Game Thread | Georgia Tech at No. 8 Notre Dame
Georgia Tech (3-7) at No. 8 Notre Dame (9-1)
Notre Dame Stadium | 2:30 p.m. ET | NBC | Notre Dame -17 | O/U: 58
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Senior Day
The end of the 2021 season isn’t going to be kind to Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets enter Saturday’s game at Notre Dame on a four-game losing streak and will play Georgia next week to end the regular season.
Georgia Tech running back Jahmyr Gibbs is one of the finest running backs in the country and stopping him will be key, but the Yellow Jackets have little else as the sophomore leads the team in rushing and receiving.
Notre Dame will need to manage Senior Day emotions early, but this also isn't a team that seems like they’ll play down to the competition with the College Football Playoffs still on the line.
It could very well be the last game at Notre Dame Stadium for Kyren Williams and I expect the junior running back to have a big day.
And mark it down. Lorenzo Styles will get a touchdown that counts this week.
Five Players To Watch
Notre Dame DE Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa
After missing the Virginia game with the flu, expect him to be ready to go and finish his Notre Dame career with an exclamation point on Senior Day.
Georgia Tech RB Jahmyr Gibbs
One of the best all-around backs in the country, Notre Dame should never kick it to him as a returner and make sure they never are in a bad matchup in the passing game against him. He is a gamebreaker if they give him a chance to be.
Notre Dame S Ramon Henderson
He has a breakout performance against Virginia and we get to see if he can carry that over to Georgia Tech.
Georgia Tech LB Charlie Thomas
He makes an impact as a blitzer and has been one of the few bright spots on a disappointing defense. He leads their defense in Havoc and he'll need to provide plenty of it against the Irish.
Notre Dame DL Rylie Mills
Mills was too good stepping up in the absence of MTA not to see the field more this week. Tech has had injuries up front and the Notre Dame pass rush should be able to take advantage of that.
Quotes of the Week
Notre Dame QB Jack Coan:
"To be honest, I'm going to try to soak it all in - my last one at Notre Dame Stadium. It's crazy how quick it's gone. It's going to be emotional, but I'll do my best to back those emotions and focus on the game."
Notre Dame K Jon Doerer:
"It happened faster than I thought it would when you're a sophomore or junior. You just don't see it coming that quickly. Now, that it's here, it's kind of unbelievable and I'm glad to be here."
Notre Dame DL Kurt Hinish:
"We've talked about it all week. Everyone remembers their last home game in college. We're going to play a really good opponent and we're not overlooking the opponent at all, but I'm excited for senior night."
Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly:
"This team has been focused week to week. What's important now is beating Georgia Tech. If we do that, we think we get one step closer. Beat Stanford and you get one step closer.
"We're in the hunt. We're in the mix. That's what we try to do each and every year. This is about graduating champions and playing for championships. We go into late November with a chance to play for a championship and we're still on that journey.
"Let's take care of business this week against Georgia Tech. Reassess the situation and there are a lot of teams in front of us that play each other. Let's go beat Georgia Teach and we get one step closer."
For Your Nerves
TEAM STATS | Georgia Tech | Notre Dame |
Points Per Game | 28.8 | 32.3 |
Points Allowed Per Game | 30.2 | 20.5 |
Total Yards | 401.3 | 396.6 |
Yards Passing | 221.1 | 252.0 |
Yards Rushing | 180.2 | 144.6 |
Yards Allowed | 447.4 | 361.6 |
Pass Yards Allowed | 271.9 | 227.6 |
Rush Yards Allowed | 175.5 | 134.0 |