Notre Dame Football: Who was the defensive player of the game vs. Duke?

Notre Dame football was lead on Saturday by a dominant defense. While the offense sputtered early on, the defense was what allowed the Irish to overcome a slow start. After settling in after a couple Duke drives that saw the Blue Devils move the ball with some success, the defense stepped up and carried the day for the Irish.

But who was the individual standout performer for the Irish defense?

Honorable Mentions

Kyle Hamilton

Hamilton was dominant as expected in game one, coming into his second season being considered as one of the top safeties in the country. Despite being injured in the third quarter and not returning to the game Hamilton still totaled seven tackles and one pass defended. He was all over the field and once he returns from his injury you can expect him to do more of the same. Had he played the whole game, he very likely could have been named “Defensive Play of the Game”. For a full breakdown of Hamilton’s stats, click here.

Isaiah Foskey

Despite being a backup, when he was in, he was a force to be reckoned with. Foskey only totaled two tackles in the game, but one was a sack and the other was an assisted tackle which was also for a loss. Expect Foskey to be on the field more often going forward and get used to hearing his name called. The sophomore was a beast in game one, and looks to be the next in line for Notre Dame’s quality defensive end products. For a full breakdown of Foskey’s game one stats, click here.

Shaun Crawford

The sixth-year senior, who previously played corner, but is now a safety had a very productive first start at safety. Despite a couple of missed tackles — which is expected in week one — Crawford played very well. alongside Hamilton, these two should be in the conversation for best safety duo in the country. Crawford managed to rack up a total of four tackles and a fumble recovery in the 2020 season opener. For a full breakdown of Crawford’s states, click here. 

Defensive Player of the Game

Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah

Along with the rest of the guys listed, Jeremiah Owusu Koramoah (JOK) was also all over the place on Saturday. The senior linebacker was extremely dominant in game one. He totaled nine tackles — two of which were for a loss and one of those two being a sack — along with a forced fumble. You can’t ask for much more than that.

This guy has first round potential for the upcoming draft and you should expect play like this from him all season long. This should be a very exciting year to watch the Irish defense play. For a full breakdown of Owusu Koramoah’s game one stats, click here.