Notre Dame Rush Offense vs. Northern Illinois Run Defense

The Irish rushed for 198 yards on 34 attempts for an average of 5.8 yards per rush in a 23-13 win at Texas A&M. Jeremiyah Love was the leading rusher with 91 yards on 14 attempts for an impressive 6.5 yard average while adding a rushing touchdown that put the Irish up for good. Quarterback Riley Leonard added 63 yards on 12 attempts (5.2 yard average) for the ground game and Jadarian Price had 44 yards overall on 8 attempts (5.5 yard average). Devyn Ford wound up being the third running back in the game as both Aneyas Williams and Kedren Young did not appear during the game. In this case, it would have to do with the loud environment rather than trying to preserve any eligibility.

Northern Illinois had finished 62nd in the nation last season against the run, allowing 148.4 rushing yards per game along with 20 rushing touchdowns and a 4.2 average per rush. Last season, the Huskies had two games in which they allowed 200 or more yards, and one game where they allowed 300 or more yards. Against Western Illinois, a Division 1-AA school, they held them to 94 rushing yards on 29 attempts, which was good for an average of 3.2 yards per attempt. They also did not allow any big plays either, as the longest rush was for only 15 yards.

Notre Dame easily played the stronger competition last weekend as Texas A&M was nationally ranked, while Northern Illinois played Western Illinois, a team that had gone 0-11 both of the previous seasons in 2022 and 2023. While the Irish had only had three players record rushing attempts against the Aggies, that number of players while likely more than double as Aneyas Williams and Kedren Young will likely see the field. It is always hard to determine advantages and disadvantages after one week of play, but the Irish do play against a team that was more than capable of allowing a significant number of rushing yards the previous season.

Edge: Notre Dame

Northern Illinois Rush Offense vs. Notre Dame Run Defense

Northern Illinois had 312 rushing yards on 41 attempts with an average of 7.6 yards per rush over Western Illinois as nine different players would carry the ball at least once. The Huskies star running back, Antario Brown (1296 rushing yards on 212 attempts with 10 touchdowns for a 6.1 yard average) did not have to do much on the ground. He would finish the day with over 100 all purpose yards with 69 rushing yards on 8 attempts (8.6 yard average) and 2 receptions for 45 yards (22.5 yard average). The next three running backs would all have near identical rushing yard totals on varying attempts. Justin Lynch, Jaylen Poe, and Gavin Williams would each had 42, 42, and 41 rushing yards on 6, 7, and 9 attempts, respectively. Antario Brown most likely will see the majority of the rushing load as having a strong lead at the half (34-3) allowed many backups to play.

The Irish surrendered more yards on the ground at 146 yards in total in the win over Texas A&M. However, it took 38 attempts to do so and the Aggies averaged 3.8 yards per rush while the longest rush was for 14 yards. Le’Veon Moss had nearly half of the yards with 70 yards on 20 attempts with 1 touchdown and a 3.5 yard average. Of Texas A&M’s 14 first downs that did not come by penalty, 9 of them came by running the ball. Considering that is more than half of them, it will be important to stop the run when the distance on a down is short.

The Irish were able to have 20 defenders record at least a tackle in the game. This rotation helped as the game went on as many opposing Texas A&M players were continually going down from fatigue at various points in the game. With Northern Illinois being a less challenging opponent (yet still one of the better teams of the MAC), look for the Irish to be able to rotate players even more so and lead to more experience being gained.

Edge: Notre Dame

Notre Dame Pass Offense vs. Northern Illinois Pass Defense

Riley Leonard completed 18 passes on 30 attempts for 158 yards to nine different players. The offensive line that came in with six career starts did not allow a sack and did allow 7 tackles for loss. Of the nine players that caught a pass, Beaux Collins had the majority of receptions and yards with 5 receptions for 62 yards with an average of 12.4 yards per reception. While not nearly as much in receptions and yards, Jaden Greathouse did have 3 receptions for 26 yards with an 8.67 yard average. Jordan Faison was injured early on after making a catch for a first down and will be out for one to two weeks and had 2 receptions for 12 yards with a 6 yard average. Tight end Mitchell Evans did not record any statistics as he was not at 100 percent strength for a full game. However, it led to Cooper Flanagan making a pair of plays with 2 receptions for 25 yards with a 12.5 yard average.

The Huskies were one of the best teams against the pass last season finishing 6th in the nation surrendering 171.2 passing yards per game with a completion rate of 56.8 percent and allowing 13 touchdowns through the air with 10 interceptions. Not a single team would hit 300 passing yards and only one would complete more than 70 percent of passes. This would notably be seen with Toledo having 281 passing yards and completing 80 percent of their passes against Northern Illinois. Western Illinois would complete 17 passes on 29 attempts for 204 yards and 1 passing touchdown on the Huskies defense. While not super long of passing plays, Western Illinois was able to get some chunk plays in as three receivers each had at least one reception for 25 or more yards in the game. Northern Illinois also had 1 sack and 5 tackles for loss as well, considering the competition, these numbers are surprisingly low.

While the Irish passed for well under 200 yards against Texas A&M, the numbers are still solid considering how much pressure the offensive line was facing on every down which meant getting rid of the ball rather quickly. Riley Leonard did appear to hurt his hand during the game, but it was not serious enough for him to have missed any plays in this game. The Huskies were strong in the pass defense department last season, but did allow a few chunk plays in the opener. With that being said, the Irish should be able to have more success in passing plays in front of the home crowd.

Edge: Even

Northern Illinois Pass Offense vs. Notre Dame Pass Defense

Last season, The Huskies were 105th nationally in passing yards with an average of 189.8 yards per game with a 57.7 completion percentage while also throwing for 15 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. They would not hit 300 or more passing yards at any point but did get close with two games of 290 or more passing yards (they had 4 games overall with 200 or more passing yards). They would also lose their starter, Rocky Lombardi, a Michigan State transfer to graduation after last season. Ethan Hampton would get the start in the opener and completed an impressive 18 passes on 20 attempts for 328 yards and 5 touchdowns. It was not necessary for him to make plays with his legs as he only made 1 rushing attempt for 8 yards. Each of his 5 passing touchdowns went to five different players. Trayvon Rudolph is one of the best playmakers for the Huskies and he finished with 171 all purpose yards consisting of the following: 4 receptions for 104 yards with 1 touchdown and a 26 yard average while rushing for 67 yards on 2 attempts with 1 touchdown and a 33.5 yard average. In addition, tight end Grayson Barnes was the next leading player with 5 receptions for 95 yards with 1 touchdown and a 19 yard average. Five players would record a reception of 20 or more yards as well.

The Irish were very impressive against the pass in the win at Texas A&M. The Aggies would attempt to throw 30 times with only 12 completions for only 100 yards with the completion rate being a mere 40 percent. The Irish also recorded 2 interceptions from safeties Adon Shuler and Xavier Watts. What is also impressive of note is that the longest passing play was for just 18 yards and no receiver would dominate as the leading receiver had just 31 yards in total. Overall, Notre Dame allowed just 3.3 yards per attempt as well.

While the Huskies certainly played much weaker competition, the playmakers in the passing game should not be overlooked at all. Trayvon Rudolph particularly stands out with his abilities to make plays in the air and on the ground, but is a smaller receiver standing at 5’10” and 187 pounds. Grayson Barnes has a stat line that would not look out of place among the many tight ends that have played for the Irish and could be a target in the endzone as he stands at an impressive 6’5” and 225 pounds. The Irish have an amazing secondary and do face a good challenge in shutting down the opposition. If they can provide strong coverage on Rudolph and Barnes, then things will be favorable.

Edge: Notre Dame

Special Teams

Mitch Jeter was outstanding in kicking in a hostile environment as he was 3 of 3 on field goals with 2 of the 3 both going for 46 yards. James Rendell managed to put 3 out of 5 punts inside the 20 as well. While Jayden Harrison was the only player to return a kickoff or punt with one kickoff return going for 19 yards, the return unit is still a strong one with Harrison and Jadarian Price.

Kanon Woodill did not attempt any field goals, but would only make 6 out of 8 on extra points, with one failing and the other being blocked and returned for 2 points by Western Illinois. The Huskies punted just once and the Tom Foley punt went for 32 yards and was not inside the 20. Dane Pardridge, who had a punt return touchdown last season, returned 2 punts for 10 yards, giving him a 5 yard average.

Stronger Unit: Notre Dame

Final Thoughts

The Irish are coming off an impressive win over Texas A&M in primetime and at arguably one of the toughest venues to play at. Northern Illinois is coming off a win where they scored an impressive amount of points over a Division 1-AA Western Illinois team that has not won a game since the 2021 season. The Huskies do have a few playmakers on offense that do need to be worried about, but they are not as strong of an opponent as the Aggies were. Reducing penalties and successfully converting third downs will need to be done this week as they were both areas of concern. Also, getting off to a solid start on offense will be important as well while also continuing to have a strong rotation in players played as well. Look for Riley Leonard to make some good passing plays and possibly a touchdown scored by the defense in the home opener.

Prediction: Notre Dame 45, Northern Illinois 14

 

As always, GO IRISH!