Notre Dame needs to take advantage of short-handed Clemson
By Brad Weiss
Lawrence and 3 defensive starters out for Clemson
Quarterback Trevor Lawrence is the biggest name who will not take the field on Saturday against Notre Dame, but he certainly is not the only starter the Tigers will be without in this top-5 matchup. Being without Lawrence is tough enough, as he is not only the best quarterback in the country, but also the potential No. 1 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, though Uiagalelei did a tremendous job filling in against BC.
Clemson will also be without three full-time starters on the defensive side of the ball against Notre Dame, including two linebackers and a defensive tackle.
In addition to Lawrence, linebackers James Skalski and Mike Jones will be out, as will defensive tackle Tyler Davis. Those are three key pieces on Clemson’s talented defense, and while it won’t have the same impact as Lawrence not playing, the loss of those players is huge against a Notre Dame offense that can score in bunches.
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The last time these two teams got together, Clemson was eliminating Notre Dame from the College Football Playoff, beating the Fighting Irish 30-3. Clemson could eliminate Notre Dame from the CFP talk with that kind of win on Saturday, but based on what we saw against BC, this game has the potential to go down to the wire.