Players Of The Game From The Notre Dame Victory Over Navy

Notre Dame (1-0) opened the 2023 season with a blowout victory over Navy. The Fighting Irish won 42-3 and controlled the action throughout. When you play this well there are going to be a lot of standouts, which makes picking players of the game a bit more challenging.

With that being said, two players stood out above the rest. Here are the IB players of the game:

OFFENSE - Sam Hartman, Quarterback

Stats: 19-23, 82.6%, 251 yards, 4 touchdowns
Runners Up: WR Jayden Thomas, WR Jaden Greathouse, RT Blake Fisher, LT Joe Alt

Hartman made a great impression in his first start with the Fighting Irish. He completed 82.6-percent of his passes and fueled a dominant offensive performance. He got off to a blazing hot start, completing 13 of his first 15 passes, including a pair of third downs.

Hartman threw four touchdown passes in the win, marking the 10th time in his career that he tossed at least four touchdowns in a game. All four of his touchdown passes were at least 14 yards, and three were in the red zone, which helped the Irish score four touchdowns in five red zone appearances.

Hartman made good decisions throughout the game, and his poise helped keep the offense on track. He kept the Irish on schedule, and the few times they did get into tough third-down spots he was able to make plays to get the offense rolling. Hartman was kept clean for much of the game, but in the few instances where he did get pressured Hartman was able to move around, buy time and either get the ball to a check down or find an open receiver down the field.

The Irish quarterback did a great job spreading the ball around. This was due to him reading the defense and making good decisions instead of keying in on certain players.

DEFENSE - Marist Liufau, Linebacker

Stats: 7 tackles, 1 forced fumble
Runners Up: DE Jordan Botelho, LB JD Bertrand

There were a number of players that could have earned this honor, but I'm going with Liufau. The senior was had one of his best games in an Irish uniform. Liufau was assignment correct throughout the game, and he played with force and speed.

An issue for him in the past was not being in position enough, but that was not the case in the win over Navy. Liufau played with discipline, but he also played with force and was impactful on the ball. He was second on the defense in tackles and he also forced a fumble. Liufau was disruptive against the Navy ground attack and he tackled well.

Liufau was disruptive in the game and his range helped the Irish limit Navy's perimeter effectiveness to his side. Liufau had a great read late in the game that kept Navy out of the end zone. The Middies tried to run a trick play, but Liufau read it and ran with the quarterback, which allowed Rylie Mills to finish that plays with a sack.

SPECIAL TEAMS - Spencer Shrader, Kicker

Stats: 7 kickoffs, 6 touchbacks; 6/6 on extra points

There wasn't much special teams action in the game. Notre Dame didn't get much return action, and Shrader missed his only field goal attempt but was a perfect 6-for-6 on extra points.

What most impressed me about Shrader's performance is that his kickoff skills kept Navy from getting good field position on kick returns. Shrader knocked six of his seven kick offs into the end zone, and a penalty helped pin Navy inside its own 20-yard line on his only non touchback.

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: @CoachD178
Like and follow Irish Breakdown on Facebook

Sign up for the FREE Irish Breakdown daily newsletter