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Notre Dame Football vs. Michigan Gameday Primer

By Mason Plummer

SOUTH BEND, IN - SEPTEMBER 01: Jafar Armstrong #8 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish carries the ball against Brandon Watson #28 and Rashan Gary #3 of the Michigan Wolverines in the first quarter at Notre Dame Stadium on September 1, 2018 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
SOUTH BEND, IN - SEPTEMBER 01: Jafar Armstrong #8 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish carries the ball against Brandon Watson #28 and Rashan Gary #3 of the Michigan Wolverines in the first quarter at Notre Dame Stadium on September 1, 2018 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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Notre Dame football
ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN – OCTOBER 05: Head coach Jim Harbaugh waits to take the field to play the Iowa Hawkeyes at Michigan Stadium on October 05, 2019 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Michigan won the game 10-3. They’ll take on Notre Dame football tonight. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

Everything you need to know before Notre Dame football takes on Michigan in the Big House.

After a win against a tough USC team at home, Notre Dame football heads back out on the road to take on Michigan. The teams come into this matchup ranked No. 8 and No.19 in the country, with their records standing at 5-1 and 5-2 respectively.

Notre Dame has struggled historically playing at the Big House, holding a frightful 7-14 record. The home team tends to win the game in this series, but Notre Dame appears to be the better team on paper.

This game marks one of the marquee matchups and rivalries in college football and tonight should be no different. Expect a hard fought game between two top-notch football programs that absolutely hate each other’s guts.

Kickoff: 7:30 pm EST

Channel: ABC

Location: Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Line: Michigan -2.5

Weather: At kickoff it will be 49 degrees with 98 percent humidity. The forecast shows the chance of rain at 90 percent with winds coming out of the ESE at 9 mph.

Series history: Michigan leads 24-17-1

Top storylines: 

  • The top storyline of this matchup against Michigan on the Notre Dame side is definitely Jafar Armstrong’s full return to action. Any time you return your No.1 RB to an offense like Notre Dame’s, it’s a big deal. Armstrong is a game breaker and not having him in the Notre Dame offense has not let it perform to its full potential. Armstrong technically returned two weeks ago against USC, but only played a few snaps. The junior RB should get plenty of work against the Wolverines.
  • Michigan’s top storyline has to be Jim Harbaugh. Is he staying? Is he leaving? No one really knows at this point. Harbaugh came out and said this week that he is planning to stay at UM, but ultimately that decision is not entirely up to him. If Notre Dame goes into Ann Arbor and beats Harbaugh’s team handily, he may not have a job come Sunday morning.
  • Lastly, the weather. It was touched on above, but tonight will be a cold, wet, old-fashioned football game. Unfortunately for Michigan, that type of game favors Notre Dame. The Irish have relied heavily on Tony Jones Jr. and the running game, behind the much improved offensive line. Michigan’s offense has been… interesting. No one really knows what they’re trying to do offensively, including QB Shea Patterson, so their game plan for a bad weather game should be something to watch for.

Injury report: 

  • Notre Dame CB Shaun Crawford is listed as questionable as he is still nursing his dislocated elbow he suffered against Virginia. HC Brian Kelly stated Crawford will likely play.
  • Michigan TE Sean McKeon is listed as questionable with a leg injury.
  • Michigan LB Josh Ross is listed as questionable with a foot injury.
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