Keys To Victory For The Notre Dame Offense vs. Clemson

The fourth-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-0) take on the top-ranked Clemson Tigers (7-0) tonight in what is the latest opportunity for the program to earn a big win.

Notre Dame has the talent and tools to earn the victory, but it must play well in all facets of the game. Let’s take a look at the keys to victory for the Notre Dame offense.

1. Ian Book Must Be At His Best — This is the kind of game where legacies are made. Through 29 starts, Irish quarterback Ian Book has not stepped up when the lights were brightest or when the opponent was elite. He gets another chance against Clemson, and the offense needs Book to be at his best.

A fast start is important, poise in the pocket is a must, anticipation will be needed and timing is vital to success. When the plays are there to be made, Book must step up and make them. Notre Dame will get about 4-5 chances in the pass game to make game-changing plays, and Book needs to take advantage.

Protecting the ball is great, but not at the expense of being unwilling to attack. Offensive coordinator Tommy Rees needs to be aggressive, and Book needs to match that aggressiveness and get the most out of his ability. Book is talented enough to lead the Irish to victory, but he must play with courage to make it happen.

2. Win The Battle At The LOS — To win games like this you need your strengths to shine, and the best part of the Notre Dame offense is its experienced and talented offensive line. If the Irish are going to beat Clemson the line must play at a high level.

Establishing movement early in the run game is crucial. The line must limit negatives, get a strong push at the point of attack and it must shine on chain-moving downs.

Clemson has a young but extremely talented defensive line, and it's capable of getting a lot of pressure on the quarterback. DC Brent Venables will also load the box and attack the backfield. Notre Dame's line absolutely must protect Book and make Clemson pay for bringing pressure.

3. Build Around The Tight Ends — Rees needs to adjust the pass game and stop building around the wideouts in the pass game and instead build everything around the tight ends .... both of them. Freshman Michael Mayer will obviously be part of the game plan, but Rees needs to use junior Tommy Tremble to a much greater degree in this game.

Both tight ends have the talent to give Clemson a major headache, and Tremble can bring a big-play element to the matchup against the safeties, who like to come downhill and play the run. If Rees is creative and Book is aggressive, I could see the tight ends going off in this game.

If that happens it will force Clemson to adjust, which should ease some of the pressure on the box (helps the run) and it puts the wideouts in more favorable matchup situations.

4. Big Plays Are A Must — Notre Dame is likely not going to be good enough to put together 5-6 long, sustained, methodical scoring drives against this Clemson defense. I'm not sure any offense is capable of doing that, which means Notre Dame must rip off gash plays.

Gains of 20 yards or more are a must, but big scoring plays (meaning direct scores or big plays that get into the red zone) would be even better. The tight ends can be a big part of that, but this is a game where Rees needs to use his best athletes (Chris Tyree, Jafar Armstrong, Tremble) to scheme for big plays.

Execution will be part of getting big plays, but I also want to see some creativity and gamesmanship from Rees. This is a chance for him to prove Brian Kelly right for turning down a proven coach like Joe Moorhead and hiring him. A big game from Rees will end any discussion about whether or not this was the right hire.

5. Answer — Notre Dame has arguably the nation's best defense, but even the nation's best defense is going to give up some points to this Clemson offense. When Clemson puts the ball into the end zone, whether it's a long drive or a big play, the Irish offense must answer with points.

If the Notre Dame defense makes a big play to get the ball, the Irish offense must answer with points. Those are things that must be done to win big games like this.

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