Notre Dame Football: Key Offensive Matchups vs. Virginia Tech

The blowout loss to Michigan was and still is a hard pill to swallow, however, Notre Dame football is set to face off against another talented opponent in Virginia Tech — and the offense will need to be ready against the ultra-aggressive Bud Foster defense.

Notre Dame football will try to bounce back this week against the Virginia Tech Hokies, but this time it will be a little bit of a different atmosphere playing in front of the home crowd at 2:30 PM EST.

It will be a familiar foe in Virginia Tech, who Notre Dame played just last season on the road in Blacksburg. Ian Book and the Irish came away with an impressive 45-23 victory against the then ranked Hokies.

It is kind of a tail of two matchups. Last season, Virginia Tech was ranked highly in the preseason polls, and when they to the Notre Dame game, they were trending down. The defense was young and going through some hard times. This year, they started out slowly, but are trending up at 5-2, while returning 11 starters from last years defense. With that said, Notre Dame should still hold a heavy advantage.

Here are the key matchups when Notre Dame has the ball tomorrow afternoon.

Ian Book vs. VT Pressure Defense

The Virginia Tech defense has not been overwhelmingly good by any means, but Ian Book and the Irish offense has struggled this season against heavy pressure defenses. Bud Foster might have the most aggressive defense of them all. Fortunately, they faced this defense last season, and have now seen a Virginia defense and Michigan defense that does much of the same.

While I don’t expect Book to suddenly become what we thought he was supposed to be heading into the season, I do expect a more crisp game from the senior quarterback. With heavy blitzing teams comes open receivers — another weakness of Book’s this season. He will need to read the field effectively and the get the ball out quickly to his talented playmakers.

The Virginia Tech defenses allows on average 35 points per game against Power 5 teams, as well as three passing touchdowns per game. Even with the struggles on offense, Notre Dame is by far the best team the Hokies have played this season. There is no excuse not to hit that average.

ND OL vs. VT Pressure

Much like Ian Book, the Notre Dame offensive line has seen high pressure defenses aplenty this season. Before the Michigan game, it seemed as though the OL was trending up. They were abysmal last Saturday, but so was almost everyone. Now, with Tommy Kraemer out for the rest of the regular season, the offensive line will be put to the test even further. Fortunately, Trevor Ruhland is as fundamentally sound as they come and should thrive against this kind of defense. I like the matchup.

The biggest thing to worry about tomorrow is the pressure. While the offensive line should have no problem holding their own against the defensive line of the Hokies, the defense as a whole has 25 sacks. If the offensive line plays to their capabilities, 35+ points should be no problem.

Jafar Armstrong vs. Virginia Tech Run Defense

Tony Jones Jr. is a gametime decision per Brian Kelly, and even if he plays he won’t be 100 percent. Jafar Armstrong was the starter heading into the year, and Chip Long had big plans for the junior back — as we can see on the first series against Louisville. This is now his third game back from his injury, and it is time to take back the job and elevate the offense.

Armstrong brings the Irish offense a dimension that simply put, no other RB on the team does. He can take the ball to the house at any moment. He is also an extremely talented weapon in the slot or catching it out of the backfield. Jones has been tremendous for the Irish offense most of this season, but Armstrong should keep the running game strong, assuming he is at 100 percent. If he is, it could be a long game for Virginia Tech. I would love to see a 20+ carry game out of Armstrong.