Notre Dame Must Dominate Two Matchups Against The Navy Offense

With Notre Dame opening their season on Saturday against Navy in Dublin, Ireland, there are some unique challenges that the matchup brings. Those are most highlighted on the defensive side of the football while working against the triple option offense.

Let’s take a look at a couple underrated matchups during that football game. That includes remaining disciplined and matching physicality.

NOTRE DAME CORNERS VS NAVY RECEIVERS

BREAKING IT DOWN

The cornerback position is one of the most difficult to play on the football field. They are often matched up in man-to-man coverage against some of the more talented athletes that the opposing teams boast. Coming into the 2023 season, Notre Dame is expected to have one of the better cornerback duos in college football with Cam Hart and sophomore sensation Benjamin Morrison.

Navy presents some interesting challenges to opposing cornerbacks. It’s not so much that their skill position players are great. The balance is being able to remain pass first players while also doing some of the dirty work in the run game.

WHY IT MATTERS

With how often Navy offensive coordinator Grant Chesnut wants to get the ball to the perimeter, there is an emphasis on Morrison, Hart and company to get off of blocks effectively. They need to become substantial force players and be able to make plays in the run game when need be.

Despite that attention in the run game, the cornerback position must also be pass first players still. That type of offense tries to lull you to sleep. The cornerbacks must remain patience and true to their technique to cut down on any big plays in the passing game.

NOTRE DAME D-TACKLES VS NAVY INTERIOR

BREAKING IT DOWN

The Notre Dame defensive line has been the talk of the off-season so far, especially during fall camp. That includes the edges but most notably, the defensive tackle position looks poised for a big breakout in 2023. Led by senior Rylie Mills, who is one of the freakier athletics in college football, the unit has been dominant this off-season. A position that has been viewed as a weakness over the last few years, names like Jason Onye, Howard Cross and Gabriel Rubio have Irish fans buzzing about the possibilities.

When you usually think of a triple option team, you typically think smaller offensive lineman. The 2023 Navy team, however, actually has some decent size on the premiers. Their three starters, right guard Ben Purvis (293 pounds), center Lirion Murtezi (315 pounds) and Joshua Pena (278), average 295.3 pounds as a trio. That is pretty abnormal for what we usually see. While the weight advantage will still mostly be in Notre Dame’s favor, it is not substantially as is usually the case.

WHY IT MATTERS

A triple option offense is always going to build from the inside-out. Establishing the fullback and quarterback inside the tackles is paramount. If Navy is able to establish the line of scrimmage, it could be a frustrating day for the Irish. The key is to force that type of offense to be uncomfortable, have to throw and play in space at a higher rate.

If Navy does establish the line of scrimmage, this would also poke holes in a lot of the optimism for Notre Dame from the off-season. All we have heard about is how much better the defensive line was playing. At this point, it has become an area of assumed strength so it would be troubling if they weren’t as good as we think. It would also send even more worry about the offensive line, who struggled in camp against that defensive line pretty consistently.

Be sure to check out the Irish Breakdown message board, the Champions Lounge

Irish Breakdown Content

2023 Scholarship Chart
2023 Football Schedule

Notre Dame 2024 Scholarship Offers

2024 Commit Rankings - Offense
2024 Commit Rankings - Defense

2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Offense
2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Defense

———————

Become a premium Irish Breakdown member, which grants you access to all of our premium content and our premium message board! Click on the link below for more.

BECOME A MEMBER

Be sure to stay locked into Irish Breakdown all the time!

Join the Irish Breakdown community!
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown YouTube channel
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown podcast on iTunes
Follow me on Twitter: @RiseNDraft
Like and follow Irish Breakdown on Facebook

Sign up for the FREE Irish Breakdown daily newsletter