Notre Dame football: Reasonable expectations for the Irish against USC

By Brad Weiss | Oct 22, 2021

CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA - NOVEMBER 27: Kyren Williams #23 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish runs against Jahlil Taylor #52 of the North Carolina Tar Heels during the first half of their game at Kenan Stadium on November 27, 2020 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

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Kyle Hamilton(Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Notre Dame football: Reasonable expectations for the Irish against USC

Kyle Hamilton intercepts Kedon Slovis

Going into the 2021 college football season, USC quarterback Kedon Slovis was garnering a lot of first-round buzz. After throwing for 30 touchdowns against only nine interceptions as a freshman back in 2019, and following that up with a solid 2020 campaign in a COVID-shortened season, many felt he would be one of the best quarterbacks in the country in 2021.

While he has had his moments, he has also struggled at times, and this is going to be a big test for him on Saturday night. For the year, Slovis has tossed only nine touchdowns, but five of them have come across the last two games, so maybe he has found something in the passing game.

Against Notre Dame, he will be facing a secondary that has an All-American at safety, and a potential Day 2 NFL Draft pick at cornerback, so it would not be shocking if he tossed an interception or two on Saturday night. Slovis threw three interceptions against Oregon State and has five on the season, and I believe he makes a mistake that lands in Kyle Hamilton’s hands in this one.

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