Thoughts, observations from rewatching Notre Dame’s win at Virginia
Six of the 26 available players in Notre Dame’s 2021 class have earned at least 65 offensive or defensive snaps, and two are starters. That’s not counting offensive tackle Blake Fisher, who began the year as a starter but suffered a meniscus injury Week 1. Three more are special teams mainstays who have burned their redshirts.
Three players from the 2020 class who saw negligible or zero action on either side last year have been on the field for at least 85 snaps in 2021. Two others, sophomore quarterback Drew Pyne and sophomore safety Xavier Watts, aren’t at that number because they’ve only played two games, but were important figures in those games. Pyne averaged 26.5 snaps in his two earlier appearances this year. Watts is averaging 17 snaps per game the last two weeks.
That’s a lot of youth and new faces who were either not on the team or off the radar during last year’s College Football Playoff run.
Unlike Michael Mayer last year or Kyle Hamilton two years ago, though, none forced his way on the field at a deep position because they were too good to keep off it. Most of these freshmen or sophomores who weren’t involved last year found their way on the field as a result of injury or middling production from upperclassmen above them — mixed with their own readiness, of course.
The influx of youth hasn’t hurt the Irish. In fact, they’re improving despite it.
Saturday’s 28-3 win over Virginia — Notre Dame’s fifth straight victory — brought two more inexperienced names from the periphery to the forefront: Watts and sophomore defensive back Ramon Henderson.
Notre Dame filled Hamilton’s safety spot with two sophomores who appeared in five games last year. One began the year as a wide receiver. The other was the dime back and No. 2 boundary corner until Monday. They combined for nine tackles (0.5 for loss) and an interception in 65 snaps vs. Virginia.
Henderson’s split tackle for loss came as a free rusher. He blitzed from the line of scrimmage and hit quarterback Jay Woolfolk for a seven-yard loss on an option play. He slipped past running back Mike Hollins, who was drifting laterally as the option pitch man.
On his interception, he was the lone deep safety and drifted toward Virginia wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks as Wicks ran a go route with sophomore cornerback Clarence Lewis on him. He tracked the ball the entire way and stepped in front of Wicks to snag it. Henderson broke on the route from between the hashes at the 37-yard line and made the catch on the 20-yard line at the numbers.
Watts, meanwhile, made consecutive open-field tackles a few plays before Henderson’s interception. He juked a blocker and reversed course to the outside on a read option run, tackling Woolfolk for a six-yard gain and snuffing out a potentially long run. A play later, he bounced off a block, stopped in his tracks and brought down receiver Keytaon Thompson a yard shy of the first-down marker.
Henderson was also assigned to a slot receiver in man coverage a few times. He lined up opposite deep threat Ra’Shaun Henry on the first play of the second half. He ran right with Henry on a deep ball that fell incomplete. Later in the third quarter, Virginia ran a slot fade for Thompson from Notre Dame’s 33-yard line. Henderson stayed on Thompson’s hip the entire way to the end zone.
Virginia threw Henderson’s way six times. He allowed three catches for just 25 yards.
Two-back sets return
Freshman Lorenzo Styles replaced Avery Davis (torn ACL) in Notre Dame’s startling lineup at slot receiver. He did not, though, match Davis’ workload. Styles played 19 snaps in his first career start, well short of Davis’ 55.2 average.
Notre Dame put some other players in the slot, including sophomore tight end Michael Mayer, senior boundary receiver Kevin Austin Jr. and senior field receiver Braden Lenzy. But their occasional use in the slot isn’t a new wrinkle. The most notable change without Davis was an increase in two-back sets.
The Irish ran seven plays with two running backs on the field in the prior four games. Against Virginia, they used two-back formations 15 times. Some of their most creative and effective plays were in 21 personnel (two backs, one tight end).
Earlier in the year, and especially in the loss to Cincinnati, Notre Dame used 21 or 22 personnel as a max-protect formation as much as anything else. Saturday, the Irish often split one of the running backs out wide. It’s basically 11 personnel, but with flexibility.
On a third-and-five in the first half, Notre Dame lined up Lenzy and junior running back Kyren Williams in a stack release at the far hash mark, with two defensive backs at the marker. Lenzy cleared both out with a vertical route, and as soon as graduate student quarterback Jack Coan saw the underneath defender step up, he threw to Williams on a quick slant.
Mayer’s first-quarter touchdown catch was a 21 personnel play by designation, but Williams was in Davis’ usual spot and ran a stop route at the goal line.
Lenzy’s 31-yard run on a reverse was a 21 personnel play where Coan handed off to Tyree, who was coming in motion from the slot. He then faked to Williams in the backfield while Tyree tossed to Lenzy.
Notre Dame’s nine rushes in two-back sets gained 95 yards. The Irish threw the ball six times out of two-back formations, resulting in six completions for 61 yards and a touchdown.
Notre Dame also ran 21 plays in 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends). Often a power run formation — as it was last year for Notre Dame — the Irish threw seven passes out of 12 personnel for 28 yards at Virginia.
Two of those passes were touchdowns. Lenzy’s four-yard score in the second quarter happened because the two in-line tight ends ran a high-low concept and distracted several defenders until Lenzy reached the end zone. Austin’s 17-yard touchdown in the third quarter was a 12 personnel set with both tight ends in the slot.
Rylie Mills’ big day
Notre Dame gave sophomore Rylie Mills an extended look at “big end” to help replace graduate student Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa (illness) in addition to his usual work at three-technique tackle. He didn’t start, but played the fourth-most snaps of any defensive linemen (34) and had a team-high 2.0 sacks. He played end on first and second downs and kicked inside on third downs.
Mills’ only notable first-half moments were an offsides penalty and an assisted tackle on a short run play. On the third play of the third quarter, though, he bull-rushed two interior linemen and hit Woolfolk at the end of his throwing motion. He just missed a sack.
It turns out that was merely his warm-up. He halted a Virginia drive that reached the Notre Dame 20-yard line when he powered past left guard left guard Ryan Nelson for a sack on third-and-10. (He split it with linebacker Bo Bauer, but created a lane for Bauer).
Two possessions later, Mills ended a drive that reached the Irish 28-yard line when he beat right guard Chris Glaser and right tackle Ryan Swoboda for an 11-yard sack on fourth-and-five. The first was a display of power. This one was impressive hand usage. His third sack came on Notre Dame’s final drive, but before that, he put the initial pressure on Woolfolk that led to Justin Ademilola’s red-zone sack.
The workload has fluctuated this year with Notre Dame’s interior line depth. Mills has played 16 or fewer snaps in four games and 25 or more in three others. Nine of his 15 pressures have come in two games. Five were against Virginia. To have a bit player capable of dominant days like this one is a luxury.
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