Notre Dame (4-1) resumes its regular season on Saturday by hosting the Stanford Cardinal (2-3). The Fighting Irish had opened the 2024 campaign with a series of inconsistent performances and debilitating injuries. Last week’s bye provided an opportunity to rest, recover, and address the shortcomings on both sides of the ball. The Cardinal are coming off a pair of drubbings by new conference mates Clemson and Virginia Tech in the ACC. NBC will provide television coverage for this game starting at 3:30 pm Eastern time.

Coach Troy Taylor is in his second season in Palo Alto. He is making progress in his task to rebuild the program, although the path remains challenging. A mass exodus occurred after David Shaw resigned following the 2022 season, and Taylor is working to fill the gaps through recruiting. Unfortunately, the transfer portal has not been kind to Stanford this year as more players departed than came aboard. Even so, there are signs that Taylor’s efforts are beginning to gain traction on the field.

Taylor is known as an offensive innovator and was asked about the opportunity to attack Notre Dame’s defense. “I’d say the thing that distinguishes them the most is their ability to play man coverage pretty much throughout the game. They do a nice job of mixing in some zone coverage. But the passing lanes, the best defense you can play in football is really man-free, man coverage with a free safety, if you’ve got the guys who can do it, and they do. It makes the passing lanes very tight. You’re able to get pressure on the quarterback. Just their ability to play man coverage, hold down in the secondary and how physical they are up front.”

Regarding the injuries that have plagued the Irish to date, the news is decidedly mixed. The team had hoped to have guard Billy Schrauth and defensive tackle Gabe Rubio back this week. Both are unlikely to play. Coach Marcus Freeman also confirmed that rush end Boubacar Traore will miss the rest of the season. On the positive side, cornerback Christian Gray, wideout Jordan Faison, guard Sam Pendleton, and defensive end Josh Burnham will return to action.

Stanford quarterback Ashton Daniels will be available on Saturday after missing last week’s game against Virginia Tech. Daniels suffered a leg injury in the fourth quarter of the previous contest at Clemson. Backup Jordan Lamson filled in but it appears that Daniels will reclaim the job this week. Junior safety Jay Green and senior center Levi Rodgers, their most experienced lineman, are currently sidelined with injuries. Finally, highly regarded freshman tailback Micah Ford is listed as questionable.

NOTRE DAME’S OFFENSE vs. STANFORD’S DEFENSE

Stanford is playing a 4-3 alignment this year led by end David Bailey and tackle Anthony Franklin.  Bailey is a dominant athlete who can rush the passer or drop into coverage. Wilfredo Aybar and leading tackler Tristan Sinclair are experienced and impactful linebackers. Stanford is among the top tier in the nation at stopping the run but opponents have exploited their relatively weak secondary. The Cardinal will try to push Notre Dame out of its comfort zone by creating third and long situations.

Taylor began the task of improving his front seven by hiring talented assistant coaches from the Wisconsin Badgers. These changes have worked well to date. A transfer from Yale, Clay Patterson, has brought a more physical mentality to the group. He is an excellent pass rusher in addition to being a valuable run stuffer.

Stanford has reshuffled its secondary in the wake of considerable turnover in personnel. Most of the current starters were reserves on last season’s porous unit. Safety Mitch Leigber and cornerback Zahran Manley have emerged as leaders but the group remains a work in progress. Green’s injury has removed an experienced depth piece from the board.

The matchup between the Cardinal front and the young Irish offensive line is critical. If Notre Dame can run the ball, several opportunities in the passing game will open up. This includes screens and play-action. Should Stanford win this battle in the trenches, the game will become a close, low-scoring affair. An extra week of preparation should give Mike Denbrock an opportunity to refresh the offense and become less predictable. There is no question that the inexperience of his offensive line has limited Denbrock’s play selection to date.

STANFORD’S OFFENSE vs. NOTRE DAME’S DEFENSE

Daniels has struggled this year with a 59% completion rate. He has thrown more interceptions (six) than touchdown passes (five). Daniels is a good athlete and leads the team in rushing despite missing a game. He has struggled with decision making and frequently lacks poise in the pocket. Poor protection is an issue but some of the turnovers and unproductive possessions are due to unforced errors.

Leading pass catcher Elic Ayomanor is the best weapon for the Cardinal. He is supported by three young slot type receivers in Tiger Bachmeier, Ismael Cisse, and Emmett Mosely. Their forte is using quickness on crossing routes to get open in the short zones. Tight end Sam Roush has established himself as a legitimate target after the veteran Ben Yurosek transferred to Georgia. Daniels is primarily a short and intermediate thrower with very few completions of significant length.

The offensive line features three sophomores, while true freshman Kahlil House has surpassed senior Jack Leyrer at left tackle. With Rogers on the sideline this week, another youngster will likely be promoted to the starting lineup. Despite their struggles in pass blocking, this group is much better in the running game. The rotation of tailbacks Ford, Chris Davis, and Sedrick Irvin have been very productive on counter plays and in using two back sets. Daniels and Lamson execute the read option well and are not afraid of contact.

Notre Dame’s cornerbacks will be challenged to defend Ayomanor on slants while the other receivers run various rub routes or pick plays. Expect Notre Dame’s Al Golden to give different coverage looks to cause Daniels to hesitate or make mistakes. The Irish should be able to apply pressure given Stanford’s inexperienced offensive front. He must also keep in mind that Daniels and Lamson are effective runners who can do damage when they escape the pocket.

More importantly, however, Notre Dame must improve its run defense. A depleted front line and young linebackers have been gashed more often than anyone anticipated prior to the season. At times a lack of size has been an issue while missed assignments and poor gap fills have also contributed in a negative way. We will see if the staff has addressed these deficiencies during the break.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Notre Dame’s special teams have been solid for the most part. Kicker Mitch Jeter is consistent while punter James Rendell has improved after a shaky start to his career. Unfortunately, a few glaring mistakes and breakdowns have been costly. Blocked field goals and fumbled kicks are not the hallmark of a playoff caliber team. The Irish have no margin of error remaining with one bad loss already on the ledger. Another disaster in the kicking game could end their dreams this season.

The Cardinal lost kicker Josh Karty to the NFL but Emmett Kenney appears to be very capable.  Kenney has converted eight of nine field goal attempts and all of his extra points. Punter Aidan Flintoft sports a 42-yard average and rarely leaves room for a return. Reserve wide receiver Bryce Farrell is the primary kick returner while Bachmeier has a 90-yard punt return for a touchdown this season.

SUMMARY

These teams have similarities on offense with youthful lines, quarterbacks that run well, and talented tailbacks. Each team has a short passing game that has not been consistent to this point. Notre Dame has a superior defense, particularly in the secondary. If not for the injuries along the Irish front four, the Cardinal would not figure to score many points.

Taylor’s offensive innovations will likely yield some success early in the game. At some point the Notre Dame defense will assert itself and win the majority of the battles up front. This will lead to mistakes and a couple of turnovers. Unless the Irish offense is equally sloppy, the hosts should pull away during the second half.

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

• Can Stanford’s young offensive line handle the depleted Irish defensive front?
• Will Notre Dame’s cornerbacks contain Ayomanor and the Cardinal receivers?
• Which team will be more successful on third down?
• Will the Irish passing game improve following the bye week?
• Can Notre Dame run the ball on the Cardinal front seven?
• Which defense will be able to create turnovers?
• Can Notre Dame’s special teams avoid crucial mistakes?
• Will Daniels or Riley Leonard win the matchup of the quarterbacks?

PREDICTION

Notre Dame fans would like to believe that the extra rest and practice time will reinvigorate the Irish. They certainly have a veteran, well-compensated coaching staff that should be able to diagnose and fix most of the problems we have seen to date. The game is worth watching just to see how far they have come. As for the Cardinal, they are better than Purdue but probably not as good as Louisville. In a perfect world, the Irish will start fast and never look back. Most likely, however, there will be a few anxious moments before the hosts are able to wear down the visitors and claim another victory.

NOTRE DAME 34  STANFORD 17

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