3 reasons Notre Dame football will beat Stanford in Week 12

Notre Dame Fighting Irish wide receiver Braden Lenzy (0) catches a pass in the first half of the NCAA football game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021, at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Ind.Cincinnati Bearcats At Notre Dame Fighting Irish 201
Notre Dame Fighting Irish wide receiver Braden Lenzy (0) catches a pass in the first half of the NCAA football game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021, at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Ind.Cincinnati Bearcats At Notre Dame Fighting Irish 201 /
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Oct 2, 2021; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish Defensive Coordinator Marcus Freeman signals to his players in the second quarter against the Cincinnati Bearcats at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports /

3 reasons Notre Dame football will beat Stanford in Week 12

Marcus Freeman

This past offseason, the No. 1 target for Brian Kelly in terms of replacing Clark Lea as defensive coordinator was Cincinnati DC Marcus Freeman. A high target for many big-time schools, including LSU, Freeman chose the Irish, and after this season, the program has to be ecstatic that he did.

Not only is Freeman an elite recruiter, but he has this defense playing better than any unit in the land, as they have not allowed a touchdown in the last three weeks. Against Stanford, a team that scored only 11 against Cal, you can be sure Freeman is going to dial up an elite game plan, and that will lead to the Irish winning this one big.

The Notre Dame football team has their eyes set on making it back to the College Football Playoff, but first things first, and that is a win inside Stanford Stadium. The Cardinal are down, and the Irish are soaring, so expect this one to be a big Notre Dame victory to move to 11-1 to close the season.