Notre Dame vs. Georgia Tech Preview

Notre Dame Rush Offense vs. Georgia Tech Run Defense

The Irish continue to be strong with the run game as they are ranked 16th in the nation averaging 216.5 yards per game with 19 touchdowns and averaging 6.1 yards per rush. Jeremiyah Love reclaimed the leading rusher spot with 63 attempts for 426 yards with 6 touchdowns and an average of 6.8 yards per rush. Quarterback Riley Leonard is not far behind with 65 attempts for 405 yards with 8 touchdowns and an average of 6.2 yards per rush. Jadarian Price has 41 attempts for 260 yards with 3 touchdowns and an average of 6.3 yards per rush. Aneyas Williams is more or less the third running back in and has 9 attempts for 64 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 7.1 yards per rush. Though he has only played in 2 games, Kedren Young has 11 attempts for 64 yards with an average of 5.8 yards per rush. The Irish have also allowed 25 tackles for loss so far this season.

The Yellow Jackets have been pretty effective against the run as they are ranked 23rd in the nation allowing 103.7 yards per rush with 4 touchdowns allowed and 3.6 yards per rush. They have held 4 out of the 7 opponents played so far to under 100 rushing yards with last weekend’s opponent, North Carolina, having the finest performance so far with 201 rushing yards, 2 rushing touchdowns, and 5.9 yards per rush. The lowest amount of rushing yards allowed were 12 yards in the win over VMI, a Division 1-AA team. The next lowest came from a mutual opponent in Louisville, when they allowed 57 yards. Georgia Tech has been able to get into opposing backfields with 39 tackles for loss and Trenilyas Tatum leading the way with 5 tackles for loss. Jordan van den Berg and Romello Height are not far behind with 4 tackles for loss each.

The Irish are coming off a strong performance on the ground after rushing for 229 yards with 4 touchdowns and an average of 5.9 yards per rush in the win over Stanford. Georgia Tech, as mentioned before, allowed North Carolina to be the first team to rush for more than 200 yards on them. The Irish were able to allow the main trio on the ground to rest for the entire fourth quarter allowing the backups to get extensive playing time. The Yellow Jackets are (as of writing) among the strongest remaining run defenses that the Irish will face and the Irish look to be the strongest rushing offense that they will face.

Edge: Notre Dame

 

Georgia Tech Rush Offense vs. Notre Dame Run Defense

The Yellow Jackets have been quite impressive with the ground game as they are 25th in the nation with 204.4 yards per game with 21 touchdowns and an average of 5.5 yards per rush. The overall numbers that Georgia Tech has are quite similar to the Irish as they have three players who are primarily used to run the ball with one being a quarterback. Jamal Haynes leads the way with 96 attempts for 536 yards with 7 touchdowns and an average of 5.6 yards per rush. Jamal Haynes also is used for receiving as well as he has 15 receptions for 85 receiving yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 5.7 yards per reception. Quarterback Haynes King has 62 attempts for 353 yards with 6 touchdowns and 5.7 yards per rush. It should be mentioned that he was injured late in the win over North Carolina this past weekend and his status is up in the air as of writing. Chad Alexander has seen an increase of playing time in the last 2 games with 36 attempts for 202 yards with 1 touchdown and 5.6 yards per rush. The other rusher that sees some notable playing time is backup quarterback Zach Pyron who has played in each of the 7 games thus far with 17 attempts for 60 yards with 4 touchdowns and 3.5 yards per rush. The Yellow Jackets have also allowed 29 tackles for loss so far this season.

The Irish are a solid 46th nationally against the run allowing 121.3 yards per game with just 2 rushing touchdowns and opposing teams averaging 3.4 yards per rush. The Irish have not allowed any team to average more than 4.2 yards per rush in any game and the rushing touchdown allowed in the win against Stanford (that might have been short) was the first rushing touchdown allowed since the season opener at Texas A&M. The Irish have been able to get into opposing backfields with 31 tackles for loss as Howard Cross leads the way with 5.5 tackles for loss.

Even with the loss of Boubacar Traore for the season due to injury, the Irish held the Cardinal in check allowing 113 rushing yards and 2.7 yards per rush. The Yellow Jackets are 1 of 5 teams in the top 25 rushing offenses (following this past weekend) that the Irish have or will face this season. With the status of Haynes King being up in the air, this will be an interesting area to keep an eye on. With multiple players that can run the ball, it will certainly be one of the biggest challenges that the Irish face this season as an even stronger rushing offense will be faced next week. Regardless of who starts at quarterback, shutting down Jamal Haynes will be quite important as with either Haynes King and/or Zach Pyron.

Edge: Even

 

Notre Dame Pass Offense vs. Georgia Tech Pass Defense

The Irish continue to trend upward when it comes to passing the ball as they are ranked 108th nationally with 184.3 yards per game with 8 touchdowns, 2 interceptions, and a completion rate of 64.7 percent. Riley Leonard has 98 completions on 148 attempts for 979 passing yards with 6 touchdowns, 2 interceptions, and a completion rate of 66.2 percent. Steve Angeli played the entire fourth quarter against Stanford and now has 9 completions on 16 attempts for 123 passing yards with 2 touchdowns and a completion rate of 56.3 percent. Beaux Collins continues to lead the way with 21 receptions for 266 yards with 1 touchdown and 12.7 yards per catch. Jaden Greathouse has 14 receptions for 159 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 11.4 yards per catch. As for the other transfers, Jayden Harrison has 8 receptions for 104 yards with an average of 13 yards per catch while Kris Mitchell has 10 receptions for 101 yards with an average of 10.1 yards per catch. Jayden Thomas has 9 receptions for 90 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 10 yards per catch. As for the tight ends, Mitchell Evans has 10 receptions for 82 yards with an average of 8.2 yards per reception, Cooper Flanagan has 3 receptions for 53 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 17.7 yards per reception, and Eli Raridon has 5 receptions for 41 yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 8.2 yards per reception. The Irish have allowed 9 sacks and 9 quarterback hurries with 7 passes broken up.

The Yellow Jackets have not been nearly as impressive when it comes to defending the pass as they are 82nd in the nation allowing 223.7 yards per game while allowing 11 touchdowns, just 1 interception, and opposing teams to complete 62.9 percent of their passes. Of the 7 games played so far, 5 of them have seen Georgia Tech allow 200 or more passing yards with the highest being 381 passing yards from Syracuse. The remaining 2 games saw them allow 193 from Florida St. and just 92 from VMI. Aside from the Florida St. game, they have allowed at least 1 passing touchdown in each game. In terms of getting to opposing quarterbacks, the Yellow Jackets have managed to have just 9 sacks and 14 quarterback hurries with 23 passes broken up.

Riley Leonard is coming off his best performance so far for the Irish as he had 16 completions on 22 attempts for 229 passing yards with 3 touchdowns and a completion rate of 72.7 percent. The Yellow Jackets have surrendered many passing yards so far this season in almost every game so far. The Irish continue to improve game by game when it comes to the passing game. With this in mind, look for the Irish to have another solid performance when it comes to passing the ball as the matchup is favorable.

Edge: Even

 

Georgia Tech Pass Offense vs. Notre Dame Pass Defense

The Yellow Jackets are 59th nationally when it comes to passing as they average 240.1 passing yards per game with 9 touchdowns, 1 interception, and a completion rate of 70.6 percent. They had a 4 game stretch from the second game against Georgia St. to Louisville where they had 200 or more passing yards before being held to under 200 yards in the previous 2 games. Haynes King has 136 completions on 191 attempts for 1568 passing yards with 8 touchdowns, 1 interception, and a completion rate of 71.2 percent. Zach Pyron has 5 completions on 7 attempts for 64 yards with 1 touchdown and a completion rate of 71.4 percent. The Yellow Jackets mainly use a trio of wide receivers and a tight end for the bulk of the receiving yards as Malik Rutherford leads the way with 40 receptions for 509 receiving yards with 2 touchdowns and an average of 12.7 yards per reception. Eric Singleton Jr. has 30 receptions for 399 receiving yards with 2 touchdowns and an average of 399 yards per reception while Chase Lane has 13 receptions for 159 receiving yards with 1 touchdown and an average of 12.2 yards per reception. Tight End Avery Boyd has 14 receptions for 180 receiving yards with 2 touchdowns and an average of 12.9 yards per reception. The Yellow Jackets have allowed just 1 sack and 20 quarterback hurries with 15 passes broken up.

The Irish are extremely impressive when it comes to defending the pass as they are ranked 6th in the nation allowing 148.7 passing yards per game while allowing 5 touchdowns, 7 interceptions, and opposing teams to complete 47.9 percent of their passes. The Irish lost Benjamin Morrison for the season to injury and will see Leonard Moore start opposite of Christian Gray at cornerback. With the exception of Louisville, the Irish have held every opponent to less than 200 passing yards in each game and have held every opponent to a completion percentage that is under 60 percent with Louisville having the highest at 58.5 percent. The Irish have been able to get to opposing quarterbacks with 16 sacks and 23 quarterback hurries with 28 passes broken up.

If Haynes King does not start, then Zach Pyron will start in his place. Pyron is used primarily as a runner as he has had minimal passing stats so far this season. The Irish held Stanford to just 87 passing yards in the previous game and the depth at the cornerback position will most certainly be tested as the second half of the season begins. The receivers that are used in the passing game by Georgia Tech are on the shorter side, but must still not be underestimated, regardless of who is under center. Look for the Irish to continue to be strong in defending the pass.

Edge: Notre Dame

 

Special Teams

Mitch Jeter had an injury early on the win over Stanford and is questionable to play this weekend. On the season, Mitch Jeter is 5 of 7 (both misses were blocked) on field goals with an accuracy rate of 71.4 percent and a long of 48 yards. If he is unable to play, then the Irish will use Zac Yoakam and Marcello Diomede who both have made all of their extra points so far this season. James Rendell has punted 23 times with an average of 40.3 yards per punt. Jayden Harrison has returned 5 kickoffs for 124 yards with an average of 24.8 yards. Max Hurleman has returned 6 punts for 52 yards with an average of 8.7 yards. The Irish have also blocked 2 kicks while allowing 2 to be blocked.

Aidan Birr is 6 of 11 on field goals with an accuracy rate of 54.5 percent with a long of 44 yards. David Shanahan has punted 24 times with an average of 43.7 yards per punt. Eric Singleton Jr. has returned 2 kickoffs for 61 yards with an average of 30.5 yards. Rodney Shelley has returned 10 punts for 72 yards with an average of 7.2 yards. The Yellow Jackets have also blocked 4 kicks while allowing 1 to be blocked.

Stronger Unit: Even

 

Final Thoughts

The Irish are coming off a balanced performance where they defeated Stanford 49-7 to complete a stretch of 3 consecutive home games. Now the Irish play in the first of 2 consecutive neutral site games before the second bye week. Georgia Tech is coming off a 41-34 win at North Carolina which saw quarterback Haynes King get injured late in the game and is still day to day as of writing this and the Yellow Jackets scored the game winning touchdown on a Jamal Haynes 68 yard run with 16 seconds remaining in the game to put them at 5-2. If Haynes King does not play, Zach Pyron will start instead. This could make things more favorable for the Irish as Pyron has primarily been used as a runner and has had a small amount of passing stats for this season. Even with the depth issues that the Irish will face at cornerback, the secondary is still the biggest strength of the Irish defense. The Irish have had some injuries on defense and have managed to use their depth well. If the Irish are able to get a good lead as the game goes on, then this will lead to backups getting more opportunities for playing time while allowing the starters time to rest. Look for the Irish get a respectable win against one of the better opponents on the schedule.

Prediction: Notre Dame 34, Georgia Tech 20

 

As always, GO IRISH!

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