Notre Dame Football: 3 Keys to Victory against Pitt
By Dante Pryor
![The Notre Dame Fighting Irish take to the field before the game of the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl of an NCAA college football game Friday, Dec. 30, 2022 at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish held off the South Carolina Gamecocks 45-38. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]Jki 123022 Ncaaf Nd Usc Cp 65](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape%2Fcover%2Fsport%2F33252279903309396b1ce258c8147f8c7898cd5f91e9920adb23cd9aa7a4319b.jpg "The Notre Dame Fighting Irish take to the field before the game of the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl of an NCAA college football game Friday, Dec. 30, 2022 at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish held off the South Carolina Gamecocks 45-38. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]Jki 123022 Ncaaf Nd Usc Cp 65")
Notre Dame Football needs to do the little things well.
Years ago, former TCU head coach Gary Patterson discussed how much goes into winning a single football game. “Most games come down to the little things,” Patterson said. Notre Dame Football is the better team with the better roster. How well the Irish play comes down to doing the little things right.
One of those things is penalties. The Pittsburgh Panthers are currently ranked 125th in the country in penalty yards per game. Offensively, there should be plenty of defensive holding and pass interference calls against the ACC squad due to their style of play. It is up to Notre Dame Football not to give those yards back. The Irish are 79th in penalty yards per game.
Notre Dame needs to be more disciplined not to give those yards back. It is essential that the Irish stay ahead of the sticks offensively. Conversely, Notre Dame needs to make sure they aren’t giving the Panthers free first downs with defensive penalties themselves. If you are Notre Dame, it is crucial to get the Panthers off the field on third down.
Notre Dame football can’t give the Panthers hope by assisting them in extending drives.