Keys To A Gator Bowl Victory For The Notre Dame Defense

Breaking down the keys to victory for the Notre Dame defense in the Gator Bowl matchup against South Carolina

Notre Dame squares off against South Carolina in the Gator Bowl tomorrow as the Fighting Irish look to finish the first season of the Marcus Freeman era on a strong note. The Irish defense has been solid all season, and it faces enough very tough test against South Carolina. Notre Dame will need to be on top of its game on defense if it wants to slow down the Gamecock offense.

 In this video we break down the five keys to a Notre Dame victory for the Irish defense.

Here are those keys:

1. Stop The Run - When you consider how mediocre to below average the South Carolina ground attack has been all season, and the fact the Gamecocks will be without its top two rushers in the Gator Bowl, it might seem strange to list this as the number one key. But that's exactly why I do list it number one. South Carolina isn't a very good ground attack, and it shouldn't be able to run on Notre Dame, but it's imperative the Irish defense actually make that be the reality. If South Carolina is able to find some balance in this game they will be hard to stop. 

For Notre Dame, defensive coordinator Al Golden has had some issues defending the pass and run effectively in the same game. The Irish did a great job keeping the Ohio State, BYU and USC pass games from being dominant, but that left them vulnerable against the run. This was especially true in the losses to Ohio State and USC. Notre Dame must completely shut this part of the South Carolina offense down and force the Gamecocks to be one dimensional.

2. Get To Rattler Early And Often - Gamecock quarterback Spencer Rattler is a very talented thrower, which we saw in the wins over Tennessee and South Carolina. When he is comfortable in the pocket and has time to throw he's incredibly dangerous. Yes, South Carolina is down some time weapons, but Antwane Wells and the other wideouts are talented and dangerous.

When Rattler threw from a clean pocket this season he was lights out. According to Pro Football Focus, Rattler completed 78.4% of his passes and averaged 9.0 yards per attempt when the pocket was kept clean. those are very good numbers. It was a completely different story when he was pressured. Rattler completed just 33.0% of his throws, averaged just 4.8 yards per attempt and had 5 touchdowns to 7 interceptions when pressured this season. Those are abysmal numbers.

This isn't about blitzing, as Rattler completed 59.2% of his throws and averaged 7.7 yards per attempt when blitzed. It's about getting pressure on him, with the front four at times, with the blitz in other instances, but the pressure needs to be early and consistent. Doing so without Isaiah Foskey could be a challenge, but if Notre Dame is able to consistently put pressure on Rattler this game could get out of hand in a hurry.

3. Be Aggressive - Part of getting after Rattler is being aggressive, and I'm not talking about a lot of blitzes. Well-designed and well-timed pressures are certainly important, and they are a part of being aggressive, but I'm talking about a lot more than that. I'm referring to an overall view on how to go after South Carolina on all three levels.

Golden needs to let his defensive line attack, he needs to mix up those well-designed/well-timed pressures, he needs to simplify things enough to allow his linebackers to fly to the football, he needs to be aggressive with his coverages. The more aggressive the Irish are the harder it will be for South Carolina to consistently make plays on the Irish defense. 

It will also go a long way towards accomplishing keys one and two.

4. Be Disciplined - The challenge for Notre Dame will be combining an aggressive game plan with sound and disciplined execution of that game plan. South Carolina will stay in this game if they are able to rip off chunk plays. They will get theirs at times, and you can expect Rattler and Wells to hook up for a big play or two, but the Irish can't give up cheap plays. They need to make South Carolina earn everything they get. If that happens I don't see the Gamecocks having enough firepower to win this game.

5. Get The Ball - Even when Rattler is on he'll throw up a few balls that are turnover worthy. If Notre Dame is able to consistently pressure him those throws increase. If Notre Dame is aggressive and pressures him with some consistency the result will be him rushing throws. That will give Notre Dame's defense plenty of opportunities to make plays on the ball, and if they can haul in those throws they will shut South Carolina down.

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