SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Given Notre Dame’s elite standing nationally in almost every key defensive category, head coach Marcus Freeman can live with the crooked path of how the Irish football team sometimes arrives there in games.
Specifically, the propensity to give up first-quarter scoring drives.
The nation’s No. 3 team in scoring defense, No. 7 in total defense and No. 2 in pass-efficiency defense has allowed first-quarter scores to the opposition in six of its nine games heading into Saturday’s matchup with Virginia (5-4), and two of them — totaling 10 points — in the eyesore on the Irish schedule, a 16-14 loss to Northern Illinois back on Sept. 7.
“I think more than anything what you don't want to do is make something up that you haven't seen,” Freeman said of why the scores happen and how defensive coordinator Al Golden goes about fixing it quickly. “And so, you have to have a good plan defensively that really in that first drive, can answer anything you see on offense.
“Some teams have done a good job on that first series and done some things we haven't seen. But the thing is, how do you respond? How do you get those adjustments defensively, and how do you make sure you have a good plan?
“So, we’ve got a good plan going in. We're going to have to adapt and adjust. It's just the game of football based off what their plan is and what their plan of attack is.”
TV start time for the final home game for No. 8 Notre Dame (8-1) is 3:30 p.m. EST on NBC/Peacock. The WSBT Gameday SportsBeat pregame radio show for the ND-Virginia game is an uber-early 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. EST (wsbtradio.com/96.1 FM) to accommodate the WSBT broadcast of the ND men’s basketball game with Georgetown.
Inside ND Sports has you covered after the game on our YouTube channel with our Postgame Takeaways Show with Tyler James and Eric Hansen, dropping late Saturday night.
Twenty-nine players will take place in the Senior Day ceremony before the game for the Irish. There will be plenty more to keep an eye on for both sides once the ball is kicked off and Notre Dame looks to go 34-0 all-time as a ranked team at home against ACC competition. It’s Inside ND Sports’ tradition to highlight four of them. Here they are:
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Notre Dame nickel Jordan Clark
Not only is Jordan Clark one of the most impactful transfers Notre Dame has ever plucked out of the transfer portal — even when you count the imports before it was actually called the transfer portal — the former Arizona State defensive back is one of the nation’s most improved players.
Which was a big reason why the son of former NFL safety and Super Bowl champ Ryan Clark picked the Irish.
He’ll likely match up Saturday with former Irish wide receiver Chris Tyree, who’s coming off his best game as a Cavalier (4 receptions for 42 yards, 14 yards rushing vs. Pitt).
Clark’s standard stats don’t tell come close to telling his story, in part because of how his tight coverage discourages opposing QBs from even trying to throw in his direction. For the record the nickel back has 15 tackles, including one for loss, to go along with three pass breakups, an interception and a QB hurry.
Advanced analytics tell a more complete story. Among ND players with more than 50 snaps logged this season (he has 381), Clark is Notre Dame’s top defender at any position so far this season with a film grade of 82.6, just ahead of All-America safety Xavier Watts.
His coverage grade of 88.0 is tops individually and sixth nationally among cornerback for an Irish defense ranked second nationally in pass-efficiency defense. And in a pinch, against Louisville when the Irish were without starting cornerback Christian Gray and had to go a series without Benjamin Morrison, he was able to fill in at outside cornerback.
In his final season, Clark’s PFF grade was 64.5, a career-best in a season in which he didn’t redshirt and his coverage grade was 67.8
Virginia safety Jonas Sanker
Notre Dame continues its run of facing some of the nation’s top safeties, and the latest is 6-1, 210-pound senior Jonas Sanker.
A 2023 All-ACC first-team selection and Virginia’s leading tackler by far in 2024 (69), Sanker had a monster game in the Cavaliers’ 24-19 road upset of Pitt last Saturday.
On three consecutive plays in the third quarter against the Panthers, Sanker recorded a tackle for loss to force fourth down, blocked a field goal on fourth down, and recorded an interception on the Panthers’ first play of the ensuing drive.
Virginia trailed by six when Sanker blocked the kick and the Cavs scored the go-ahead touchdown on the next possession.
Notre Dame offensive tackle Anthonie Knapp
On Aug. 31, Anthonie Knapp became the 10th freshman offensive lineman to start at Notre Dame since the NCAA permanently restored freshman eligibility in 1972,
He was just the third to do so in a season opener.
On Saturday he’ll be just the second to start in 10 games or more as a freshman O-lineman, joining Sam Young 13 in 2006).
It’s all part of the storyline that’s part of an unlikely journey from an Irish offensive line unit that has six collegiate starts among the five starters going into the season and is now one of 10 semifinalists for the Joe Moore Award.
A key will be how much he’ll improve over the last three-regular season games and into the postseason, and he has been improving. With junior Billy Schrauth now positioned next to Knapp, at left guard, it may accelerate the learning curve for the freshman.
Virginia had a strong pass rush last week against Pitt, matching its season-high with seven QB hurries and also had three sacks. The Virginia defense made two interceptions in the win.
Virginia QB Anthony Colandrea
Virginia and Kentucky were the only two Power Conference offers for Virginia sophomore Anthony Colandrea coming out of Lakewood High School in St. Petersburg, Fla.
The former three-star prospect has certainly played above those expectations — both last season, when he started six games as a freshman — and this season in becoming the full-time starter.
If the Cavaliers are going to improve upon their 1-31 road record all-time against Top 10 teams, it’ll start with the 6-foot, 183-pound dual threat. But he needs some help.
The Virginia offensive line has surrendered 31 sacks this season — 127th among the 133 FBS teams in sacks allowed. Sixteen of those 31 have occurred in the past two games. And yet Colandrea still has 259 net yards rushing on the season to go along with 1,948 passing yards and 12 TDs and a 27-yard reception.
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