Talking Notre Dame vs Alabama, Chris Tyree, Run Game and the Fighting Irish Defense

Notre Dame and Alabama are set to face each other in the Rose Bowl on Friday afternoon, and that matchup was the topic of conversation in the latest segment on WSBT Sportsbeat. Darin Pritchett and I dive into the matchup between the Fighting Irish and the Crimson Tide.

1:11 - We talk about what priority number one is for the Notre Dame defense when preparing to defend the Alabama offense.

4:08 - Slowing down the run is key to slowing down the offense as a whole, and I explain why Notre Dame schematically doesn't need to put eight in the box to defend the run effectively.

6:40 - We discuss why the run game wasn't as successful in the final two games of the season, and whether or not is it correctable against Alabama. The quarterback runs are a part of that, and Alabama doesn't have that kind of weapon at quarterback.

9:03 - The conversation turns to the pass game, and we discuss why how many yards Clemson threw for back in November, and why just looking at yards against Alabama shouldn't be the focus.

12:17 - Darin asks who the key player to look at after the big three of Mac Jones, Najee Harris and DeVonta Smith.

14:30 - We turn the conversation to the offense, and we begin by talking about the two keys, or two people, to Notre Dame being successful on offense against Alabama.

17:38 - Next we talk about the matchup of the Notre Dame wide receivers against the Alabama secondary, and why I don't accept the notion that the Irish receivers struggle to get separation.

20:25 - I quickly interrupt Darin's question to talk about why Alabama's defense is the kind that should allow Notre Dame to run more empty backfields, either lining up that way or releasing the backs into the routes.

21:10 - Darin asks if C'Bo Flemister should be the second back on the field against Alabama instead of Chris Tyree. My answer is Tyree, and I explain why Tyree needs to play more and touch the ball more.

23:38 - We wrap things up by Darin asking me how things will play out on Friday between Notre Dame and Alabama.

To comment below be sure to sign up for a FREE Disqus account, which you can get HERE.

———————

Become a premium Irish Breakdown member, which grants you access to all of our premium content, our premium message board and gets you a FREE subscription to Sports Illustrated! 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 podcast on iTunes.
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown YouTube channel.
Follow me on Twitter: @CoachD178
Follow me on Parler: @BryanDriskell
Like and follow Irish Breakdown on Facebook

Sign up for the FREE Irish Breakdown daily newsletter