No. 15 Notre Dame (7-2) will take the field inside Memorial Stadium on Saturday against Clemson (4-4), a program the Irish have become familiar with in recent years.
Since 2015, the Irish have played the Tigers five times including last year's 35-14 upset of then-No. 4 ranked Clemson.
Head coach Marcus Freeman's squad will be without tight end Mitchell Evans, who is out the remainder of the season with a torn ACL. Clemson is dealing with injuies on its offensive line while head coach Dabo Swinney made waves on Monday during his exchange with a fan.
Inside ND Sports highlights two players to watch from each program in the matchup. Kickoff is at Noon EDT on ABC.
Notre Dame running back Audric Estimé
Dating back to Wake Forest, quarterback Sam Hartman is very familiar with Clemson — he's played four games against the Tigers — but Notre Dame's recent success has been increasingly tied to Estimé's performance.
After four consecutive games of being held under 100 rushing yards, Estimé gained 114 yards on 19 carries in Notre Dame's 58-7 victory against Pittsburgh. His output was worthy of an Inside ND Sports game ball but also reminded Irish fans of what the key ingredient was to their early-season offensive success.
In Notre Dame's two losses this season, Estimé has rushed for season-lows of 20 and 70 yards. Jadarian Price and Jeremiyah Love have carved out roles but offensive coordinator/tight ends coach Gerad Parker leans on Estimé and may establish him early and often in the road environment.
Clemson's linebacker tandem of Barrett Carter and Jeremiah Trotter Jr. have combined for 97 tackles this season. If Estimé wants to hit chunk plays, Notre Dame's offensive line must handle its initial blocking assignments and then take care of Carter and Trotter at the second level. Tight end Cooper Flanagan, who has been used as a blocker throughout his freshman season, will play a bigger role moving forward without Evans and could be responsible for blocking on some outside zone concepts.
Notre Dame defensive end Javontae Jean-Baptiste
Clemson has allowed seven sacks in its last two games including five at Miami. Defensive coordinator Al Golden's defense has improved at pressuring the quarterback as the season's progressed and one staple of the pass rush is Jean-Baptiste.
According to Pro Football Focus, Jean-Baptiste has rushed the passer on 218 snaps this season, second behind defensive tackle Howard Cross III (236). Jean-Baptiste has been credited with at least one quarterback pressure in five of Notre Dame's nine games this season. Although he didn't record one against Pittsburgh, he finished with a quarterback hit.
First-year starting quarterback Cade Klubnik has shown tendencies to leave the pocket early and attempt to make throws on the run. If the Irish commit to their principles, Klunbnik could run right into the arms of Jean-Baptiste, Cross and any other pass rushers. We've seen defensive line coach Al Washington's group have success defending Caleb Williams, Brennan Armstrong and Riley Leonard, and with Clemson's left guard Marcus Tate out and left tackle Collin Sadler playing through injury, the right side of Notre Dame's line could have favorable matchups.
Clemson tight end Jake Briningstool
Briningstool, a former four-star and Top-100 recruit by Rivals, enters the weekend as the leader in receiving touchdowns for Clemson with three. He is also second on the Tigers in targets with 46, only behind wide receiver Beaux Collins at 51.
The junior is coming off a season-high eight catches against NC State, where he turned his receptions into 93 yards. Briningstool has become more involved in Clemson's passing attack under offensive coordinator Garrett Riley with each game. He projects as a target for Klubnik underneath and in the red zone due to his 6-foot-6, 230-pound frame.
Notre Dame's defense has mostly held up against opposing tight ends, although Ohio State's Cade Stover hauled in a season-high seven receptions in September. Safety Xavier Watts has emerged as a ballhawk and will share assignments with safety DJ Brown and linebacker Marist Liufau covering Briningstool.
Clemson defensive tackle Tyler Davis
The Tigers' defense is statistically led by Carter and Trotter, but Davis holds several years of starting experience under his belt. The fifth-year defensive tackle has been a pillar of Clemson's run defense for years and is once again in the role for defensive coordinator Wes Goodwin.
Davis' stats don't jump off the page, but his size will challenge Notre Dame's interior line of center Zeke Correll and guards Rocco Spindler and Pat Coogan. He has 25 tackles including 11 solo, which rank first among Clemson's defensive linemen.
Keeping Hartman upright has been a priority since Louisville, but Notre Dame's rushing offense wasn't put to the test against USC and Pittsburgh like it will at Clemson. Offensive line coach Joe Rudolph's unit is dealing with an experienced group that is more creative and physical than Notre Dame's recent opponents.
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