No. 2 Notre Dame (6-0) at No. 8 BYU (5-0)
LaVell Edwards Stadium | 7:30 PM ET | ABC | Line: Notre Dame -11.5 | Total: 46.5
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Players To Watch
Notre Dame CB Leonard Moore
Moore is on track to return to the lineup this week and he's always a difference-maker for Notre Dame. BYU doesn't have anyone Moore would travel with on each play, but he should get an opportunity to match up against big play threat Legend Glasker outside and it wouldn't be surprising if he covers TE Walker Lyons at times as well.
BYU QB Bear Bachmeier
Bachmeier is coming off a game where he threw for 300 and ran for 100. It's impressive no matter who the opponent was, but it's notable that BYU still only managed to score 24 points. That's because they had issues on 4th down and in the red zone. It's a safe bet that BYU will put the ball in his hands in those situations against the Irish and he will need to come through for them to have a chance at pulling off an upset.
Notre Dame RB Jonaz Walton
Notre Dame has run for 602 yards in their last two games with Walton going over 100 in both. He's given the running game more juice with explosive runs and they'll need some of that against a stingy BYU run defense. Don't be surprised if he makes a big impact as a receiver in this game with BYU excelling at taking away deep shots. Walton has four catches for 56 yards in the last two weeks. All three of Notre Dame's primary running backs have had success as receivers.
BYU S Faletau Satuala
Satuala is a future pro and is BYU's version of Luke Talich. He racked up 16.5 havoc plays last season and also pulled in three interceptions. He's still causing havoc this fall, but he's surprisingly missed as many tackles (seven) in the first five games this season as he did all of last season.
LB Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa
Another player returning from missing last week, Viliamu-Asa is built for this kind of game. Whether it's spying Bachmeier, blitzing on 3rd down, or making plays to stop BYU's running game, he is capable of making the kind of play that can flip the game in Notre Dame's direction.
Quotes of the Week
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman:
“It's going to be about execution. We got to have a great plan for the crowd noise, and we got to prepare for it, and we got to make sure that we're ready for it. Your execution really dictates how loud and not loud it gets. This isn't something new to us. It's a new environment because we've never been there, but this is what we do. I'm serious.
“This is what Notre Dame football does. We go into different places and it's a big game. That's what we expect. That's why we're here. That's why we choose to come to Notre Dame. We love this. I love it. They love it. This is exactly why we're at Notre Dame.”
Notre Dame DC Chris Ash:
“They’ve got good players. It’s simple. They have good players, they have a system that they believe it. They recruited and brought in the right players and right pieces to fit what they want to do and they do a good job of utilizing them. It starts with the quarterback, but they’ve got length on the outside, speed in the slot, and two tight ends that can run and block, and so they’ll present a lot of challenges.”
Notre Dame OL Guerby Lambert:
“As a kid, these are the games that you kind of dream about, being in these big environments. This is what you came to Notre Dame for as well. So being able to play in one of these games is obviously a huge blessing.”
Notre Dame CB DJ McKinney:
“A lot of us were looking forward to it, so as soon as the Stanford game was over, we were already on to the next.”
Notre Dame LB Drayk Bowen:
“As far as Saturday, it’s going to be a good matchup. They’re a run-heavy team. We’re a stop-the-run team. It’s going to be who can establish the line of scrimmage first and who can set the other one back behind the sticks. If we can do that, we’re going to have a pretty good night.”
For Your Nerves
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