Notre Dame Football: Nickel Package Will Be Key Against Stanford

Every team has a nickel package for passing situations, but Notre Dame football’s nickel package will have a unique challenge against Stanford.

Before the season, Brian Kelly’s Notre Dame football team had a dream nickel package. Cornerback Shaun Crawford seemed to be tailor made for the nickel role. Unfortunately for the Irish–and more importantly, for Crawford–he would not make it out of the preseason.

In the week leading up to Notre Dame’s opener with Michigan, Crawford tore his ACL. It was the third time that the corner had suffered a season-ending injuring in his career at Notre Dame.

On paper, the Irish could use a combination of their best pass rushers and cover guys to create havoc for opponents. On the defensive line, the Irish have subbed in an extra pass-rusher, allowing Julian Okwara and Daelin Hayes to rush from the edge, while Khalid Kareem and Jerry Tillery come from inside. Of course, the stud linebackers Te’Von Coney and Drue Tranquil are staples of the nickel defense, as are safeties Alohi Gillman and Jalen Elliot.

But the Irish have had more of a rotation at the back end of the defense. In the three cornerback spots, the Irish have used some combination of Julian Love, Troy Pride, Jr., Houston Griffith, Nick Coleman, and Donte Vaughn.

And while the Irish have had success defensively overall, their numbers on third down leave something to be desired. In 70 attempts, opponents have converted 30 third-down attempts against the Irish defense. That’s a clip of about 43%, which ranks the Irish 102nd of 129 FBS teams.

Furthermore, Saturday’s top-10 battle with Stanford will be another test of Notre Dame’s defense, particularly its nickel package.

In the past, the biggest strength of Stanford’s offense has been the running game. While the Cardinal haven’t had the same success on the ground as they’ve had in recent years, it’s still safe to say that Heisman candidate Bryce Love will still get his fair share of touches. So will backup Cameron Scarlett.

In short, it would be reasonable to expect to see Stanford in a lot of third down situations of 4 or more yards, which is right in the wheelhouse of Notre Dame’s nickel package.

But how Stanford will counter Notre Dame’s nickel package could cause problems for the Irish defense.

Thanks in large part to having well-rounded, pass-catching tight ends Kaden Smith and and Colby Parkinson who stand at 6-foot-5 and 6-foot-7, respectively, Stanford has the ability to use the same personnel on all three downs. Include receivers JJ Arcega-Whiteside, Trenton Irwin, and Osiris St. Brown into that equation, and the Irish have some significant matchup problems on their hands.

For that reason, I would expect to see a lot of Julian Love, Notre Dame’s best cover corner, at nickel for the Irish. This lineup would allow Love to use his aggressiveness to take away Stanford’s big tight ends over the middle and would allow another corner, Donte Vaughn, the opportunity to use his length to cover Stanford receivers on the outside.

The Irish will also likely try their most experienced defensive back, Nick Coleman, at nickel, as well, which would allow Love to move back outside.

In short, the Irish will likely try a couple different groupings of corners on third down. If they find one that works, they will stick with it. If they don’t, it might be a difficult night for the Irish defense.

Covering Stanford’s athletes on the perimeter will be a huge test for Notre Dame’s defensive backs, who certainly have their work cut out for them. If the Irish are able to mix a solid pass rush with tight coverage in third down situations, they will win this game going away.