Keys To Victory For The Notre Dame Offense vs. NC State

Breaking down the keys to success for the Notre Dame offense in its matchup against NC State

Notre Dame (2-0) will look to earn its biggest win of the season this weekend when it takes on the NC State Wolfpack (1-0). The 10th-ranked Fighting Irish face a tough test heading to Raleigh as they look to earn their 29th straight regular season win over the ACC.

If Notre Dame is going to earn the win its offense will need to be on top of its game against a NC State defense that ranked in the Top 25 nationally last season in scoring defense, total defense, yards allowed per play, rushing defense, yards allowed per rush, yards allowed per pass attempt, pass efficiency defense, passes intercepted, tackles for loss per game, third-down defense and turnovers gained.

There are three keys above all others that are essential to Notre Dame's offense doing what it needs to do to win this game.

1. Control The Line Of Scrimmage - NC State's defense thrives on creating chaos out of its 3-3-5 look. Tony Gibson is one of the more creative defensive coordinators in college football, and over the last two seasons the Wolfpack have been one of the best run defenses in college football. Notre Dame quarterback Sam Hartman faced NC State in each of the last three seasons, including two matchups inside Carter-Finley Stadium. In those two games, both losses for Hartman and Wake Forest, NC State held his offense to just 83 rushing yards per game and sacked him 10 times.

If Notre Dame is going to win this game it needs Hartman to play well, but Hartman needs support from the offensive line. The Irish line needs to control this game, which means playing better than it did against Tennessee State. The Irish were able to physically dominate TSU, who was far inferior from a talent standpoint, but the line made too many assignment mistakes and allowed six tackles for loss in the run game. Those have to be cleaned up against the NC State box.

What Notre Dame has against NC State is a significant size advantage. The NC State two-deep at defensive line averages 281.8 pounds and just over 6-2, while the Irish offensive line averages 6-5 and 312 pounds. Notre Dame cannot take advantage of their size if they aren't coming off the ball quickly and playing assignment correct football, which is easier said than done against this defense.

Notre Dame needs to establish its ground attack early, and it absolutely must give Hartman time to throw the football.

2. Protect The Football - Not turning the ball over is always important, but it carries a bit of a special focus in this game. Notre Dame's defense should be able to keep the NC State offense in check, but that could be made more difficult if the offense turns the ball over, especially if those turnovers give NC State short fields and easier scoring opportunities.

Field position will be important against a team like NC State and will ensure the offense can maximize its possessions.

3. Generate Big Plays - The Notre Dame offense struggled generating big plays against Power 5 teams last season, and that needs to change in 2023. Changing that against NC State would go a very long way towards earning a victory, if not a dominant one. 

Just consistently moving the chains with long, drawn out drives can be a challenge against a NC State defense that makes its living generating negatives and turnovers. Ripping off big plays makes it easier to score consistently, and it would give the Irish offense the confidence it needs to really control the game against NC State.

Big plays, especially early, could also help quiet the NC State crowd. If those big plays lead to scores, either directly or by setting up scores, Notre Dame could put some early distance between the two teams, and NC State might struggle to come from behind in this game. NC State either wants to jump on Notre Dame or keep it close early, and the Irish offense can't allow that to happen.

This would be a great game for Tobias Merriweather or Chris Tyree to go off for some big plays. If the offensive line handles its business we could see big play backs Jadarian Price and Jeremiyah Love could generate the necessary big plays to dominate this game.

Be sure to check out the Irish Breakdown message board, the Champions Lounge

Irish Breakdown Content

2023 Scholarship Chart
2023 Football Schedule

Notre Dame 2024 Scholarship Offers

2024 Commit Rankings - Offense
2024 Commit Rankings - Defense

2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Offense
2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Defense

———————

Become a premium Irish Breakdown member, which grants you access to all of our premium content and our premium message board! Click on the link below for more.

BECOME A MEMBER

Be sure to stay locked into Irish Breakdown all the time!

Join the Irish Breakdown community!
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown YouTube channel
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown podcast on iTunes
Follow me on Twitter: @CoachD178
Like and follow Irish Breakdown on Facebook

Sign up for the FREE Irish Breakdown daily newsletter