have at least two cupcakes on their schedule.
irishhawk50 says:
Hard to get excited over these type of games. If they need to be scheduled they should be opening season games. However this game comes at a good time. Kizer needs the reps and a good passing game from UMass will hopefully prepare the secondary for Clemson’s Watson next week. Hope the level of play helps the Irish tune-up for next week.
Jim Kress says:
“Will the Irish maintain the level of play they established last week against Georgia Tech?”
Only if they are REALLY a Championship contending team.
Thomas Burke says:
Our Lady, napping… With Pope Frank in town?!? Nope! ?. Go Irish!!!???
Jake in California says:
Irish come out flat.. Classic “trap game”.. But they take control early in the third quarter
and are now 4-0..
ND 35
UMASS 23
Lou says:
Have seen the teams the SEC have been playing? Teams like Jacksonville State, Middle Tennessee State, Sam Houston State and Wofford. UMass may not be a Power 5 teams but it’s better than playing a 1AA team.
Dirty says:
Exactly.
flirish says:
anything but a blow out is completely unacceptable. I don’t mind one game like this a season, it is 5 less than Ohio State, Baylor, TCU and the SEC all of whom play a minimum of four to five total cup cakes a year. with that said, it has to be a blow out. Back ups need lots of work
Vince says:
I find it rather interesting that some of the comments are saying it’s hard to get excited about this match up. While I certainly feel this team is more talented and focused than some of our past teams, I shouldn’t have to remind everyone that ND has always had a habit of playing down to thier competition. We as a fan base should not be so arrogant to think that all we need to do is show up and it’s a “W”!! With that said I am very much looking forward to our offense ironing out the kinks in our running game and getting our other backs some reps. If we play the way we should be capable then we can exhale and get excited about Clemson. NEVER overlook an opponent, especially a huge underdog wanting to play inspired on national TV!!!
Kevin says:
Totally agree with Vince. I am curious – does anyone know ND’s record vs. the spread when favored during the BK years? How about their record when they are a double digit favorite? I suspect it is under .500. This is not the 1960’s. ND rarely blows out anyone anymore. It will be a victory but I bet, going into the 4th Q, it will be closer than you wanted.
chrisnd93 says:
One of the things that I distinctly remember from the 1988 Championship Season was that in games that Notre Dame was supposed to win (such as Purdue, Air Force, Stanford, and Rice), they won CONVINCINGLY. There was not a single doubt, at any point during those games, that it was not going to be a completely dominating win. Of course, on Friday nights, and up until game time, Holtz had the team believing that their next opponent could win the Super Bowl, and that made sense for teams like Miami and USC that year. But he even said that about Rice. But then, when it came time to perform, the Irish found a way to lock down their opponents and win right from the beginning – in purely DOMINATING fashion. I distinctly remember that the Rice game was so out of hand that Holtz told his players to avoid scoring any more than the 54 they already had scored.
Since Holtz left, I have not seen the Notre Dame teams dominate games that they must dominate from start to finish on a consistent fashion (maybe the Navy and Miami games in 2012). They certainly showed flashes of such capability during the Texas game this year, which was great to see. However, I would love to see another game like the 1988 games whereby you knew going in that Notre Dame was so good that their opponent had no chance whatsoever. Tomorrow’s game needs to be 1988 Notre Dame vs. Purdue, not 2008 Michigan vs. Appalachian State.
shannon says:
I need a stress free weekend. Let’s rest some guys and cruise to an easy win.
I have said that before though.
GOND88 says:
ND should win easily if they don’t play down to the competition like Vannie and others have said which the have a propensity to do. The most recent example being ACC bottom feeder Virginia.
UMASS was a 1-AA school just a few years ago, so it would be embarrassing if ND lets Mr. Whipple and his troops hang around into the second half.
Fitz says:
I remember thinking Northwestern would be a cinch last year and that ended up being one of the most embarrassing ND games I’ve ever witnessed. Up there with say Syracuse and UConn senior day games. Tulsa springs to mind with a grimace. Now don’t get me wrong, I think we will win against UMass. But let’s show some of that classic Notre Dame respect for each and every opponent. Who foresaw Jacksonville State taking it to the wire against Auburn? I am however proud that ND is one of only 2 other programs to have Never played an FCS (I-AA) school before, so I don’t get the schedule complaints.
ND 38 – UM 13.
Dirty says:
Auburn stinks, I wasn’t surprised in the least. Nor have I been surprised by the struggles of Big Mouth Bielema. However, ND should blow UMass out of the water.