Notre Dame vs. Texas AM Preview - Legion of the Leprechaun®

Zack Perez

Legion of the Leprechaun Author and Contributor

Perez's Irish PlayBook
August 29, 2024
6:37 pm

Notre Dame vs. Stanford Preview

Notre Dame Rush Offense vs. Stanford Run Defense

The Irish have certainly leaned on the running game this season with a rush offense ranked 20th in the nation that averages 214 yards per game with 15 touchdowns and an average of 6.2 yards per rush. Quarterback Riley Leonard barely overtook the spot of leading rusher with 59 attempts for 374 yards with 7 touchdowns and an average of 6.3 yards per rush. Jeremiah Love is not far behind with 57 attempts for 373 yards with 5 touchdowns and 6.5 yards per rush. Jadarian Price has 29 attempts for 211 yards with 2 touchdowns and 7.3 yards per rush. Aneyas Williams has more or less become the third running back in and has been seen often on third down with 6 attempts for 36 yards with an average of 6 yards per rush.

The Cardinal have been strong against the run this season ranking 12th nationally allowing 88.2 yards per game with 6 touchdowns allowed along with opposing teams averaging 3.2 yards per rush. However, in 3 out of 5 games this season, they have allowed 100 or more yards with 150 and 136 in each of the last 2 games, while the other two games early this season they allowed 25 and 26 yards in. Stanford has been able to get into opposing backfields with 29 tackles for loss with the top two players, Tristan Sinclair and Tevarua Tafiti, having 4.5 and 4, respectively. The Irish have allowed 22 tackles for loss this season through 5 games.

The Irish are coming off a weaker performance on the ground where they rushed for 117 in the win over Louisville. The Cardinal have been good against the run this season, but it should be noted that there best games came against a Division 1-AA team in Cal Poly and Syracuse (113th in rush offense), and have not been as impressive in the last two games as Clemson and Virginia Tech each got respectable numbers against the Cardinal defense. While the Cardinal right now are among the best run defenses that the Irish will face this season, the Irish should be able to bounce back on the ground after rushing for just 117 against Louisville.

Edge: Notre Dame

Stanford Rush Offense vs. Notre Dame Run Defense

Stanford comes in around the middle in terms of running the ball by being ranked 72nd nationally with an average of 157 yards per game with just 2 touchdowns and an average of 4.2 yards per rush. They have not had a rushing touchdown since the second game of the season, having 1 in the win over Cal Poly and neither of the rushing touchdowns coming from running backs. They have had over 100 yards in each game, with the strong performance being 236 yards in the loss at Clemson. The leading rusher is quarterback Ashton Daniels who has 50 attempts for 250 yards with an average of 5 yards per rush and Daniels will return to start after missing the last game due to injury. Micah Ford also was injured late against Virginia Tech and is the next leading rusher with 47 attempts for 230 yards with a 4.9 yard average while Chris Davis Jr. has 26 attempts for 188 yards with a 7.2 yard average. Quarterback Justin Lamson, who made the start in the home loss to Virginia Tech, has 37 attempts for 41 yards with 2 touchdowns and a 1.1 yard average. Sedrick Irvin has been used on the ground and in the passing game with 16 attempts for 73 yards with a 4.6 yard average and 4 receptions for 92 yards with an average of 23 yards, but all of the receiving yards came in 1 game against Cal Poly.

The Irish are ranked 49th in the nation against the run allowing 123 yards per game with just 1 touchdown (which was in the season opener at Texas A&M) and opposing teams are averaging 3.6 yards per rush. The best performance against the run was in the win over Purdue where they allowed 38 yards. Aside from Northern Illinois (who had a 4.2 yard average), the Irish have held all other opponents to under 4 yards per rush. The Irish have improved at getting into opposing backfields with 23 tackles for loss so far this season (17 over the last 3 games). The Cardinal have struggled with protection in the backfield by allowing 45 tackles for loss through 5 games so far this season.

With the status of one of the top rushers for the Cardinal being uncertain as of writing, this might be an area of struggle for the Cardinal as Micah Ford has contributed 230 of the 785 rushing yards by Stanford this season. With the struggles of allowing opposing defenders into the Cardinal backfield, this game could be a confidence booster for the Irish defense that has shown improvement in the tackles for loss department. The Irish have not been as strong defending the run as they have been against the pass, but depending on who plays for the Cardinal could make things more favorable for the Irish.

Edge: Notre Dame

Notre Dame Pass Offense vs. Stanford Pass Defense

The Irish are ranked just 115th nationally when it comes to the pass offense that averages 171.6 yards per game with 5 touchdowns, 2 interceptions, and a completion rate of 64.3 percent. However, improvement has been shown recently when Riley Leonard threw for 163 yards with 2 touchdowns and a completion rate of 73.9 percent. So far this season, Riley Leonard has completed 82 of 126 attempts for 750 yards with 3 touchdowns, 2 interceptions, and a completion rate of 65.1 percent. Steve Angeli has appeared in 3 games so far this season, having completed 7 passes on 11 attempts for 104 yards with 2 touchdowns and a completion rate of 63.6 percent. Beaux Collins leads the team with 17 receptions for 181 yards with 1 touchdown and a 10.7 yard average. Jaden Greathouse is the next leading player with 13 receptions for 140 yards with 1 touchdown and a 10.7 yard average. In terms of the other two transfer players, Jayden Harrison has 8 receptions for 104 yards with a 13 yard average while Kris Mitchell has 6 receptions for 69 yards with an 11.5 yard average. Production for the tight ends has not been as much as in past seasons as Mitchell Evans has 8 receptions for 104 yards with an 8.2 yard average, Cooper Flanagan has 3 receptions for 53 yards with 1 touchdown and a 17.7 yard average, and Eli Raridon has 4 receptions for 36 yards for 9 yards. In terms of opposing teams getting into the backfield, the Irish have allowed 8 sacks and 9 quarterback hurries with only 6 passes broken up.

The Cardinal have been among the worst in the nation when it comes to defending the pass as they are ranked 122nd in the nation allowing 270.4 yards with 11 touchdowns, 4 interceptions (1 returned for a touchdown), and a completion rate of 59.2 percent. They have allowed more than 200 yards in every single game this season and allowed more than 300 yards in 2 of the 5 games. They also allowed 2 or more touchdown passes in 4 out of 5 games while opposing teams completed 60 percent or more in 4 out of 5 games (with 2 games that saw 70 percent or higher). Stanford has also had 8 sacks and 14 quarterback hurries with 13 passes broken up.

The Irish have started to improve with throwing the ball over the last 3 games and Riley Leonard was quite accurate against Louisville. Stanford looks to be the weakest pass defense they face this season. With the Cardinal allowing significant yardage so far this season, this game will likely be one of the best chances to see Riley Leonard throw for a season high in the passing yards department along with passing touchdowns as well. This will likely be one of the few times that the Irish are not at a disadvantage in this area.

Edge: Even

Stanford Pass Offense vs. Notre Dame Pass Defense

The Cardinal do not fare much better than the Irish when it comes to passing as they are 105th in the nation with 181.6 yards per game with 9 touchdowns, 7 interceptions, and a completion rate of 60.3 percent. Aside from when they played Division 1-AA Cal Poly when they threw for 318 yards with 3 touchdowns and a completion rate of 86.7 percent, the Cardinal have been held to less than 200 yards in each remaining game and have had just 125 and 122 yards in the previous 2 games. The Cardinal have had to start 2 quarterbacks this season as Ashton Daniels has completed 68 passes on 115 attempts with 5 touchdowns, 6 interceptions, and a completion rate of 59.1 percent. Justin Lamson, who started the last game, has completed 18 attempts on 33 completions for 159 yards with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception with a completion rate of 54.5 percent. Elijah Brown appeared in the win over Cal Poly, but had 7 completions on 7 attempts for 97 yards with 1 touchdown and a completion rate of 100 percent. Elic Ayomanor has numbers that are ahead of where he was last season as a freshman as he leads with 24 receptions for 317 yards with 3 touchdowns and a 13.2 yard average. Ismael Cisse, another underclassmen, has 22 receptions for 186 yards with 2 touchdowns and a 8.5 yard average. Tight End Sam Roush has 12 receptions for 97 yards with 1 touchdown and a 8.1 yard average. After not playing in the first 3 games, Emmett Mosley V has 11 receptions for 77 yards with 1 touchdown and a 7 yard average in the last 2 games this season. Opponents of the Cardinal have had no trouble getting to the quarterback with 15 sacks and 16 quarterback hurries while also breaking up 19 passes.

Defending the pass has been a great strength for the Irish this season as they are ranked 16th nationally allowing 161 yards per game with 5 touchdowns, 7 interceptions (1 returned for a touchdown), and a completion rate of just 47 percent. Only 1 team has been able to pass for more than 200 yards on this defense as Louisville had 264 yards while holding every team to less than 60 percent passes completed (Louisville had the highest at 58.5 percent). The Irish have intercepted 2 passes each in 3 out of 5 games, and 1 interception in another. In terms of getting to opposing quarterbacks, the Irish have 12 sacks and 20 quarterback hurries and an astounding 27 passes broken up.

The Cardinal had Ashton Daniels miss the last game due to injury, but he is expected to start for this game. Justin Lamson did not inspire much confidence in the home loss with a performance of 13 completions on 24 attempts for 103 yards with 1 interception and a completion rate of 54.2 percent. The Irish allowed 200 or more passing yards for the first time this season in the win over Louisville. Regardless of who is under center for the Cardinal in this game, they will have to contend with a strong secondary that has had its depth tested this season. Elic Ayomanor is easily the best player for Stanford and keeping him covered will be an important priority.

Edge: Notre Dame

Special Teams

Mitch Jeter is 5 of 7 (both misses were blocked) on field goals with a long of 48 yards and an accuracy rate of 71.4 percent. James Rendell continues to get better for the Irish as the season goes on with 22 punts with an average of 41.1 yards. Jayden Harrison has returned 5 kickoffs for 124 yards with an average of 24.8 yards. There has not been much activity on punt returns as Max Hurleman has returned 3 punts for 28 yards with a 9.3 yard average. The Irish have blocked 2 kicks while having 2 of their own blocked.

Emmet Kenney is 8 of 9 on field goals with a long of 51 yards and an accuracy rate of 88.9 percent. Aidan Flintoft has been pretty solid in terms of yardage on punts for the Cardinal as he has 17 punts with a 43.9 yard average. Tiger Bachmeier has returned 3 kickoffs for 84 yards with a 28 yard average and also has been excellent on punt returns with 9 returns for 111 yards with 1 touchdown and a 12.3 yard average. Stanford has also blocked 2 kicks so far while having 1 of theirs blocked.

Stronger Unit: Stanford

Final Thoughts

The Irish are coming off the first bye week of the season after defeating Louisville 31-24 in the second of three consecutive home games. Stanford is coming off a 7-31 home loss and currently sit at 2-3 this season. One important thing to note with the Cardinal is that this will be the third trip so far this season to the Eastern Time Zone and will have done so 3 out of the last 4 weeks. With a large majority of the Pac-12 having left to conferences that feature at least 2 teams in the Eastern Time Zone, this will be a common occurrence in future seasons. In some cases, some former Pac-12 teams will travel more than some NFL teams do despite playing 5 fewer regular season games. This Stanford team, for example, will have traveled more than the 2022 Pittsburgh Steelers, who never played outside the Eastern Time Zone that season. The additional long distance travel coupled with an early first bye week after having played 2 home games to start the season could mean a bit more wear and jet lag on the Cardinal as the amount of travel they will do this season will be the among the most of all teams this season. Injuries have been a major issue for the Irish this season as the emerging Boubacar Traore was announced to have been lost for the season due to injury. With this being the third of three consecutive home games, getting a strong win here will be important before a pair of neutral site games come next before the second bye week.

Prediction: Notre Dame 37, Stanford 10

As always, GO IRISH!

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