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Notre Dame Football: Key Offensive Matchups vs Syracuse

By Connor McJunkin

SOUTH BEND, IN - NOVEMBER 10: Dexter Williams #2 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish breaks a tackle on his way to a 58-yard touchdown run against the Florida State Seminoles in the second quarter of the game at Notre Dame Stadium on November 10, 2018 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
SOUTH BEND, IN - NOVEMBER 10: Dexter Williams #2 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish breaks a tackle on his way to a 58-yard touchdown run against the Florida State Seminoles in the second quarter of the game at Notre Dame Stadium on November 10, 2018 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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SOUTH BEND, IN – NOVEMBER 10: Miles Boykin #81 of Notre Dame football celebrates with teammates after a three-yard touchdown reception against the Florida State Seminoles in the first quarter of the game at Notre Dame Stadium on November 10, 2018 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Notre Dame football is 10-0 and travels to Yankee Stadium this weekend to take on No. 12 Syracuse in the 2018 Shamrock Series game. Here are the top offensive matchups to watch for.

It feel pretty good to say that Notre Dame football is undefeated and still in the hunt for the College Football Playoff as we approach late-November. Coming off a 42-13 win over Florida State on Senior Day last weekend, Notre Dame is now 10-0 and in the last leg of the regular season.

Many might have thought FSU or USC would provide a solid, late-season statement win for the Irish, but just as we all suspected, Syracuse is 8-2 and ranked No. 12 in the country. This is the most wins the Orange have had in a season since 2012 and the most regular season wins since 2001. Their two losses came at the hands of No. 2 Clemson and in overtime to Pittsburgh.

This is a good football team that took Clemson to the wire. Syracuse’s success can be attributed to their explosive offense — which is 7th in the country in points per game. Defensively, they have struggled at times this season, having given up over 30 points on four separate occasions. They are an experienced group of mostly upperclassmen who play fast and aggressive and are plenty capable of giving the Irish fits.

Here are their national defensive rankings this season coming into Saturday’s game (out of 130 FBS DI-A teams):

  • Total Defense: 99th (4,303 yards)
  • Yards/Game: 97th (430 yards)
  • Passing Yards/Game: 108th (261 yards)
  • Rushing Yards/Game: 69th (169 yards)
  • Points/Game: 71st (27.6 points)
  • Total Sacks: 9th (33)
  • Interceptions: 6th (14)
  • Defensive Efficiency: 20th (74.3)

These numbers tell two different stories. Though they give up a lot of yards, especially through the air, they can get to the quarterback and create turnovers. To put their sack total in perspective, Syracuse only had 16 total sacks in all of 2017.

Sometimes numbers don’t tell the full story, as some stats might be favorably inflated after playing Wagner, FSU, Wake Forest, and Louisville. But, they get credit for what they’ve done, and what they’ve done is play good enough defense to win eight games.

For the Irish to be successful Saturday, it will come down to winning important position battles all over the field and putting points on the scoreboard early and often. Here are the key matchups to watch for when the Irish have the ball.

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