Advertisement
football Edit

Notre Dame-Virginia Tech: 10 To 1 Countdown

Don’t miss out on any of our exclusive football, basketball and recruiting coverage. Click here to get your 30-day free trial!

No. 6 Notre Dame takes on No. 24 Virginia Tech tonight in Lane Stadium.
No. 6 Notre Dame takes on No. 24 Virginia Tech tonight in Lane Stadium. (Angela Driskell)
Advertisement

10 In Notre Dame’s last 10 true (non-neutral site) road games versus ranked opposition, it is 1-9, dating back to the start of the 2013 season following the 12-0 regular season campaign in 2012. The lone victory came at No. 21 Temple (24-20) on Oct. 31, 2015.


9 Touchdowns accounted for by junior quarterback Ian Book (six passing, three rushing) in his first two starts the past two weekends while helping improve Notre Dame’s scoring average from 23.3 the first three games to 47.0 the past two.

Book’s 181.21 pass efficiency rank also would ranked 7th nationally, although he hasn’t thrown enough yet to qualify in the individual standings. The Notre Dame single season record is 161.42 by Jimmy Clausen in 2009, which barely edged the 60-yard standard of 161.37 set by Bob Williams for the 1949 national champs.


8 Carries were the career high for senior running back Dexter Williams prior to his 2018 debut last week versus Stanford — when his 21 rushing attempts netted 161 yards, highlighted by his 45-yard touchdown scamper on his first touch. Williams must remain a durable and vital cog in the Irish ground game moving forward.


7 Notre Dame will attempt to hand Virginia Tech its seventh consecutive defeat in Lane Stadium against a ranked team. The Hokies have not won such a contest since Sept. 26, 2009, when they defeated then No. 9 Miami 31-7. Three of the six defeats came against the top 10.


6 Since the end of its 1940s dynasty, with a victory tonight this would be only the 13th time in the last 68 seasons Notre Dame would start a season 6-0. In 10 of those 12 previous seasons the Irish elevated to No. 1 at some point — and either played against the No. 1 team or was playing to remain No. 1 in its final game of the season.

What’s more, this could be the fifth time since 1990 a 6-0 start occurred, and three of them would be under head coach Brian Kelly (2012 and 2014 also).


5 Notre Dame is one of five Football Bowl Subdivision teams to start 5-0 with all of their victories coming exclusively against FBS competition. The other four are Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State and Oklahoma.


4 Quarterback sacks recorded by senior tackle Jerry Tillery last week versus Stanford, tying a Notre Dame single game record that began in 1982 when sacks began to be listed separately from tackles for loss. Tillery’s seven sacks this season pace the nation, and more and more he is getting projected as the first Irish defensive lineman who could be drafted in the first round since Renaldo Wynn in 1997.


3 Just like last week when Notre Dame set out to end a three-game losing streak to Stanford, and did, today it will attempt to break a three-game losing streak versus ranked ACC competition on the road. All three were at night: at No. 2 Florida State in 2014 (31-27), at No. 11 Clemson in 2015 (24-22) and at No. 7 Miami last November (41-8).


2 Virginia Tech is attempting to become the seventh team ever to start 2-0 against Notre Dame. The first meeting between the two schools was in 2016 at Notre Dame Stadium, a 34-31 Hokies victory on Senior Day. The other six to achieve the feat were Michigan and Chicago (with head coach Amos Alonzo Stagg) in the 19th century, and then Iowa, Oregon State and most recently North Carolina State in 2016 and Georgia in 2017.


1 Notre Dame ranks No. 1 with its pass rush, per Pro Football Focus, with a 42.2 score, well ahead of No. 2 Alabama’s 39.4. The Irish also are the lone team with four players who have at least 10 pass pressures: Tillery and junior ends Khalid Kareem, Julian Okwara and Daelin Hayes.

On Virginia Tech’s end of it, since the promotion of Bud Foster to defensive coordinator in 1996, the Hokies have the most sacks (825) and interceptions (377) among FBS schools.

----

Talk about it inside Rockne's Roundtable

Subscribe to our podcaston iTunes

• Learn more about our print and digital publication, Blue & Gold Illustrated.

• Follow us on Twitter: @BGINews, @BGI_LouSomogyi, @BGI_CoachD, @BGI_DMcKinneyand @BGI_CoreyBodden.

• Like us on Facebook


Advertisement