Notre Dame football: Key offensive matchups vs. USC

The week is finally here. USC and Notre Dame will face on Saturday night in South Bend, and the Irish offense will look to keep the offensive juju rolling after a dominating performance against Bowling Green.

This week will be tough. USC might not be back to their usual form, but they still have more talent on their roster than anyone Notre Dame faces this season outside of Georgia — and that alone makes them a tough team to play. Add in the fact that this is one of the biggest rivalries in college football under the lights, and that makes the game even tougher to predict.

USC is imperfect on defense, but the talent and skill is there in many areas — especially along the defensive line. Good thing for Notre Dame, they (likely) return their lead back in Jafar Armstrong to help shoulder the load. This leads us into out first key matchup.

Jafar Armstrong’s Return vs. USC’s Defensive Game Plan

First of all, we don’t know how much Armstrong will be used. Brian Kelly mentioned that we shouldn’t expect some superman performance out of Armstrong in his first game back, but we know how coach speak can be. If he gets going early, don’t be surprised at an increased role — even if Kelly wasn’t expecting it. The fact of the matter is, Notre Dame needs Armstrong’s skills at running back the rest of the season and his return couldn’t have come at a better time.

The other side of this discussion is how much will USC plan for Armstrong in the playbook? Obviously, everyone knows he is the workhorse and clearly the most gifted offensive talent when fully healthy. With that said, there isn’t much game tape of Armstrong for USC to go off of and the first drive at Louisville demonstrated the versatility he brings to Chip Long’s offense. This could work into Notre Dame’s favor on Saturday night.

This is really the first time all season and maybe even the first time during the Chip Long tenure that we could see his offense at 100 percent — something I am really excited to watch. Armstrong could affect the game as both a dynamic runner and pass catcher.

Notre Dame’s Interior Offensive Line vs. USC’s Interior Defensive Line

The Irish offensive line has been inconsistent so far in 2019, but we know the talent they possess. Overall, the play has been good, especially from the Georgia game on. USC’s defensive line is much better than people realize, and they will be a real tough test for Banks, Patterson and Kraemer.

Jay Tufele and Marlon Tuipulotu might be the best defensive tackles the Irish face all season, so the guard and center play will need to be at it’s best to establish the run and keep a clean pocket for Ian Book. Obviously, star rankings aren’t the end all, be all when it comes to college production, but just give Notre Dame fans a good example of what the those two bring to the table for USC — both were considered top 20 players in the country and five-stars as high school recruits. That is some serious talent, and you’ll be hard pressed to find two starters with that pedigree on any other college team in the country.

Notre Dame Passing Offense vs. Banged-up USC Secondary

Much like everywhere else on the Trojan roster, the secondary is full of talent. However, the pass defense is middle of the pack (72 out of 130), and that likely has somewhat to do with the injury bug that has hindered their team all season. Starting cornerback Olaijah Griffin and safety Talanoa Hufanga both missed their game before the bye week and are questionable for the Notre Dame game, and the other starting corner, Isaac-Taylor Stuart, is also questionable with a concussion. That is 3 of 4 starters in the defensive backfield.

If those three are unable to go, or even if one or two aren’t able to go, that will be to the benefit of Ian Book and the Irish passing attack. I have heard positive things regarding all three players being able to suit up against Notre Dame, and that would obviously greatly assist the back end of the defense for the Trojans.

Griffin and Taylor-Stuart are in a timeshare with freshman Chris Steele for playing time, and USC wants to use them all for over 50 percent of the snaps if they can. Hufanga has been very good while on the field, including a 14 tackle effort in a win against Utah.

This is a young secondary for USC, regardless of the talent level — so Ian Book should be able to make plays and get the ball to Chase Claypool, Cole Kmet, and Co.

I mean this with 100% sincerity, I don’t think many teams can match up with Notre Dame when they have Claypool, Kmet, McKinley and Tremble on the field. The height and speed advantage is something to watch.