Irish Defense Will Be In The Spotlight On Saturday Night
No. 3 Notre Dame (10-0) will face off against No. 12 Syracuse (8-2) at Yankee Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The Orange have scored 50 points four times this season and are ranked seventh nationally with 44.4 points scored per game.
Notre Dame's defense gives up just 18.7 points per game and will have to execute with great discipline in order to contain the potent Syracuse offense.
“They do what they do, and they do it really well,” praised head coach Brian Kelly. “They're like the triple option, right? You try to come up with a scheme against it, they've seen it. You better be fundamentally sound. You better do what you do really well because they're going to do what they do. So they're doing a great job."
The Orange pose a balanced offensive attack that can beat you in many ways. They have great talent at all skill positions, four senior starters on the offensive line and a senior signal-caller in Eric Dungey, who is also a four-year starter.
“They've done well upgrading at the running back position, to the level where they've got some home run threats,” explained Kelly.” “Moe Neal, Kyle Strickland, big downhill guy, really have done a nice job there. They've got a tight end now that can help them in the running game.
“He's (Dino Babers) got some talent now to surround Dungey. They lost two very good players from last year, but Sean Riley reminds me of Greg Dortch at Wake Forest. Great speed, and is a home-run guy and special teams when he touches the football. (Jamal) Custis is a great match-up guy, I think he's 17 yards per catch, and Taj Harris is a 6'3" guy.”
Talent all over the field makes it easier for Dungey, but his grit takes the Syracuse offense to another level, and it has shown this season.
“When you have a guy that is fearless and has that kind of toughness, he's going to do whatever he needs to do to find a way to make something happen,” expressed Kelly. “He's not a guy that's going to make poor decisions. He'll try to make a play here or there, but he's 225 pounds.
“I'll give you an example. Its 3rd and 3 or 3rd and 4 in the zone read, and he keeps it, and there's a guy standing right there. You catch and tackle him, and he's going to fall forward for four yards. He's just a tough guy and that toughness kind of envelopes that entire offense. It's not a finesse spread offense. There is toughness to it, and I think it comes from him.”
Offense is the obvious strength of the Syracuse team this year and has won many games in shootout fashion, but the defensive talent is showing as of late for the Orange.
Syracuse's young linebackers and talented pass-rushers could pose a problem for the Notre Dame offense.
“We've seen a difference in this defense in a very, very short period of time, and it starts with the defensive ends,” stated Kelly. “Two guys that can legitimately come off the edge and rush the passer and then an inside guy in (Chris) Slayton that does a really good job with his hands, and gets off blocks.
“(Alton) Robinson and (Kendall) Coleman are two edge players that force you to pay attention to them. So they've done a really nice job of upgrading the athleticism off the edge of their defense. Then Slayton's development who is out of Crete Monee (Ill.), who we know about is a really nice player. Linebackers are young, but they're playing really well. I think (Ryan) Guthrie at the Mike is playing downhill, extremely athletic.”
There is a reason Syracuse is ranked as high as they are coming into Saturday’s matchup, they have earned it.
“It will be a great challenge,” said Kelly. “The special teams are going to be huge. As I mentioned, they've got great kickers, both the punter and kicker are as good as we're going to see. Riley is a guy that can, as I mentioned, is a lot like Dortch in terms of how he can open up a game on special teams. So you better be, be on it in terms of special teams, offense and defense, and, you know, they deserve to be where they are. One of the Top 10, 12 in the country, and they have certainly earned that.”