Notre Dame Football: Key Defensive Matchups vs. Navy

This Saturday, the Notre Dame football team will face off against the Naval Academy for the 93rd consecutive season. To beat Navy, you have to slow down the triple option offense. Here are the key matchups for the Notre Dame defense this weekend.

The main topics of conversation amongst fans this week were not about the specifics of the game. Instead, Notre Dame fans wanted to discuss some off-field issues.

There was plenty of debate about whether or not this series should be discontinued. It feels like most Irish fans have arrived at the belief that Navy does not bring enough to Notre Dame’s schedule to warrant playing them every season.

Fueling that conversation was the news that Notre Dame Stadium’s 273-game sellout streak would come to an end this Saturday.

Based on those conversations taking place the week leading up to the game, one would not expect this to be a top-25 matchup, but it is exactly that. Navy (7-1) came in at No. 23 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, while Notre Dame (7-2) dropped a spot to No. 16.

For the Irish to keep their hopes of a ten-win regular season alive, they need to win this game. That starts on the defensive side of the ball. Here are the key matchups for the Notre Dame defense.

Notre Dame Defensive Line vs. Navy Offensive Line

The foundation of the triple option offense is the first mesh point between the quarterback and fullback. Notre Dame’s defensive line needs to hold the line of scrimmage and disrupt that mesh point as much as they can.

The defensive line also needs to stay disciplined. I am sure the coaching staff has harped on this all week during the preparation for this game.

The triple option offense gives defenders plenty of eye candy. The Irish front seven needs to stay locked in on their assignments on every play to avoid breakdowns.

Notre Dame Back Seven vs. Navy Skill Players

It will actually be more of a back six in this game, as Notre Dame will likely use a five-man front like they did last year.

This group needs to play from the inside out. The first priority is for the inside linebackers to plug gaps and stop the fullback dive. After that is accounted for, the outside linebackers and safeties need to pursue the quarterback and running backs without losing contain or allowing cutback lanes.

Most importantly, all of the linebackers and safeties need to make tackles. You won’t see a whole lot of gang tackles from the defense, because each player has a specific assignment. Because of that, any missed tackle can result in a big play. Notre Dame needs to be sound in their tackling in order to get Navy behind on downs and get them off the field.

Notre Dame Defense vs. Malcolm Perry

During his radio show this week, head coach Brian Kelly talked about gameplanning for Malcolm Perry. “He (Perry) is just a dangerous player… He can turn 0 yards into a touchdown.” Kelly said.

The Irish defense is certainly aware of the big-play ability of Perry, who rushed for 133 yards on 12 carries against Notre Dame last year. He finished the 2018 season with 1,087 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.

Perry is on pace to greatly surpass that total this season after his transition to quarterback. Through eight games, Perry already has 1,042 rushing yards and 16 rushing touchdowns. He has also thrown for 722 yards and five touchdowns.

Limiting Perry’s production requires a team effort. All eleven players on defense need to play assignment-sound to prevent any big plays.