Notre Dame Aims to Avoid Post-Navy Letdown as Top-25 Showdown at Pitt Looms
No. 9 Notre Dame is fresh off dominating Navy, and now the focus shifts to avoiding the dreaded ‘post-option hangover’ as the Fighting Irish prepare for Saturday’s top-25 showdown at No. 22 Pittsburgh.
Yes, transitioning from defending Navy’s triple-option to a conventional offense presents challenges, but Notre Dame isn’t entertaining that storyline.
“I'm never going to allow myself or our guys to make an excuse for a performance below what we have set for ourselves,” stated head coach Marcus Freeman. “Navy is in the past. We gotta get ready for Pitt.”
Linebacker Kynstonn Viliamu-Asa was clearly listening to Freeman’s presser and his messaging in team meetings as he echoed his head coach.
“We just don’t have as much time as we did last week with the bye week, but that’s a great challenge and we’re embracing it,” Viliamu-Asa said. “We’re ready to transition right now with our minds to Pitt.”
Some programs don’t completely dive into the film following a triple-option team as they won’t face a similar offense. Notre Dame didn’t spend too much time on it, but Viliamu-Asa made sure to take learning points from the 49-10 victory.
“It helps a lot,” stated Viliamu-Asa. “I think there’s always something to learn, regardless of who you play. We talk about the fundamentals, we talk about some of the intangibles that we play with, regardless if we play Navy or we play Pitt. We have to show up, play violent, play with effort and play with great details. I think that spreads to every game that we play.”
One of those moments for the California native was getting his emotions back in check after almost coming down with an interception.
Now, it wasn’t a missed tackle or a costly play, but it’s one the 6-foot-3, 230-pounder wants back.
“We talk a lot about reloading and the process of mentally flipping the page, being able to play the next play, get the call and just fight to live another down,” Viliamu-Asa explained. “So just breathing, mentally centering myself into the next play or the next drive, whatever it is and moving on.”
Notre Dame’s defense has played to expectations over the last six games and it will get another test on Saturday.
Pitt quarterback Mason Heintschel is on a heater as he’s won five straight games and has put up big-time numbers in the process.
How will the Irish defend him? It’s a safe bet it will be like other games, as Chris Ash will look to smother the run game and let one of the nation’s top secondaries go to work.
“We try to stop the run, make sure that they start airing the ball out and that's when our DBs can go do what they do and the D-line,” stated captain Drayk Bowen. “When the LBs are rushing, you get Kyngstonn and (Jaylen) Sneed off the edge. That's when they can go get sacks and that's when good things start to happen.”
The Irish linebackers have shut down the run, and that includes last week, with true freshman Madden Faraimo playing a career high 29 snaps. Faraimo has been in and out of the rotation, but hasn’t quite found consistent playing time on defense.
The 6-foot-2, 235-pounder recorded three tackles against Navy and was often playing side by side with Viliamu-Asa, which served as a special moment in the snow for both Southern California natives.
“It was very fun,” said Viliamu-Asa. “I’m so proud of that dude and playing next to him is such an honor and such a blessing. It’s cool to see. I gave him some tips on what I saw last year, it being my first time and it being his first time this year. It’s amazing to see him doing a hell of a job.”
Bowen has also started to see Faraimo take a step in his preparation during the week. Learning a playbook is easier said than done, but mastering what an offense is trying to do is even tougher and the game appears to be slowing down for Faraimo.
“He's getting better each and every day,” explained Bowen. “He's understanding not just the playbook but what the offense is trying to do to him in a certain coverage, where he needs to be, not taking what the offense wants him to take and just executing at a high level.”
As Notre Dame enters the final three weeks of the season, Bowen has been here before. It’s win or go home and it’s a position the Irish embrace.
“I would say we've got a little bit of a chip on our shoulder right now,” said Bowen. “A lot of people don't think we should be where we're at and it's kind of a thing we wear. We're Notre Dame. We're going to go out, play hard, play physical and play violent football.”
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