Preview: Stanford heads to South Bend to face the Irish
Today at 4:30 PM PT on NBC and KNBR 1050, Stanford football will take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on the road. Stanford will look to win the Legends Trophy for the first time since 2017 (38-20). Stanford comes in at 1-4 overall and 0-4 in the Pac-12 while Notre Dame comes in at 3-2 overall.
Stanford Football Depth Chart: Notre Dame
Last time out: Last weekend, Stanford lost a heart breaking game to Oregon State at home by a final score of 28-27.
RECAP: Stanford blows a golden opportunity against Oregon State
On Notre Dame: The Irish got off to a slow start this year, dropping their first two games to Ohio State and Marshall. To their credit, they have bounced back with three straight wins over Cal, North Carolina, and BYU. They are getting better each week and seem to be finding their groove as they are on the verge of getting back into the AP Top 25.
The Irish are led by quarterback Drew Pyne, who has thrown for 721 yards, 9 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions for a 72.5 completion percentage. Pyne’s favorite target is star tight end Michael Mayer, who leads the team in receptions (33), receiving yards (351), and receiving touchdowns (5). Mayer is the engine that makes this Irish offense go. Running backs Audric Estime (361 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 68 carries) and Chris Tyree (231 yards, 1 touchdown, and 52 carries) form a really effective one-two punch with Logan Diggs (159 yards and 38 carries) sprinkled in.
The top defender on this Irish team is senior defensive tackle Howard Cross III, who co-leads the team with 23 tackles in four games played. Cross is an absolute beast in the middle and is the son of former New York Giants tight end Howard Cross, Jr. who helped the Giants defeat the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXV by a final score of 20-19. The Scott Norwood game.
The other co-leader in tackles is safety D.J. Brown. Brown actually leads the team in solo tackles with 14 and is doing a great job of patrolling the secondary. The only player on the Irish defense with an interception is cornerback TaRiq Bracy, who played his high school ball at nearby Milpitas High School.
Keys to the game: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is figure out a way to contain Mayer as best they can. If they can slow him down a bit, that more than anything will help them win this game. If he goes off, the Irish will win with ease.
Secondly, Stanford’s offense needs to build on what they did last week. Brycen Tremayne got rolling with two touchdowns and as a whole, Stanford looked like they were starting to settle in offensively. They need to keep that momentum going in this game if they’re going to have any chance to pull off the upset.
Finally, Stanford’s defense has to be better. The offense put them in a position to close the game last week and they didn’t deliver. The defense has been making strides, but they have to now learn to finish games. Stanford has no chance to win this game if the defense doesn’t improve.
Prediction: I got Notre Dame winning 38-24. I think Stanford will play hard and not go down without a fight, but the Irish offense will be too much for Stanford to handle and I expect a big day from Mayer.
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