Game Thread | No. 10 Notre Dame at No. 25 Louisville

No. 10 Notre Dame (5-1) at No. 25 Louisville (5-0)

Cardinal Stadium | 7:30 PM ET | ABC | Line: Notre Dame -6.5 | O/U: 53.5

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Five Players To Watch

Notre Dame DT Howard Cross III
Cross just had a dominant performance against Duke and he's been playing well all season. He's going to be a handful for Louisville's interior offensive line to block and at this point another disruptive performance from him should be an expectation.

Louisville WR Jamari Thrash
Thrash is averaging over 20 yards per reception and is one of the best receivers after the catch in the country. NC State was able to limit him to only three catches and everyone should expect that Notre Dame will give him extra attention in coverage other than the occasional one on one vs Benjamin Morrison.

Notre Dame WR Rico Flores Jr.
Flores played more because of injuries at receiver last week, but he's likely to keep playing more because he keeps proving himself in big situations. Even with Jaden Greathouse and Jayden Thomas back, Flores should continue to see an expanded role in Notre Dame's offense.

Louisville DE Ashton Gillotte
Gillote is a problem off the edge and consistently gets pressure. He has five sacks on the season. Louisville has another very good edge rusher in Stephon Herron and with that in mind, expect Notre Dame to keep these two off-balance by mixing in more quick game.

Notre Dame S Xavier Watts
Watts made a great play on his second interception of the season last week and he should be heavily involved this week with the amount of play-action Louisville runs. Notre Dame's safeties are going to be critically important in limiting an offense that has done most of its damage with big plays in the passing game.

Quotes of the Week

Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman:
“We’re always trying to improve as a tackling team. There’s no perfect tackling team in the country. One missed tackle is too much. How do we continue to work on the fundamentals of tackling? Is it a tracking issue? Are we tracking in the right way? Is it a footwork issue? Is it a leverage issue? All those different things we see in a game, we have to continue to attack in practice and continue to work on it.” 

Notre Dame offensive coordinator Gerad Parker:
“That's why I love our staff. I think there's so much trust within our staff. And it starts with everybody, because everybody has a role here that's important in our game planning and how we execute and how we coach our rooms. I don't want to micromanage that. We have gifted people around us that are great at their jobs. My job is just to help support them and make them feel great about being here at Notre Dame and us having a work environment that allows that. And I think it's awesome. And that's what I've always wanted. I think when somebody knows their voice matters, it makes their work matter more. And I think it's where we're at.” 

Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden:
”I think we have a veteran group. We've definitely made some changes internally, not really worth sharing. I think the guys know it was unacceptable, and I think they’ve responded to the challenge. I think they're doing a really good job of taking the game plan to the field, and I think the staff does a great job. I really do. I think the staff has done a great job and, again, I hate talking about this stuff midweek. We’ve got a long way to go, and we're going to get challenged Saturday in the red [zone]. And we better be good.”  

Notre Dame RB Jeremiyah Love:
”I have to really focus on the small things," said Love. "Details matter. When I’m in, I actually have to know what I'm doing. Coach says clarity equals velocity. If you know what you're doing, you'll be able to play faster and perform better.” 

Notre Dame OL Blake Fisher:
”I would say offensively for us, it’s just making sure we got the right snap counts and we’re hearing the right things. We’re all five playing as one. The offense goes as we go. It’s about making sure us as leaders are kind of taking control and making sure everyone is dialed into the task at hand.” 

Notre Dame DE Javontae Jean-Baptiste:
” I’m used to playing at noon. But it is what it is. I’d just say that when it comes to playing night games, you’ve just got to be able to control your fire. You can’t let your energy be wasted too early in the day and you’ve just got to relax and make sure that you’re able to go when the time comes.”

Notre Dame LB Marist Liufau:
”It’s definitely been an emotional rollercoaster the past two weeks. It always feels good to win. Obviously, this past week felt great for us. It was just a huge boost for us. I think we’re rolling into this week with that win. It’s been a great service for us in our mindset going into this next week.” 

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