There is more hype for the No. 4 Notre Dame vs. No. 1 Clemson game this Saturday than there has been for any Notre Dame game in a decade-and-a-half. There will be plenty to break down as we get set for this heavyweight match-up but we’ll start with a quick look at the teams on third down.
It’s no surprise that the pair are both really good at keeping drives alive on third down while getting their opponent off the field defensively.
Notre Dame has converted just over 53% of the third downs they’ve faced this year, good for seventh best nationally while Clemson checks in a hair under 50% and 18th best in the nation. They go about it different ways but both teams keep drives alive for their offenses on the regular.
Defensively it’s even more impressive.
Notre Dame checks in fourth nationally allowing just .244 third downs against to be converted this season.
Clemson WR Amari Rodgers echoes Matt Bockhorst's sentiment that ND gets exotic on third down with diff blitzes. Clemson converts on third down 50.45 % of the time, good for No. 16 nationally. ND's 3rd down defense ranks No. 4 nationally. Opponents converting 24.36 % of the time.
— Grace Raynor (@gmraynor) November 2, 2020
Shocking to exactly nobody, you don’t have to go far down the list to find Clemson who checks in seventh, allowing .275 of third downs to be converted through their first seven games.
A sign of a good team is what they’re able to do on third down on both sides of the ball so it’s not at all a surprise to see both squads so high on both the offensive and defensive rankings.
The last time the two met in the 2018 Cotton Bowl it was Clemson converting 9/18 third down attempts while Notre Dame picked up just five of their 17 opportunities.
So who wins on Saturday?
My money is on whichever of the two is better on third down.
It may not be breaking news by any means, but it’s how good teams win with regularity.