Notre Dame (8-3) concludes its regular season with a trip to the West Coast to face the Stanford Cardinal (2-9). The Fighting Irish have been healthy and effective on defense this year while the offense has been hampered by injuries and schematic shortcomings under first year coordinator Gerad Parker. The Cardinal have won eight of the past 13 meetings between these schools including a 16-14 upset last season in South Bend. David Shaw was Stanford’s coach in 12 of those years. Television coverage for this game is restricted to the PAC-12 Network starting at 7:00 pm Eastern time.

Coach Troy Taylor is in his first season in Palo Alto after a successful four-year stint at Sacramento State. In fact, Stanford opened this season with a 30-23 loss to Taylor’s former team. The Cardinal are in the midst of a miserable campaign and have not won at home this season. On the other hand, Notre Dame has struggled on the road with two losses as the favorite and a narrow win against underdog Duke.

When asked about the winless record at home and the challenge of playing Notre Dame, Taylor responded as follows:

“You want to win them all, but obviously being at home is supposed to give you an advantage,” he said. “We haven’t won a game at home, is the reality. We haven’t played well enough. Part of that is our opponents; we’ve played some good teams. But part of that is we’re not playing well enough to win for whatever reason.”

Marcus Freeman’s squad has been successful on offense against weak teams this season, and Stanford fits that profile. The wide receiver position has been problematic for the Irish in terms of youth, inexperience, and injuries, but the Cardinal secondary is statistically very poor. Sam Hartman should enjoy a productive evening and hopefully will be able to give way to Steve Angeli before too long.

The Irish may again be without center Zeke Correll. Sophomore Ashton Craig did a fine job last week in his absence, while his classmate Billy Schrauth played well in place of injured guard Rocco Spindler. Wideout Jayden Thomas (hamstring) is still not fully healthy, nor is Deion Colzie (knee). Both have missed considerable time. Of course, tight end Mitchell Evans was already lost for the season a few weeks back.

Stanford will be without several key offensive weapons. All are seniors. Tight end Ben Yurosek, wide receiver John Humphries and tailback Casey Filkins are unlikely to play.

NOTRE DAME’S OFFENSE vs. STANFORD’S DEFENSE

Stanford has switched to a flexible 4-2-5 alignment under Taylor. End David Bailey and tackle Anthony Franklin are the most impactful linemen, although Wilfredo Aybar has come on strong lately to gain more playing time. Bailey is a hybrid type athlete with linebacker size and excellent pass rushing skills. On running downs, the Cardinal will replace the nickel back with another tackle and move Bailey off the line to create a 4-3 set. They have respectable numbers against the run but their pass defense is among the worst in the nation.

The linebackers are transfer Gaethan Bernadel and fifth year senior Tristan Sinclair. This pair leads the team in tackles with 76 and 68, respectively. Each is capable of creating havoc plays but at the same time can be lost or overwhelmed. I will call it the Marist Liufau Syndrome.

The Cardinal secondary is completely revamped from last season. The most glaring result is teams have passed for an average of 312 yards against the Cardinal. Safety has been particularly problematic. Junior safety Alaka’i Gilman is a familiar name. His brother Alohi played at Navy before transferring to Notre Dame and distinguishing himself with the Irish. He now is a starter for the Los Angeles Chargers in the NFL.

Alaka’i is not quite at that level though. The other starting safety, Jimmy Wyrick, was lost to injury earlier this year. Sophomore Scotty Edwards replaced Wyrick and started alongside Gilman for most of this season. Last week, however, both were replaced in the starting lineup by Mitch Leigber and Omari Porter. Cal quarterback Fernando Mendoza still threw for 300 yards.

Fifth year senior Zahran Manley is Stanford’s best cornerback. At 6’2”, he usually matches up against the opponent’s best receiver. None of these players should slow down Notre Dame’s passing attack. The wideouts should get open and gain yards after the catch. The line should be able to protect Hartman and he should be on target for the most part. Nothing is ever easy in football but this (success through the air against the Cardinal) may come close.

STANFORD’S OFFENSE vs. NOTRE DAME’S DEFENSE

Quarterback Ashton Daniels is a 67% passer, which would normally indicate an efficient offense. The problem is most of his throws are short and there is a lack of playmakers around him. Last year’s three starting wideouts have moved on. Humphries, the top returning veteran receiver, has been out since the opening game. Fortunately for the Cardinal, Elic Ayomanor has enjoyed a breakout season with 55 receptions to date.

Freshman Tiger Bachmeier has also emerged as a legitimate threat and is second on the team with 36 catches. Sophomore tight end Ben Roush has filled in capably for Yurosek but the senior is a difference maker when he is in the lineup.

Pass protection is another issue for Stanford. The offensive line features only one experienced veteran from last year’s team. Center Levi Rogers, who played guard in 2022, has been their best lineman this season. The other four starters were imported from outside the program and have struggled. The Cardinal rank near the bottom of FBS in terms of sacks and quarterback hits allowed.

As you might expect, the running game has been almost nonexistent. Tailback EJ Smith is just rounding into game shape after recovering from ACL surgery a year ago. He has started four games this season yet he leads the tailbacks in rush yards with 229 on 52 attempts. His backup, Casey Filkins, is now injured and is not likely to play on Saturday. It is telling that both Daniels and backup quarterback Justin Lamson each have approximately 100 rushing attempts to date. Many were designed runs but others were just instances where the quarterback had to run for his life.

Notre Dame’s cornerbacks will be challenged to defend Ayomanor, especially on slant routes. The Cardinal used this play repeatedly in their victory against Colorado and the Buffaloes could not stop it. Bachmeier likes the double move and is able to get open downfield. When Daniels has time, he can throw the deep ball on target. Of course, we can expect Al Golden to apply pressure given Stanford’s weak offensive front, just as he did against Wake Forest last week. He must also keep in mind that Daniels and Lamson are effective runners who can do damage when they escape the pocket.

SPECIAL TEAMS

The Irish special teams have been more aggressive and consequently more productive in recent weeks. Kicker Spencer Shrader and punter Bryce McFerson misfire on occasion but no more than most at their respective positions. The coverage units have improved over the course of the season. More recently, the return teams have generated enough excitement for me to watch them rather than get a head start to the refrigerator ahead of the TV commercial.

Senior kicker Josh Karty was named a First Team All-American last year. He has made 20 field goals this season in 23 attempts and is lethal from up to 55 yards. The Cardinal have trouble scoring touchdowns in general and in the red zone in particular, so Karty is frequently called upon to get three points. Punter Aidan Flintoft sports a 2-yard average and is adept at placing the ball inside an opponent’s 20-yard line without putting it in the end zone. Reserve wide receiver Bryce Farrell is the primary kick returner. Filkins typically returns punts but Farrell will likely replace him in that role.

SUMMARY

Stanford has played well in stretches on both sides of the ball but they have rarely been able to sustain a solid effort over four quarters. Notre Dame’s physicality will cause problems for the Cardinal defense, but Daniels, Ayomanor and possibly Bachmeier will undoubtedly make a few plays in their passing attack. Should Stanford’s offense enjoy success early, Irish Defensive Coordinator Al Golden has the chess pieces at this disposal to quell any serious uprising.

When Notre Dame has the ball, both the run and the pass should work if properly mixed. Different plays should be run out of the same formation to avoid the predictability that hampered the Irish during the middle stretch of the season. I would also like to see the running backs used in the passing game. Devyn Ford was wide open for a touchdown on a wheel route last week and similar passes worked in September before Gerad Parker inexplicably stopped calling them. I was also encouraged to learn that Angeli was able to audible at the line of scrimmage on his scoring pass to Jordan Faison. This offense needs that kind of flexibility.

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

• Can Stanford’s patchwork offensive line stand up to the Irish defensive front?
• Will Notre Dame’s cornerbacks be able to handle Ayomanor and Bachmeier?
• Which team will score touchdowns inside the red zone?
• Will Irish OL Craig and Schrauth continue to get the job done up front?
• Can Notre Dame rush for over 200 yards while holding Stanford under 100?
• Which young Irish reserves will make a case for playing time next season?
• Can Notre Dame’s special teams continue to have a positive impact?
• Will Ohio State put Michigan out of everyone’s misery?

PREDICTION

No one gave Stanford much chance to beat Notre Dame last season, and any Irish opponent that wins eight of 13 games must be respected. Both teams are vastly different from last year’s editions, though. The biggest uncertainty is whether Coach Freeman will have the Irish prepared to start the game in a dominant fashion. His record on the road in this regard leaves plenty of room for improvement. The Cardinal simply has too many weaknesses, however, to keep this contest close for more than 20 minutes of play.

NOTRE DAME 41  STANFORD 13