Skip to main content

It has been quite a long time since a Notre Dame offense played as poorly as what we saw on Saturday night during a 45-15 loss to Michigan. Not since the hurricane game against NC State back in 2016 has an Irish offense had fewer yards of offense.

Notre Dame will look to get back on track this upcoming weekend against Virginia Tech. Virginia Tech has had its own struggles this season when it comes to stopping Power 5 opponents.

(Video breakdown will play following the ad)

In the above video and the breakdown below I discuss how the Notre Dame offense stacks up against the Virginia Tech defense, which is led by legendary defensive coordinator Bud Foster.

Notre Dame Scoring Offense vs. Virginia Tech Scoring Defense

Scoring Offense

Advantage: Notre Dame

Notre Dame ranks high in a number of offensive categories, but those numbers are misleading. The Irish offense has thrived on beating up on inferior opponents, but against Power 5 defenses the offense has sputtered. Notre Dame has topped 30 offensive points and 400 yards of offense just twice against five Power 5 opponents.

In those five contests, the Irish offense has averaged just 24.8 offensive points per game, 343.8 yards per game and 5.2 yards per play. All are below average numbers that would rank the offense in the bottom third of the national rankings.

If you are convinced the weather impacted the Irish offense against Michigan, the numbers aren’t much better when that game is removed from the analysis. In the other four Power 5 games, the Irish offense averaged just 27.5 points per game, 384.8 yards per game and 5.7 yards per play. Any way you slice it, the Irish offense has simply not been as good as it should be against defenses with a pulse.

Last season, Notre Dame averaged 33.0 offensive points in the regular season against Power 5 opponents, and it averaged 31.7 points per game against Power 5 opponents in 2017. So this year’s production is well below the standard set in previous seasons.

Notre Dame remains the nation’s best red zone offense, and it ranks seventh nationally in fewest turnovers. When you lead the nation in red zone offense, red zone touchdown rate and are a Top 10 unit in limiting turnovers - but you struggle to score - it means your offense is failing to consistently move the ball.

As bad as things have been for the Notre Dame offense against Power 5 opponents, the Virginia Tech defense has been even worse. Virginia Tech ranks 86th in scoring defense and 66th in yards per game, and it has been even worse against Power 5 opponents.

The Hokies held FCS opponents Furman and Rhode Island to 17 points each, and Old Dominion - a 1-7 FBS team - also scored just 17 points. Against four Power 5 opponents, Virginia Tech gave up 39.0 points and 477.0 yards per game, and it allowed 6.1 yards per play. If you remove the overtime game against North Carolina, the Hokies are still giving up 36.5 points per game.

Every Power opponent has scored at least 31 points in regulation and racked up at least 422 yards.

If there was ever a time to get healthy on offense and pad your stats, this would be the game. But what we don’t know is how will the unit be emotionally and mentally after such a poor performance against Michigan.

Notre Dame Rush Offense vs. Virginia Tech Rush Defense

Rush Offense

Advantage: Virginia Tech

Notre Dame has had one of the more erratic rushing attacks in the country. There have been some impressive moments - like racking up 308 yards against USC, and Tony Jones Jr. rushing for 131 yards against Virginia’s strong rush defense - but there have been some abysmal performances as well.

The Irish offense rushed for a combined total of 93 yards against Georgia and Michigan, and it struggled to run the football against a poor New Mexico defense. Simply put, we do not know which Notre Dame offense will show up against Virginia Tech.

Notre Dame rushed for 167 yards and averaged 5.2 yards per rush in a 45-23 win over the Hokies last season, but 128 of those yards came on just two carries, including a 97-yard touchdown run by Dexter Williams. On Notre Dame’s other 28 non-sack carries it rushed for just 50 yards.

Jones suffered a rib injury against Michigan, but head coach Brian Kelly said Jones should be able to play this weekend. How effective he will be, or how he he will be able to play, remains to be seen. Notre Dame got back junior Jafar Armstrong this past weekend, but Armstrong had just three yards on three carries against Michigan.

Virginia Tech gave up 189.0 rushing yards and 4.3 yards per attempt in the first four games of the season, during which the Hokies went 2-2. In the last three games, Virginia Tech limited opponents to just 87.0 rushing yards per game and 3.3 yards per attempt. It should come as no surprise that Virginia Tech won each of those contests, including a road victory at Miami and a home win against North Carolina.

The Hokies also held Boston College to 157 rushing yards in the opener. The only other team to hold Boston College to less than 200 rushing yards is Clemson.

Junior linebacker Rayshard Ashby has been the standout for Virginia Tech, leading the defense with 72 tackles and 10 tackles for loss. Ashby is coming off an 18-tackle performance against Duke. Ashby has racked up at least two tackles for loss in three games this fall, including twice in the last three contests.

Notre Dame Pass Offense vs. Virginia Tech Pass Defense

Pass Offense

Advantage: Notre Dame

This is a matchup of weakness vs. weakness. Notre Dame’s overall numbers are respectable, with the Irish ranking 23rd in touchdown passes, 25th in pass efficiency, 30th in yards per completion and 34th in yards per attempt. The problem, however, is those numbers are incredibly skewed by blowout wins over New Mexico and Bowling Green

Notre Dame’s pass game numbers against Power 5 opponents are weak, and they would rank the Irish in the bottom third of the national rankings even if the Michigan game was removed. Ten of starting quarterback Ian Book’s 15 touchdown passes have come against Bowling Green and New Mexico, as has 41.6 percent of his passing yards.

Recent Power 5 opponents have found ways to limit the production of wide receiver Chase Claypool and tight end Cole Kmet, and Book has been unable to spread the ball around the way he did last season. Finding a way to get Claypool more targets is an absolute must for the Irish offense.

Until Book regains his form, or Notre Dame decides to give one of its talented younger quarterbacks a shot, the pass offense is going to struggle against quality passing defenses.

The good news for Notre Dame is that Virginia Tech isn’t a quality passing defense. Virginia Tech ranks 97th in passing yards allowed, 90th in touchdown passes allowed, 65th in pass efficiency defense and 64th in yards per completion allowed.

Virginia Tech’s four Power 5 opponents have averaged 320 passing yards per game and thrown 14 touchdowns.

This is the kind of game where Notre Dame’s pass game should be able to get healthy. If it can’t then the final five games could be far more competitive than they should be.

One thing Virginia Tech has done very well on defense this season is get after the quarterback. The Hokies have racked up 25 sacks on the season and rank 12th nationally in sacks per game. Its linebackers and rovers have combined for 9.5 of those sacks and will attack Notre Dame with a number of second and third level pressures, which the Irish have had trouble picking up this season.

Follow me on Twitter: @CoachD178
Visit our Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/IrishMaven/