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Notre Dame Football

Nwosu is Notable

October 19, 2017
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There are going to be several important match-ups this Saturday against USC, especially when the Notre Dame offense is on the field. There is one player in particular on the other side of the ball that could be a major factor in this game that I’m sure Irish fans will notice often. So far this season it’s been pretty much impossible for opposing fans to ignore what outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu has been doing against their teams this season.

USC’s other starting outside linebacker, Porter Gustin, was the one who was being talked about as an All-American candidate this summer. He has been out with a couple of injuries the last four games, though. In his absence, Nwosu has emerged as a big time threat off the edge. He was a solid player last season, but has taken his game to a different level this fall.

His tackles for loss and sack numbers aren’t exactly prolific (2.5 and 1.5 respectively). But that doesn’t accurately reflect how effective he has been. He generates plenty of pressure when he is single blocked. A play like this doesn’t show up on the stat sheet, but other teams certainly are aware of what he can do.

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That’s why they are sliding protection his way so much. He gets chipped by a back quite a bit and I’ve seen them shift the tight end over to his side several times to help slow him down. Sometimes he even makes the choice to slow himself down because he is one of the best I have seen when it comes to deflecting passes at the line of scrimmage. He has eight so far and that does not include this ball he tipped to himself that he intercepted against Washington State.

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Must be something about players who wear 42 because doing that kind of thing is just not common. This isn’t a guy who has a wingspan like Jarron Jones either. He’s 6’2” 240 and has relatively short arms for someone that has to rush the quarterback. He simply has incredible hand-eye coordination and anticipation when it comes to knowing when to jump before a quarterback releases the ball.

Mike McGlinchey, Robert Hainsey, and Tommy Kraemer are going to have their hands full with him when the Irish are throwing the football. He’s very quick, loves to try and time the snap, and knows how to convert speed to power like he did on this sack.

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They will have him shifting over to the interior and blitzing as well, all in an effort to get him in a favorable match-up as a pass rusher. Notre Dame needs to be aware of where he is on the field at all times to make sure they’ve got things covered in protection. I know the sack numbers are greater for someone like Christian Rector, but I don’t see him generate nearly the same amount of pressure that Nwosu does.

For as much chaos he can cause versus the pass, I also believe that Notre Dame can target him in the run game. For one, he plays just about every snap on their defense. Without Gustin, they rely on him even more. He can wear down in games and definitely takes some plays off.

Mostly, he is just not that big. Gustin is 6’5” 255 and can really set the edge with his physicality and strength. Nwosu wants to win with speed and quickness. If he doesn’t play with good technique, he can get engulfed by blockers at the point of attack. He’s also very inconsistent when it comes to squeezing down plays that are run inside of him as you can see here against Washington State.

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Chip Long is going to want to get USC into situations where they are shifting their defensive tackles with a one technique (inside shade of the guard) to his side. That gap in between Nwosu and the defensive tackle could end up being massive.

There are also some circumstances where he will be thinking about the pass when he needs to be reading the block that is coming at him instead. On this play he is getting up the field like it’s a pass and ends up taking himself completely out of the play.

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When I watch him, I think he is a guy who would prefer to run around blocks rather than fight through them. If he does that against Notre Dame, they are going to have a ton of success running his way.

If I was Long, I would run right at him in short yardage as well. Stanford’s tight end really caved him down on this play that ended up opening a big hole to that side.

via GIPHY

On every play, whether it is a run or pass, the Irish have to be aware of where he is lined up. They need to be ready to protect against the threat he poses the quarterback and they need to identify where he is in the run game. The latter may put a bullseye on him to know where they want to run the ball and get their backs going like they have been all season. 

 
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