Ranking The Remaining Notre Dame Football Schedule
Notre Dame won't be back in action until Oct. 23 when it returns home to face its biggest rival, the Southern Cal Trojans. It begins a stretch of games that will determine just how this season will turn out.
The Irish schedule sets up very, very nicely for a great finish to the season. Notre Dame's final six opponents have a combined record of 17-18 and just one opponent - Virginia - currently has a winning record.
While manageable it's not an easy schedule, as it has several high-scoring opponents that could take advantage of the struggles of Notre Dame's own offense. But it's still a schedule a program like Notre Dame should handle.
Here is my ranking of Notre Dame's final six opponents, from easiest to toughest.
6. NAVY MIDSHIPMEN
Record: 1-4
Navy has had a strange season as it heads to Memphis this weekend with a 1-4 record. It's only win came against UCF, and the Midshipmen lost a very competitive game against #23 SMU the last time it took the field.
The Midshipmen have been mediocre, topping 300 rushing yards just twice, and the ground game has yet to average above 4.6 yards per attempt.
It's defense has been solid, which has kept Navy in games, but this is a game Notre Dame should dominate.
5. SOUTHERN CAL TROJANS
Record: 3-3
USC is a very strange team, but it's also a struggling program that has already fired its coach.
The week after Clay Helton was let go the Trojans went on the road and spanked Washington State by a 45-14 score. A week later they lost at home to Oregon State (45-27) for the first time since 1961. A week later the Trojans went on the road and pounded Colorado (37-14) only to get blasted at home a week later by Utah (42-26).
So a case could be made that USC will be a tougher matchup than expected considering the fact the Trojans are 1-3 at home this season but are 2-0 on the road, with both games being blowouts.
With all that being said, Notre Dame should dominate USC in the trenches on both sides of the ball and if the Irish program is what it is supposed to be this game shouldn't be competitive.
4. STANFORD CARDINAL
Record: 3-3
Stanford is another team that is hard to figure out. It destroyed USC and earned an overtime win over then #3 Oregon (who was without their offensive coordinator in the game), but also lost three games by double digits, including a recent 28-10 loss to Arizona State. All three of the teams to beat Stanford this season have been ranked in the Top 25 at one point, but none of the games against ranked opponents were overly competitive other than the Oregon matchup.
Stanford has been good on offense for most of its last five games but its defense is brutally bad. Another reason I have the Cardinal ranked lower than most is that the offense its runs doesn't present as many problems for Notre Dame. The Cardinal are a dropback passing team with a strong armed quarterback and talented receivers, but that quarterback (Tanner McKee) is immobile and has been sacked nine times in the last three games.
I think Stanford would beat Georgia Tech on a neutral field, but from a pure matchup standpoint I think the Yellow Jackets provide a tougher test.
3. GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS
Record: 3-3
There are three reasons I view this as a tougher matchup for the Irish. One is the combination of quarterback Jef Sims and running back Jahmyr Gibbs in the backfield, especially Sims. The Irish have had a tough time defending mobile quarterbacks, and it won't face a more mobile quarterback than Sims, who is averaging 6.7 yards per rush this season.
Sims has also improved as a passer, with his completion rate jumping up 8 percentage points since last season. He's also averaging an impressive 9.9 yards per attempt, which would rank 8th nationally if he had enough attempts. Georgia Tech ranks 29th in the country in yards per pass completion.
A mobile quarterback and a big play offense are two areas that raise major concerns when looking at the very few flaws for the Irish defense.
Reason number three is Georgia Tech has played much better away from home this season. The Jackets almost beat Clemson on the road, spanked North Carolina (45-22) on a neutral field and beat Duke on the road last week.
2. NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS
Record: 3-3
North Carolina is as overrated as I thought they would be this season, but the Tar Heels are still a dangerous team. If Notre Dame's offense was good I wouldn't be at all worried about this game, but as Cincinnati showed you don't have to score much against the Irish to win the game.
North Carolina can score, which is evidenced by its 59-point outburst against Virginia. It's inconsistent, and the Irish are certainly capable of dominating the UNC offensive line and keeping the points down. The Heels, however, are also a big-play offense that has the balance needed to make plays against Notre Dame and it's quarterback can do enough damage with his legs to make him dangerous.
The question is whether or not Notre Dame can exploit was has been a brutally bad UNC defense all season.
1. VIRGINIA CAVALIERS
Record: 4-2
Virginia Reminds me a bit of Notre Dame thanks to its ability to win tight games. The Cavaliers have competitive road wins over Miami (30-28) and Louisville (34-33) already, and the Cavaliers can score.
Quarterback Brennan Armstrong has the run-throw ability that has given Notre Dame problems this season, and past seasons. Virginia doesn't have any elite weapons, but it does have good depth from a playmaking standpoint.
Virginia ranks 35th nationally in scoring (34.2) and ranks 6th in total offense (525.8). It also ranks 18th in yards per play. That combination of explosive offensive ability and mobility at quarterback has me very, very. concerned.
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