Notre Dame is about to play its toughest game since their first two games of the season against Miami and Texas A&M. With No. 20 USC on the docket for this week, the Fighting Irish will have to be at their best to take down their rival.
Chris Ash's defense has certainly taken a turn for the better since having a rough start to the season. In the first three games of the season, Notre Dame's defense was allowing an average of 31.3 points per game, while in the last three games, they have allowed an average of nine points per game, which is a huge turnaround.
Facing USC this weekend will be a tough one, as the Trojans have a great run game. Even with losing two running backs this season, USC found another gem in King Miller, the back who filled in for Waymond Jordan, who suffered an injury against Michigan.
The Fighting Irish will need to be on top of their game to stop this tough rushing team, something that Notre Dame has struggled with at times this season.
USC has one of the top run games in the country despite injuries
So far this season, Notre Dame has struggled the most with the run game in its first two games of the season, the two games they happened to lose. The Fighting Irish defense allowed 134 rushing yards to Miami and 128 rushing yards to Texas A&M.
Both teams had solid rung games, but USC just might have an even better one than both teams. Miller might be a walk-on, but he certainly made the Michigan defense, a very stingy defense, look silly with how well he ran on them.
Chris Ash will need to make sure the defensive line doesn't get pushed around, and the linebackers can help plug the holes created for this game. The run game will be the key for USC winning this game, as the secondary has looked really good lately as well.