Rushing Defense: 51st — 154.3 yards per game
From 2014-16, Notre Dame allowed a minimum of 170 rushing yards three years in a row for the first time in its history, and the 182.4 in 2016 — not coincidentally — was the highest since the 195.4 during the 3-9 campaign in 2007.
The nearly 30-yard improvement this season was encouraging, but shaving another 30 yards into the 120-130 range is often what puts a team into championship conversation.
National champion Alabama was No. 1 this season in run defense at 94.7 yards allowed per game, and fellow College Football Playoff qualifiers Clemson and Georgia were 12th and 20th, respectively, with neither allowing more than 126 yards per game. Wisconsin, Ohio State and TCU were also among the top 10 in this category.
The outlier was CFP qualifier Oklahoma, with a No. 54 ranking (156.5) that was just behind Notre Dame’s. However, the Sooners compensated with a consistently prolific offense led by Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield.
Passing Defense: 53rd — 214.7 yards per game.
Passing Efficiency Defense Rating: 46th — 121.88
Just like on offense, the far more pertinent numbers are the efficiency rating, where 13-1 Wisconsin and 13-1 national champ Alabama were 1-2 with 96.39 and 96.78 ratings, respectively. CFP qualifiers Clemson and Georgia were in the top 15 as well.
Headlining Notre Dame’s pass defense was sophomore cornerback Julian Love, who set single-season school records in passes broken up (20) and passes defended (23), numbers that ranked No. 2 nationally in both categories.
However, safety production will need to improve significantly in 2018 after accounting for a combined five passes broken up and zero interceptions — the latter a first since head coach Ara Parseghian’s first season in 1964 when college football went to a two-platoon system.
Total Defense: Tied for 46th — 369.2 yards per game
The Irish tied Oregon in this category, and the figure was not a dramatic improvement from the 378.8 mark in 2016 that placed 42nd.
Notre Dame did post seven victories by at least 20 points in the first two months this past season, and that sometimes results in window-dressing or “garbage” yards by the opposition in the final quarter.
Scoring Defense: 31st — 21.5 points per game
Ultimately, this is the most vital, bottom-line stat on defense, and the improvement this year on that side of the ball was manifested by elevating from 62nd the previous season (27.8).
Again it’s no coincidence that the final top 10 in the Associated Press poll is replete with teams that also excelled in scoring defense. Leading the charge at No. 1 was Alabama at 11.9 points per game while CFP qualifier Clemson was No. 2 (13.6), followed by Wisconsin at No. 3 (13.9). Runner-up Georgia was No. 6 (16.4), Penn State No. 7 and Auburn No. 12.
Big 12 champ Oklahoma was the outlier again at No. 68 (27.1 points per game), but in their shootout conference the Sooners finished No. 3 nationally in scoring offense at a 45.1 clip.
It should be noted that under former Brian Kelly defensive coordinator Bob Diaco (2010-13), Notre Dame never finished lower than No. 27 in this category.
Turnovers Forced: Tied for 50th — 20
Turnover Margin: Tied for 46th — Plus-.23 per game
This is an area first-year defensive coordinator Mike Elko specifically targeted for improvement after the Irish tied for 114th last season with a paltry 14, the second fewest in school history.
Like everything else on the team, the first nine games were promising with 19 turnovers forced in eight games.
Remarkably, over the final four contests Notre Dame generated only one turnover, although it was a crucial one on a fourth-quarter Troy Pride Jr. interception versus Navy at the Irish 14-yard line when the Midshipmen trailed 24-17.
Sacks Recorded: Tied for 83rd — 24 (1.85 per game)
Oddly, Notre Dame also was tied for 83rd in sacks allowed on offense with 30 (2.31 per game).
There was no place to go but up in this category in 2017 after finishing tied for 117th in 2016 with 14, the second fewest among a Power Five schools. Furthermore, only three of the sacks were by linemen, whereas this year that total was 16.5 — led by junior nose guard Jerry Tillery’s 4.5.
While this is a sexy stat to the average fan, Alabama head coach Nick Saban is the first to often state that sack numbers are not as important as “affecting the quarterback,” a la forcing a hurried throw that results in an interception, etc. Three-step drops where quarterbacks release the ball quickly or playing run-oriented teams (Navy) can affect these numbers.
Nevertheless, the Irish still can be more effective in this area. As a corollary, Notre Dame also finished tied for 58th in tackles for loss with 79, or 6.1 per game.
Red Zone Defense: 29th — .792 (38 scores allowed in 48 attempts)
Another improvement this year after finishing 45th last year at .810.
Thirty-five of the 46 red-zone opportunities by the opposition finished with touchdowns. Particularly significant is that whereas in 2016 the opposition scored touchdowns 76.5 percent of the time, this year it dropped to 65.8.
How important is that? Ask LSU, where a first-half goal line stand by the Irish in the Citrus Bowl perhaps helped result in the Tigers going for only a field goal from the one-inch yard line for a 17-14 lead with 2:03 left in the contest. Notre Dame went on to win 21-17.
Third-Down Percentage Defense: 37th — .353 ( 73 of 207)
Notre Dame ranked 60th last year with a .390 figure, so this was yet another area that had some upgrade.
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