SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The evolution and surge of Notre Dame’s running game, head coach Marcus Freeman reasoned, would eventually lead to a more varied and dynamic passing game as a collateral asset.
Could this be the week that it finally shows up? For good?
Keep an eye on Irish sophomore wide receiver Lorenzo Styles Saturday during 20th-ranked Notre Dame’s rivalry renewal game with Navy (3-6) at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. Kickoff is noon EST on ABC.
Navy’s all-in philosophy on stopping the run has left it exposed in the passing game, to the point the Mids enter their matchup with Notre Dame (6-3) ranked 122nd among the 131 FBS schools in pass-efficiency defense.
Air Force, the nation’s No. 1 rushing team, even took to the air against Navy in a 13-10 win on Oct. 1 to the tune of 156 passing yards with an average completion of 26 yards.
All of which could help Styles start to return to a prodigy career arc from his current perplexing stretch that included a season-low 11 snaps in ND’s 35-14 takedown of then-No. 4 Clemson last Saturday night and just one catch combined over the past two games against the Tigers and Syracuse.
Prior to last Saturday, Styles hadn’t played fewer than 36 snaps in any game this season, but he exited the Clemson game after dropping an easy completion on the only pass play in which he was targeted.
“In the moments right after he dropped the ball and he came to the sidelines,” Freeman began during his weekly Thursday Zoom session with the media, “I told him, ‘Hey, one play, one life. The next time you get the opportunity, then catch the ball. We believe in you.’ And there's been no faith lost in Lorenzo.
“It's continuing to work on those things that help you execute at a higher level. Same thing we did with (running back) Audric Estimé (during a run of fumbling) in terms of finding different ways in practice to address some of the ball-security issues.”
All-America tight end Michael Mayer is far and away Notre Dame’s leading receiver with 51 catches for 624 yards and seven touchdowns. A year after becoming just the third freshman in the 12-year Brian Kelly Era to amass more than nine receptions as a first-year player (24 for 344 yards and 1 TD), Styles is second to Mayer and first among the wide receiver group in 2022 with 24 receptions for 292 yards and a TD.
Projected over 12 games, the 32 catches would be the fewest by a wide receiver to lead the Irish in a given season since David Givens' 20 catches in 2000. Twelve of Styles' 24 catches this season came in two games — Marshall (7) and North Carolina (5).
“He's a tremendously hard worker,” Freeman said of Styles. “We just have to kind of tweak that work toward making sure we're really intentional on catching the ball.”
Personnel matters
• Notre Dame starting safety Brandon Joseph has gone from questionable at the beginning of the week to doubtful on Thursday for Saturday’s Navy game.
Freeman said Thursday that Matt Salerno would likely fill in for Joseph in his role as punt returner.
• Grad senior Joe Wilkins Jr. couldn’t be talked into staying to the end of the season before entering the transfer portal this week, with nothing to gain by the abrupt exit from the roster in terms of preserving a redshirt year, as defensive lineman Jacob Lacey was able to when he left after four games.
Wilkins leaves with 11 career catches for 124 yards and two TDs, none of which came this season. Freeman had insisted the 6-foot-1, 202-pounder, originally recruited to ND as a cornerback, had no lingering issues from spring foot surgery to repair a Lisfranc fracture.
Yet Wilkins never received more than seven offensive snaps in any game this season and didn’t play an offensive snap at all in four games, including Saturday night against Clemson.
“Joe worked tirelessly,” Freeman said. “He continued to work hard and continued to find ways to improve. At the end of the day, it's the job of every coach on this coaching staff to put the guys on the field that we feel give us the best opportunity to have success.
“And Joe was playing, probably not as much as he wanted. And so, he made the decision to make a change. That's really all I have to say about that situation. But (we) love Joe and love what he's done for this program and wish him all the best.”
Navy learning curve
Experience matters when facing Navy’s triple-option offense and others like it. But as Freeman explained, it’s not like you decipher a winning template and then roll it out every year.
And the first time Freeman faced the Mids’ offense as a defensive coordinator, at Cincinnati in 2017, he didn’t even have a workable template.
As a result, Navy missed the school record for rushing yards in a single game by three yards in running over the Bearcats, 42-32, in Annapolis, Md., six years ago. The Mids rolled up 622 yards in total offense, 569 of which came via the rush.
“That will be a number (569) that I'll never forget,” Freeman said. “It was a long day. What I didn't have that day is answers, and that's a helpless feeling. And it's something that personally I wanted to make sure that I continue to find different answers to really try to figure out how they think offensively. Not just how they think — but how the triple option really works and the different things they are looking for.”
The next season Freeman’s defense shut out Navy, 42-0, allowing 171 total yards, 124 of which came on the ground. Last season with Freeman coordinating ND’s defense, Navy’s offense was limited to 189 total yards, including 166 via the rush, in a 34-6 Irish rout.
“To add that to what we did last year, hopefully that will enhance our package and in turn, help us with our execution on Saturday,” he said. “So, continuing to grow, and that's something that you guys hear me say often is: It’s growth and it’s enhancement.
“Like if we do the same thing we did last year, I do the same thing I did in 2018 when we played Navy really well, then I guess at some point they'll pass you by, because these coaches every year find ways to enhance their offensive scheme, and that's what we have to do defensively.”
Appreciation for Navy
Michael Freeman’s 26 years in the Air Force had a profound influence on the daily lives of sons Michael Jr. and Marcus.
From what time they work up, to the discipline that was demanded in how they went about their day to the deep appreciation Marcus Freeman carries for the military still today. Which is one of the reasons he embraces the long-time series with Navy.
“Yeah, I think there's a whole bunch of different things that kind of go into this game, one being the history of the rivalry, the meaning behind it and how it came about,” he said, “but then also it being Veterans weekend and obviously it's personal to me with my father serving and being a veteran.
“It's just a great reminder of the bigger picture in that we're fortunate to play this game and coach this game that we love. And we're fortunate to live in this country, because of those many people that fight for freedom. So, there's a lot of meaning behind this game, and for many different reasons.”
Another block party?
Navy is one of 80 FBS teams that has yet to allow a blocked punt this season. That won’t dissuade Notre Dame from trying Saturday to add to their nation’s leading total of six.
Junior Jordan Botelho got No. 6 in the first quarter Saturday night against Clemson, with sophomore Prince Kollie returning it 17 yards for a touchdown.
The schemes and personnel both change week to week for Irish special teams coordinator Brian Mason.
“Who's healthy?” Mason pointed to as a major factor. “Some guys are banged up. We've rotated some guys that have been banged up. Some weeks are, ‘Hey, we need a couple of bigger bodies.’ Some weeks are, ‘Hey, we need a couple of faster bodies.’ So, some of that is dependent on that.
“Matchups. Are we worried about fakes and things? Some of it is dependent on that. We keep it fairly consistent throughout and then try to move the pieces into some different spots so they (opponents) don't know exactly where people are going to be. We try to change that up as much as possible, but there's certainly some consistency I'm sure they can see on film.”
Defeating complacency?
ND running back Audric Estimé said one of the best weapons in avoiding a letdown this week following the epic upset of Clemson on Saturday night is Freeman’s decision this season to start the next work week early with Sunday night practices.
“We can put the last game in the past,” Estimé said. “We can go over the film. We can revise what we did wrong and right and build off that. That helps us change the script faster than last year.
“Everyone is still flying around (this week). It feels like we kind of lost. Back to our first loss, that practice was a little different. Everyone was flying around and hungrier.
(“Tuesday) and on Sunday, I was like, ‘Dang, did we win or lose?’ I couldn’t really tell, because people were still playing with an edge. I feel like that’s something we need to keep for the rest of the season.”
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