Keys To Victory For Notre Dame vs. Alabama: Offense
Beating Alabama is not going to be easy for Notre Dame, but if the Fighting Irish are going to come out on top the offense will need to be at its best.
The Notre Dame offense has the weapons and matchup advantages to have a great deal of success against the Crimson Tide defense. Winning this game will require the offense to move the ball early and often, and put the ball into the end zone as frequently as possible. This is not going to be a low scoring game.
In the latest Irish Breakdown episode, football analyst Vince DeDario and I dive into the keys for the Notre Dame offense to play at the level needed to win the game.
The keys to victory are broken into two different categories, and there are three in each area. The first are big picture keys to success, and the second are more schematic and focused.
Big Picture Keys
1. Start Fast - Notre Dame must start fast against Alabama, no matter what the Tide defense does. If Alabama is scoring early the Irish offense must keep up the pace and keep the team in the game until the Notre Dame defense has time to adjust and get caught up to speed. If the Irish defense is making stops early, the Notre Dame offense needs to spark the team to a big lead in hopes of hanging on in the end.
2. Win At The Line Of Scrimmage - To win a game of this magnitude your best players and best units have to be at their best, and nowhere is that more true than when talking about the Notre Dame offense line. Notre Dame must win in the trenches if they are going to score enough to win this contest, and that means establishing the ground game and protecting the quarterback. It must start early and continue throughout the game.
3. Ian Book Must Be Aggressive - Fighting Irish quarterback Ian Book needs to have a big game if Notre Dame is going to pull off the victory. That doesn't mean he needs to make a ton of off platform or out of the pocket plays as much as he did in games against Clemson (Nov. 7 matchup), Boston College or North Carolina. It means he needs to run the offense, throw on time, be accurate and most importantly be aggressive.
Schematic/Execution Keys
1. First and Second Down Success - Notre Dame must be effective getting positive gains on first and second down, which will either move the chains or put the offense in 3rd-and-medium/short situations. That means running the ball effectively, being efficient with the pass game (take the check downs, work the quick game, hit some screens) and being willing to take and hit some shots as well.
2. Be Creative With The Plan In Order To Create Big Plays - Notre Dame can't just "do what we do" on offense to beat Alabama. Notre Dame's offensive system all season has been about letting their better players just out-play and out-talent the opposition. That can't be the case against Alabama. Notre Dame matches up well in areas, but they aren't good enough to just "be better" than Alabama.
Offensive coordinator Tommy Rees needs to be creative with his play calling. That doesn't mean trick plays, but using personnel variations, shifts, motions, post-snap route switches, more vertical stretch concepts and using more of their weapons. That means using a player like Chris Tyree more than just to give Kyren Williams a "breather," it means using him as a weapon, and using him and Williams together. It means using Tommy Tremble and Michael Mayer as weapons, it means moving Javon McKinley around in ways that get him in favorable matchups.
Be creative with how you use your weapons, use all your weapons and be aggressive.
3. Finish - Notre Dame needs to finish in this game. That means finishing runs, finishing blocks and finishing drives.
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