Notre Dame concludes a brief, two-game road trip on Halloween when the Fighting Irish head south to face Georgia Tech in Atlanta. The Yellow Jackets are 2-4 this season, the second year in the tenure of head coach Geoff Collins. Tech’s young roster reflects Collins’ plan to transform the program from Paul Johnson’s triple option of 2008-18 to a pro-style spread offense. This journey has been bumpy, to say the least, and Notre Dame hopes to take advantage of an opponent that has surrendered 121 points in its last two outings. The ABC network will televise the game nationally beginning at 3:30 PM Eastern time.

Early in his career, Collins served as a graduate assistant, tight ends coach and director of player personnel at Tech. He then earned his reputation as an excellent defensive coordinator in stints at Florida, Mississippi State, Florida International and his alma mater, Western Carolina. He is the only coach to ever be nominated for the Broyles Award, given to college football’s top assistant coach, at three different schools. Most recently, Collins secured his first head coaching job at Temple. He posted a 15-10 record there in 2017 and 2018.

Tech has recruiting some excellent young talent under Collins. Three freshmen – quarterback Jeff Sims, offensive tackle Jordan Williams and running back Jahmyr Gibbs – are future stars who are being thrust into the fire this season. Sims has thrown more interceptions than touchdown passes, but his arm strength and dual threat capability are undeniable.

The Irish continue to be paced by its suffocating defense, which manhandled Pittsburgh last week. The unit will be further bolstered by the return of cornerback TaRiq Bracy to the lineup. Offensively, Notre Dame will try to compensate again for the loss of wide receiver Kevin Austin (broken foot). Also of note, wideout Braden Lenzy will be held out of action for several more weeks due to a recurring hamstring injury.

The Yellow Jackets welcome back tailback Jordan Mason on Saturday after he went down in the season opener. In his absence, Gibbs has taken over the team lead in rushing. Gibbs is so talented that it may be difficult now for Mason to crack the lineup even though he ran for 900 yards last season. Defensively, starting lineman Curtis Ryans remains out but end Antonneous Clayton should be ready. Another key starter, cornerback Tre Swilling, has been battling a foot ailment but is expected to start.

NOTRE DAME’S OFFENSE vs. GEORGIA TECH’S DEFENSE

Players comprising the Irish ground attack emerged healthy from last week’s game, with the possible exception of few bruised egos. They will look to recover with a better effort this week. Kyren Williams should be able to resume his custom of reaching 100 yards, while Chris Tyree needs to get more touches than the measly three he had in Pittsburgh. Quarterback Ian Book rushed eight times in that game, most of which were driven by necessity rather than design. It would be wise to keep his uniform clean this week in light of the challenging November schedule.

Coordinator Tom Rees will not be shy in asking Book to throw the ball, though. The passing game still lacks consistency and the Irish must establish reliable targets now that Austin and Lenzy are unavailable. On the plus side, Ben Skowronek emerged last week as a quality downfield option. The bad news is he was not targeted again after catching two early scoring passes. Also, Javon McKinley has been decidedly mediocre after some positive moments earlier this season. Ditto Lawrence Keys and Joe Wilkins.

This week’s game represents an opportunity to jump ahead on the scoreboard and take a look at a couple of talented freshmen. Jordan Johnson and Xavier Watts have flashed their skills on the practice field, and the injury situation suggests the training wheels need to come off.

Meanwhile, the Yellow Jackets are giving up 480 yards per game. They were swamped by Clemson, but their other five opponents were quite ordinary. Collins employs a 4-2-5 alignment in which linebackers David Curry and Quez Jackson are relied upon to keep order. They operate behind a depleted line consisting of Clayton, a transfer from Florida, and three sophomores. The best player in the latter trio is end Jordan Domineck.

All five members of the secondary range between 6’1” and 6’4”. Safties Juanyeh Thomas and Tariq Carpenter, along with rover Kaleb Oliver, weigh in at 220 pounds or more. All are veterans who are more effective against the run than the pass. At corner, Zamari Walton joins Swilling to form a respectable tandem. Backups Kenan Johnson and Myles Sims have not played particularly well when pressed into service.

GEORGIA TECH’S OFFENSE vs. NOTRE DAME’S DEFENSE

Tech’s massive offensive line leads the way for an offense that is productive when not shooting itself in the foot. Guard Kenny Cooper is the lone senior in the group. He lines up next to the freshman left tackle, Williams. The Yellow Jackets average a healthy 4.4 yards per carry for the season despite a poor showing against Clemson. Gibbs and Sims have the same number of carries to date, so the quarterback must be accounted for on any run/pass option plays.

The passing game has been inconsistent. Sims has completed only 54% of his throws, and no receiver has more than 17 receptions. The starters are Jalen Camp, Malachi Carter and Ahmarean Brown. Dylan Leonard has taken over at tight end for one-time starter Dylan Deveney, but the position is rarely targeted. Gibbs is also a favored option with 15 catches out of the backfield as Tech strives to get him the ball in space.

Rover Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah will have his hands full on Saturday as he decides whether to pursue Gibbs or Sims on any given play. If the Irish front does not get much penetration against the 1600-pound Georgia Tech line, it will be up to the linebackers to force Sims into third and long situations. Bo Bauer has come on to provide strong support for starter Drew White in the middle, but Notre Dame’s third linebacker spot has been a trouble spot. Neither Shayne Simon, Marist Liufau nor Jack Kiser has staked a permanent claim on the position.

If the Yellow Jackets minimize the negative plays, penalties and turnovers that have plagued them to date, they can create discomfort for the Irish. The outcome might more closely resemble the Florida State victory than last week’s shutdown of Pitt. The question is really whether Notre Dame can play with the same enthusiasm on that side of the ball. If so, the Yellow Jacket’s are bound to contribute to their own demise.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Georgia Tech’s specialists exhibit a stark contrast in terms of performance to date. Punter Pressley Harvin is among the nation’s best, while kickers Gavin and are a combined one out of five in field goal attempts and have missed three extra points. To make matters worse, each of the four missed field goals were blocked.

The return teams also have delivered mixed results. Last week, a 98-yard kickoff return for touchdown by Gibbs was nullified by a penalty. Although the statistics show very average production by the coverage and return teams, Gibbs remains a threat to score whenever he touches the ball.

A blocked punt by Notre Dame’s Isaiah Foskey last week will likely be played in the Tech film room this week. The Irish units have been brilliant at times but also fell asleep when Louisville attempted an onside kick. That type of mistake should not be repeated. Beyond that, the specialists have been reliable this season, although punter Jay Bramblett has a tendency to hit a clunker every now and then.

SUMMARY

Notre Dame’s offensive line and running backs should have a good day against the Tech front. While the Yellow Jackets have talent in the back seven, Book should be successful downfield since the pass rush is not very formidable. Any attempts by Tech to blitz can be countered by quick throws to Williams, Tyree, Michael Mayer and Tommy Tremble. Defensively, the Irish must repeat what they did last week – force a young quarterback to make hasty decisions in the passing game.

Collins knows his team must play better after two blowout losses. Even though it is early in his rebuild of the program, he is already feeling heat from some quarters. That didn’t sit well with Collins, who lashed out at his critics earlier this week. “All I’ve been everywhere I’ve been is successful,” he pleaded while fracturing the English language. “All I’ve done everywhere I’ve been is won and developed players to the highest level possible. Sometimes, it’s quick. Sometimes, it takes a little while to get it going. But it always ends up being positive.”

Addressing his detractors directly, Collins defiantly added, ““A lot of people want to tear you down. A lot of people want to build you up. Some people are going to be in your corner. Some people are going to turn their back on you. I’m keeping score too.”

Here are a few questions that will shed light on the outcome:

Can Notre Dame’s defense penetrate Tech’s mountainous offensive line?

Will Sims create problems for the Irish as did Florida State’s Jordan Travis?

Can Kyle Hamilton treat his hometown fans to an interception?

Will Book find new targets and improve his passing efficiency?

Can the Irish offensive line rebound after giving up 12 tackles for loss at Pitt?

Will the Irish special teams have another strong performance?

Can Notre Dame play with high intensity and force Tech into key mistakes?

Will any Irish freshman receivers get a chance to have an impact?

PREDICTION

Expect the Yellow Jackets to play with a chip on their shoulder this week, at least in the early going. However, the Irish proved last week they are not in the business of enabling struggling teams that want to make a statement against them. Notre Dame is simply better, and if Tech hopes the visitors will sleepwalk through this game while looking forward to next week’s date with Clemson, it won’t happen.

NOTRE DAME 45  GEORGIA TECH 13

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