There’s no question that Notre Dame’s offensive numbers regressed closer to the mean against Ohio State. The rest of the season should provide better clarity as to how good the Irish’s offense really is. Sure, it might have started against the Buckeyes, but really, every game from here on will tell a story about the unit. It really wasn’t fair to judge the unit based on the competition it had to face during the first four weeks. Now, we can.
Duke’s defense is one reason it’s gotten off to such a strong start that it’s actually giving its school’s men’s basketball team a run for its money. Take a look at some of these defensive rankings, especially in the passing game, and it’s not hard to see why people are so high on the Blue Devils. The Irish might have a tough time quashing that narrative.
Here’s a look at how the Irish’s offense matches up with the Blue Devils’ defense: