Notre Dame football: 3 Irish who are key to victory against GT in Week 12
By Brad Weiss
The Notre Dame football team takes on Georgia Tech on Saturday, and here are three Irish that are key to the victory against the Yellow Jackets.
On Saturday, the Notre Dame football team will battle it out against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, looking to win their regular-season home finale. The College Football Playoff is still very much up for grabs for the Irish, as they look to win their sixth straight game since the loss to Cincinnati.
Here, we look at three Irish that are going to be key if they want to move their record to 10-1 on Saturday.
Notre Dame football: 3 Irish who are key to victory against GT in Week 12
Jack Coan
It is no big secret that the Yellow Jackets struggle on defense, and in this one, Jack Coan could be in for his best game of the season. Coan has been more than efficient for the Irish as of late, protecting the football and leading this offense to some big games, and I would expect more of the same on Saturday.
For the Irish, their goal has to be to run the ball to open up the pass, but in the end, Coan could be in for a 300-plus yard game against this defense.
Isaiah Foskey
The Yellow Jackets are having some issues at the quarterback position, as Jeff Sims, their starting quarterback, missed last week’s game, and was replaced by a freshman in Jordan Yates. No matter who is under center on Saturday, Isaiah Foskey needs to bring it, forcing them off their mark, and causing some mistakes downfield.
Foskey has been outstanding in 2021 and should be a Day 2 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, but for now, the Irish need him to key another victory inside Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday.
Marcus Freeman
The Notre Dame defensive coordinator has been outstanding as of late, and now that the team is comfortable running his defense, the sky is the limit. This is a Notre Dame team that has not allowed a touchdown in the last two games, and while that will be tough against a team with a playmaker like Jahmyr Gibbs, I would not put it past Freeman to hold them under ten points once again on Saturday.
The Irish should dominate the Yellow Jackets on Saturday inside Notre Dame Stadium, as they are the better team, and Georgia Tech is just trying to finish out another disappointing season. My expectation is that Freeman is going to dial up an incredible game plan on defense, stifling Gibbs and whoever the quarterback may be in this one.