Stanford (2-3) at No. 3 Notre Dame (5-0)
Notre Dame Stadium | 3:30 PM ET | NBC | Line: Notre Dame -38.5 | Total: 54.5
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Players To Watch
Notre Dame CB Jayden Sanders
With Leonard Moore out, Sanders gets elevated to starting opposite DJ McKinney. Sanders has played well, but he'll get tested a lot more than Moore does on a weekly basis. He should see the ball his way and have an opportunity to make plays against a Stanford offense that throws the football a lot.
Stanford LB Matt Rose
Rose missed the Wake Forest game and Stanford had a tough time without their leading tackler. He'll do everything in his power to play against the Irish and the Cardinal will need him if they want to have any hope of stopping Notre Dame's running game.
Notre Dame RB Jonaz Walton
The Stanford run defense has fallen off a cliff this season. They have plummeted to 132nd in EPA per rush, 109th in success rate, and 128th in stuff rate. It could be another big day for Walton who had the first 100 yard game of his career against North Carolina.
Stanford LT Niki Prongos
Prongos is the best NFL prospect on Stanford's team and the Stanford O-line struggled without him in the lineup for the first three games. He's back healthy and has only allowed one pressure in 81 pass blocking snaps so far this season. He'll be matched up against Bryce Young the majority of the time and it will be a good opportunity for Young to continue to build on his already strong start to this season.
Quotes of the Week
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman:
“I think it all starts with being better on first and second down. As I think about that, how do we defensively continue to stay out of third-and-short situations. Offensively, I don't think it's all third-and-long situations, but some of those third downs might be a reflection of deciding to go for it on fourth. We know we have two downs here and put ourselves in position to be able to go for it on fourth. I think that plays into the offense a little bit.
“Defensively, for sure, we have to be better on first and second down to keep us out of third-and-short situations. We got to continue to execute better on that third-down play. If it's a third-and-long play, we can't let the quarterback scramble. We got to make sure we're on our man and execute and doing our job. But those are both areas that we've been focused on. Most importantly, you focus on that down, but you focus on how do we continue to be efficient on first and second down.”
Notre Dame OC Mike Denbrock:
“I think we've continued to make a little progress every week. It may not be as fast as some people may like it, but I'm happy with where we're headed and really the response that they've had week to week about getting better at some of the little things. It showed up in games.”
Notre Dame RB Jonaz Walton:
“It gives me a lot of confidence. It helps me see that the coaches believe in me, but it also shows me things that I can work on in my game. Playing a lot, you can maybe make a mistake here and there, but I also see things that I can fix.”
Notre Dame RB Aneyas Williams:
“We’re not necessarily looking at the opponent and what we did to them, but what we could do better as an offense and playing together. The coaches are going to find stuff we did wrong each and every game. So going out there and working on the advice they give us and what we need to work on to get better for the fall.”
For Your Nerves
Notre Dame Fighting Irish Under Armour No Weigh Backpack
