Against Ohio State’s Prolific Pass Offense, the Notre Dame Secondary Came to Play

Heading into Saturday’s contest with No. 2 Ohio State, a prominent concern among the Notre Dame fan base was how its secondary would hold up against the nation’s most electric passing offense.

Quarterback C.J. Stroud still put up solid numbers. He completed 24 of 34 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns. But he had to work hard for much of his offensive production. He often fit passes into tight windows or hit a streaking receiver toward the sidelines, just before the receiver stepped out of bounds.

“Hats off to him,” said Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman. “There's a reason why he's a Heisman Trophy candidate. He's a heck of a football player, and they have a really good team.”

His 224-yard performance is also actually the second-fewest yards he’s thrown for since taking over as the Ohio State starting quarterback. 

Ohio State wide receivers Emeka Egbuka and Marvin Harrison, Jr., still played well, but Notre Dame forced Stroud to focus on less-heralded pass-catchers throughout the game. Tight end Cade Stover was targeted four times, the third most on the team. 

Perhaps the Buckeye’s biggest play of the passing game came on a 24-yard touchdown pass at the end of the third quarter to wide receiver Xavier Johnson, a former walk-on who earned a scholarship at the start of the 2021 season.

Now, it helps that preseason All-American wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba was hobbled with a lower-body injury. Additionally, projected starter Julian Fleming was a game-time decision and did not see the field.

TaRiq Bracy Plays with Confidence

Throughout the contest, Notre Dame’s starting nickel cornerback TaRiq Bracy covered Ohio State’s top receivers: Smith-Njigba, Harrison and Egbuka.

But the Buckeyes had little success when targeting Bracy’s man, and Stroud typically avoided doing so. 

I believe Stroud completed three passes in Bracy’s vicinity, which went for a total of nine yards. 

One of these plays was actually a quick toss out to Smith-Njigba, and Bracy chased him to the sidelines, taking him out of bounds for a one-yard loss. 

On the night, Bracy played tight, physical coverage. If he can keep it up throughout the season, he should be a major asset to the Irish secondary this season. 

Freshmen Corners Play Significant Minutes

In August, Mike Mickens talked about how important it is for the team to give its starting corners adequate respite by rotating in younger players. 

As a result, freshman cornerback Ben Morrison and Jaden Mickey saw significant action against Ohio State. 

Morrison, in particular, played well. In the first half, Morrison had a diving pass breakup on a ball thrown to standout OSU wideout Marvin Harrison, Jr. His deflection forced third and long, and Ohio State ended up punting on that drive inside Notre Dame territory. 

At times, Mickey looked a bit out of place, including on Johnson’s 24-yard touchdown reception, but I believe Notre Dame also blitzed both safeties on that play, leaving the freshman corner to fend for himself. 

He made a few plays as well, including a nice tackle near the sideline, where he shed a block at the last second to hit the approaching running back and force third and 2. 

All things considered, it was a solid debut for a freshman cornerback against one of the most talented offenses in the country, especially when you consider that Mickey’s still only 17 years old. 

Room For Improvement

There are a few instances where the Notre Dame secondary struggled to tackle or was too aggressive in their coverage. 

In the first quarter, Cam Hart tried to jump a pass to Egbuka, which turned what should have been a short completion into a 31-yard touchdown. 

There were also a couple of tackling issues from the Notre Dame safeties. 

In the third quarter, on second-and-six from the Ohio State 11-yard line, Buckeye running back Miyan Williams carried the ball to the outside. Houston Griffith came up to make the tackle and whiffed. 

Williams broke through the defense but lost his balance and barely took a step out of bounds. Had he stayed in, the play likely would have resulted in a two-play, 92-yard drive.