Notre Dame Rush Offense vs. Army Run Defense

The Irish have been strong with running the ball as they are ranked 11th in the nation averaging 216.7 rushing yards per game with 32 touchdowns and an average of 6 yards per rush. The Irish have also rushed for 200 or more yards in 4 out of the last 5 games. Jeremiyah Love leads the Irish with 114 attempts for 720 yards with 12 touchdowns and an average of 6.3 yards per rush. Quarterback Riley Leonard has 104 attempts for 641 yards with an average of 6.2 yards per rush. Jadarian Price has 67 attempts for 487 yards with 4 touchdowns and an average of 7.3 yards per rush. Kedren Young has appeared in 3 games and has 21 attempts for 116 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 5.5 yards per rush. Aneyas Williams has 23 attempts for 112 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 4.9 yards per rush. The Irish have allowed 44 tackles for loss so far this season.

The Black Knights have been very impressive against the run as they are ranked 3rd nationally allowing 82.6 yards per game with 3 touchdowns and an average of 3.2 yards per rush. They have allowed 100 or more yards in only 3 games this season with the highest being a surprising 172 yards from Division 1-AA Lehigh in the season opener. Army has also held every opponent except for Lehigh and East Carolina to less than 4 yards per rush in those games. The Black Knights have also done quite well in getting into opposing backfields with 45 tackles for loss. Kalib Fortner leads with 7.5 tackles for loss while Elo Modozie has 5 tackles for loss and Kody Harris-Miller also has 5 tackles for loss.

The Irish are facing the best run defense since they played Georgia Tech back in the middle of October as Army has been quite effective in stopping the run. The Irish will be among the best teams in terms of running the ball that the Black Knights face this season as they have played Air Force and still have to play Navy as well this season. With the Irish having a deep running back unit and Riley Leonard being able to run the ball as well, this will be a major challenge for Army. The Irish should use the run to help with keeping the ball away from Army and to also help set things up with the pass. This will also indeed be a very important matchup to keep an eye on.

Edge: Notre Dame

Army Rush Offense vs. Notre Dame Run Defense

The Black Knights are by far the best when it comes to running the ball as they are 1st in the nation averaging an outstanding 334.9 yards per game with 35 touchdowns and an average of 6.2 yards per rush. Army has had 200 or more yards in every game so far this season while also rushing for 300 or more yards in 5 out of 6 games to start the season and had 2 games with 400 or more yards. Up until the 2 most recent games, the Black Knights had averaged 5 or more yards per rush, but were held to under 5 yards per rush in the recent games against Air Force and North Texas. Quarterback Bryson Daily has 174 attempts for 1,062 yards with 21 touchdowns and an average of 6.1 yards per rush. Kanye Udoh has 128 attempts for 856 yards with 9 touchdowns and an average of 6.7 yards per rush. Noah Short has 41 attempts for 439 yards with 2 touchdowns and an average of 10.7 yards per rush while Samari Howard has 19 attempts for 103 yards with an average of 5.4 yards per rush. Quarterback Dewayne Coleman, who started when Bryson Daily was out against Air Force, has 38 attempts for 136 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 3.6 yards per rush. Army has also been quite effective in keeping opposing teams out of the backfield as they have allowed just 22 tackles for loss.

The Irish have been solid against the run as they are ranked 43rd nationally allowing 126.2 yards per rush with 7 touchdowns and an average of 3.5 yards per rush. The Irish have held every opponent except for Navy to less than 200 yards in those games and they have also held Purdue and Georgia Tech to less than 100 yards in those games as well. The Irish also have held all but Navy to less than 5 yards per rush in those games. The Irish have done quite well in getting into opposing backfields with 52 tackles for loss as Rylee Mills leads with 6 tackles for loss and Howard Cross has 5.5 tackles for loss.

The Irish are facing another top rushing team and have faced a good amount of them so far this season and the defense has largely contained nearly every opponent. After missing the Virginia game due to injury, the Irish are hopeful to have Howard Cross back who was listed as questionable as of writing. Getting an experienced player back on the defensive line will help with the run defense. Considering Howard Cross has managed to get into opposing backfields, having him alongside Rylee Mills will help make the interior more deep as the defensive line has had some injury issues this season. Being able to have more players will help with rotation as the Black Knights will try to get long time consuming drives going. Army has truly been excellent at running the ball, but has also not played very strong competition this season as the only teams they have faced with winning records are Division 1-AA Lehigh and East Carolina. Aside from that, they have faced 6 opponents with records that guarantee a losing record to finish the season. This will be the strongest competition that Army faces all season as none of the other teams on the schedule play in a major conference. This is going to be an important matchup to keep an eye on.

Edge: Even

Notre Dame Pass Offense vs. Army Pass Defense

The Irish are a team that favors the run, but has been making more plays by passing the ball as the season goes on and they are ranked 98th in the nation averaging 199 passing yards per game with 15 touchdowns, 4 interceptions, and a completion rate of 64.2 percent. The Irish have now passed for 200 or more yards in 5 consecutive games now. Riley Leonard has 167 completions on 258 attempts for 1,789 yards with 12 touchdowns, 4 interceptions, and a completion rate of 64.7 percent. Steve Angeli has 14 completions on 23 attempts for 183 yards with 3 touchdowns and a completion rate of 60.9 percent. Beaux Collins leads with 30 receptions for 390 yards with 2 touchdowns and an average of 13 yards per reception. Jaden Greathouse has 24 receptions for 327 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 13.6 yards per reception. Jayden Harrison has 15 receptions for 191 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 12.7 yards per reception while Kris Mitchell has 15 receptions for 137 yards with 2 touchdowns and an average of 9.1 yards per reception. Jordan Faison has 12 receptions for 131 yards with an average of 10.9 yards per reception. Jayden Thomas has 13 receptions for 117 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 9 yards per reception. Tight End Mitchell Evans leads with 22 receptions for 188 yards with 2 touchdowns and an average of 8.6 yards per reception. Cooper Flanagan has 4 receptions for 55 yards with 2 touchdowns and an average of 13.8 yards per reception while Eli Raridon has 6 receptions for 50 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 8.3 yards per reception. The Irish have allowed 13 sacks and 13 quarterback hurries with 20 passes broken up.

The Black Knights have been solid against the pass as they are ranked 32nd nationally allowing 191.3 yards per game with 9 touchdowns, 14 interceptions, and a completion rate of 63.6 percent. The Black Knights have allowed 200 or more yards in 5 games this season with 3 out of the last 4 opposing teams having passed for that much. The Black Knights have held 1 opponent to less than 100 yards with it being Air Force who had 92 yards. Army has also allowed every opponent except for Lehigh and Air Force to have a completion rate of 60 percent or more in those games. Army also has 20 sacks and 22 quarterback hurries with 17 passes broken up.

While not nearly as impressive as the run defense, Army has been solid against the pass. With that being said, opposing teams in recent games have been able to get a lot more yards, with the best team they have played so far, East Carolina, getting 282 yards in. The Black Knights have also allowed opposing teams to be quite accurate. With the Irish having multiple players that are capable of stepping up and making plays, this could make things more favorable for them. The Irish will want to use the tight ends more as well as they will be important in the red zone and also help move the chains too. With Army trying to favor stopping the run, this will also give the Irish an advantage in the passing game.

Edge: Army

Army Pass Offense vs. Notre Dame Pass Defense

The Black Knights are on the opposite end of things when it comes to passing as they are ranked 134th in the nation averaging 85 passing yards per game with 8 touchdowns, 1 interception, and a completion rate of 59.4 percent. The Black Knights have only passed for more than 100 yards in 4 games and have been held to less than 100 in 5 games, including a season low 15 yards in the most recent win at North Texas. They have had 4 games with a completion rate of 60 percent or higher with a perfect 100 percent in the win at Tulsa. Bryson Daily has 29 completions on 51 attempts for 644 yards with 7 touchdowns, 1 interception, and a completion rate of 56.9 percent. Dewayne Coleman has 11 completions on 16 attempts for 121 yards with 1 touchdown and a completion rate of 68.8 percent. Casey Reynolds leads with 12 receptions for 325 yards with 3 touchdowns and an average of 27.1 yards per reception. Slotback Noah Short has 11 receptions for 259 yards with 3 touchdowns and an average of 23.6 yards per reception. Cam Schurr has 6 receptions for 74 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 12.3 yards per reception. The Black Knights have done an excellent job in pass protection by allowing just 3 sacks and 12 quarterback hurries with 9 passes broken up.

The Irish have been excellent when it comes to defending the pass as they are ranked 2nd in the nation allowing 150.9 yards per game with 6 touchdowns, 15 interceptions (3 returned for touchdowns), and a completion rate of 47.7 percent. The Irish have held 8 opposing teams to less than 200 yards with 3 of the opponents being held to less than 100 yards. The Irish allowed 2 opposing teams, Louisville and Georgia Tech, to pass for 200 or more yards. The Irish have also held every opponent to a completion rate under 60 percent. The Irish have done well in getting to opposing quarterbacks with 28 sacks and 35 quarterback hurries with an outstanding 41 passes broken up.

The Irish have done extremely well in defending the pass this season and face a team that does not pass very much. With that being said, they must still be very prepared to stop the pass. The Black Knights rely on 2 players that have the majority of the receiving statistics and shutting both of them down will help in limiting things in the passing game. While Army keeps Bryson Daily well protected, the Irish should be able to get some good pressure and make some plays. If the Irish are able to stop the run and force Army to pass, then a strong pass defense will be really important as well. Look for the Irish to continue to do great when it comes to defending the pass.

Edge: Notre Dame

Special Teams

Mitch Jeter has not been quite 100 percent since having an injury earlier on this season and has been mainly used for extra points and on the season is 6 of 9 (2 were blocked) on field goals with an accuracy rate of 66.7 percent and a long of 48 yards. Zac Yoakam has filled in and is 2 of 5 on field goals with an accuracy rate of 50 percent and a long of 42. Marcello Diomede has also been used and is 0 of 1 on field goals. James Rendell has punted 35 times with an average of 41.4 yards. Jayden Harrison has returned 7 kickoffs for 151 yards with an average of 21.6 yards. Max Hurleman has returned 15 punts for 78 yards with an average of 5.2 yards. The Irish have blocked 5 kicks and have had 2 kicks blocked.

Trey Gronotte is a perfect 5 for 5 with an accuracy rate of 100 percent and a long of 35 yards. James Wagenseller has punted 18 times with an average of 42.1 yards. Lloyd Benson III has returned 3 kickoffs for 40 yards with an average of 13.3 yards. Lloyd Benson III has returned 4 punts for 29 yards with an average of 7.3 yards. The Black Knights have blocked 1 kick and have had 0 kicks blocked.

Stronger Unit: Even

Final Thoughts

The Irish are coming off a 35-14 over Virginia on Senior Day and play in a neutral site matchup against the Black Knights at Yankee Stadium. Army is undefeated and coming off a bye week after a 14-3 win at North Texas. The Black Knights have largely dominated their schedule, but at the same time have played a very weak schedule. The schedule has featured just 2 teams that have winning records with 1 being a Division 1-AA team in Lehigh. Of the remaining 7 teams played, all but North Texas have a losing record and have either 2 or 3 wins as of writing. In addition, none of the teams played so far are part of the major conferences which is part of the reason for a weaker schedule this season. The Irish are hopeful to have Howard Cross back for this game to help give depth and experience to the defensive line that is down a few players at this point. The Irish will want to make plays and limit the Black Knights to losses in yardage, no gain, or minimal gain to shorten drives where they can. The Irish will not want to overlook Army with the matchup at archrival USC as the next game. If the Irish are able to keep a comfortable lead, this will make Army need to catch up by passing, which they do not do very much of at all. While Army has been excellent in defending the run, the only team played so far on the schedule that has a notable rush offense is Air Force. This could give the Irish an advantage as they are able to use multiple players when it comes to running the ball. The Black Knights have also been allowing teams to be able to pass for more yards in recent games as well. With the Irish improving in the passing game along with multiple players that can step up and make plays, this is another area that could lead to an advantage as well. With Mitch Jeter not at 100 percent, if the Irish have to attempt to make field goals, they may have to attempt field goals when the distance is not very far. With Army running a unique offense this may mean having an additional player on defense to make plays up front or drop into coverage as needed. Staying healthy with 1 more regular season game on the road will also be important as well. Look for the Irish to keep things going successfully in this neutral site matchup.

Prediction: Notre Dame 35, Army 21

As always, GO IRISH!

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