Syracuse (3-7) No. 9 Notre Dame (8-2)
Notre Dame Stadium | 3:30 PM ET | NBC | Line: Notre Dame -36.5 | Total: 50.5
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Five Players To Watch
Notre Dame RB Jeremiyah Love
Enjoy it. Saturday could very well be the last time No. 4 takes the field inside Notre Dame Stadium. The good news is Love is firmly in the thick of a Heisman campaign, so there’s a good chance Notre Dame lets him leave a lasting impression.
Syracuse QB Joseph Filardi
It’s not ideal for a true freshman to start. It’s not ideal for a walk-on to start because your scholarship players are hurt or not good enough. It’s not ideal for a true freshman walk-on lacrosse player to start at quarterback, but that’s where Fran Brown is at on Saturday. Filardi has completed 7-of-21 passes for 789 yards and one touchdown this season.
Notre Dame DE Boubacar Traore and the rest of the DL:
See above.
Syracuse RB Will Nixon
It’s not ideal to lose your starting running back when you have to start a true freshman walk-on at quarterback. Syracuse starting running back Yasin Willis isn’t expected to play and Nixon will step in. Nixon was a former Notre Dame receiver recruit and has 326 yards and three touchdowns on the ground this season.
Notre Dame Jalen Stroman and Luke Talich
With Tae Johnson out, Notre Dame will rely on a committee opposite Adon Shuler. It’s a great opportunity for both players to get tuned up, as Notre Dame will likely need both if they make the College Football Playoff.
Quotes of the Week
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman:
“It all depends on where the ball is, right? Fourth-and-goal is a lot different than first-and-goal at the plus-nine. You're still staying in your red zone type offense, gold zone, if you want to call it that. But as you get closer to the goal line, your mindset changes, right? What are you going to do? Are you going to run the ball? Or what if they come out in this look?
“I think about the fourth-and-goal play from the Pitt game and we had a check that if they were going to show a certain look, we were going to do this. But hindsight 20-20. You probably say you put the ball and in my opinion, the best player in the country fan and you know what you can live with not scoring with the ball on his hands and trust your own line. But to not give that guy a chance in that moment, it was a bad decision on my part and our part.
“We have a good plan and we have to be able to trust our guys to execute it. Even if it's a look that maybe we haven't seen. It's about players, right? We've got to make sure we continue to get the ball in our playmakers' hands.”
Notre Dame WR Malachi Fields:
“We're just trying to make the most of each opportunity. Every game from here on out is championship level, so we're just trying to continue to grind, to go to work on Saturdays and make that run deep in the playoffs."
Notre Dame TE Justin Fisher
“Super thankful to have been so close to home during my time here. I get to share all these moments with family and friends given that the distance is so close. It's been awesome to be right back in my own backyard the entire time.”
For Your Nerves
Notre Dame Fighting Irish Under Armour Shillelagh Clover Rival Fleece Hoodie
