Jeff Feyerer’s Notre Dame-Clemson Game Prediction:
This isn’t the biggest game Ian Book has played in, but it’s the biggest game Rees has served as offensive coordinator. The Notre Dame offense has been most successful throwing the ball with Book at the helm by following this recipe:
- Getting the ball out QUICKLY into the hands of playmakers on the perimeter or over the middle to tight ends. Let Book play point guard THEN
- Lean on your offensive line with a little bit more of an honest defense, to create some holes (in this case especially difficult with a Clemson defense allowing 2.7 yards per carry and THEN
- Use the play-action game to open up the offense downfield a tad. Giving Book deep drops and time to think gives him “happy feet” on occasion and against a good defense like Clemson, that’s not going to fly. Book and Rees need to be synced up with what has worked and they need to create a rhythm to the offense, that we may not have seen yet this year. Jafar Armstrong out of the slot will certainly be a wrinkle to watch out for this week. I also think there needs to be more Mayer/Tremble combinations to leave doubt in Clemson’s mind whether the run or pass is coming.
On defense, my concerns are far fewer. Crowd the box. Stop Travis Etienne. Make this freshman beat you. My confidence in Clark Lea leading up to this game is high. Maybe too high. But he’s built up that sort of equity in my mind with that way this defense has come out this year. What better time than now for Daelin Hayes to parlay his performance last week into his best performance of his Notre Dame career.
I’m sure people that are reading this are going to say, “Oh, Notre Dame homer…of course he’s picking the Irish.” Well, in some instances, yes. But in this one, with perhaps the best defense we’ve seen during Brian Kelly’s tenure facing off at home against a team without it’s best player (granted he’s been replaced with another 5-star quarterback) who struggled last week against a far inferior team, I’m going to call it proper analysis.
Sure, it would be nicer to beat a Clemson team with Trevor Lawrence at the helm. But it can’t control that. All they can control is whoever is in there way on the path to ACC Championship, however depleted they may be.
Notre Dame 24, Clemson 21
Last – Nick Shepkowski’s Notre Dame-Clemson Prediction…