Notre Dame football at Stanford: 3 things to watch in Week 13

Notre Dame football at Stanford: 3 things to watch in Week 13

Continuing to move the football on the ground

The one thing that has helped the Irish move forward since the bye week has been the play of the offensive line, which is creating big holes for the running game. Against Virginia, Kyren Williams and company were able to do whatever they wanted on the ground, and that led to them blowing out the Cavaliers at home.

Saturday will be another game where the Irish must establish the run, as Williams and Logan Diggs have proven to be a solid one-two punch this season. We also saw the emergence of another true freshman, Audric Estime, against Virginia, and he is a guy who can flat-out pound the ball on the ground.

Getting the run game going is the most important thing in this game because it will open up the playmakers downfield, and also control the line of scrimmage. Stanford does not have the talent up front on defense to hang with Notre Dame in this matchup, and the Irish must establish that from the get-go.