Keys To Victory For The Notre Dame Defense vs Oregon State

Breaking down the keys to victory for the Notre Dame defense in the Sun Bowl matchup against Oregon State
Keys To Victory For The Notre Dame Defense vs Oregon State
Keys To Victory For The Notre Dame Defense vs Oregon State /

Notre Dame (9-3) and Oregon State (8-4) are just two days away from squaring off in the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl. It's a chance for Notre Dame to earn its 10th win of the season, but these two teams will look much different due to portal opt outs, NFL Draft opt outs and injuries.

Oregon State lost a lot from its offense, and the Irish lost three very important players, but the Irish have a lot of its vaunted 2023 defense playing in this game. If Notre Dame is going to come out on top with a season-ending bowl victory the defense will need to finish the season off playing as well as it did all season.

There are four keys to the Notre Dame defense playing well and doing its part to fuel an Irish victory.

1. Stop The Run Game - When Oregon State's offense was rolling this season it was primarily built around a physical ground attack. When the ground game sputters, the offense sputters. It really is that simple. In seven games where the offense rushed for over 150 yards the offense averaged 42.6 points per game and 224.9 rushing yards. In the five games it went under 150 it averaged just 21.6 points per game and 119.2 yards per game on the ground.

It has been a feast or famine ground game in many ways. With two of the top three pass catches also out for this game, and Oregon State starting its third-string quarterback, it puts even greater emphasis on the need to get the ground game going.

This has been arguably the biggest issue for the Irish defense this season. Notre Dame ranked 4th this season in pass defense, but it's rush defense ranked just 33rd nationally. In Notre Dame's three losses this season, and in its one competitive victory (Duke), the Irish rush defense gave up 169 rushing yards per game. In the other eight games it allowed just 108.6 rushing yards per game.

Notre Dame will have its entire starting defensive line playing in this game, as well as two of its three starting linebackers. The Beavers will be playing without both of its starting tackles and one of its starting guards. Not only will the unit be less experienced, it will also be much smaller. The three lost starters weighed between 305 and 334 pounds, while the three replacements weigh between 277 and 298 pounds.

Oregon State went from averaging 306 pounds up front to just 287.8. 

Simply put, this is a matchup that Notre Dame's defense absolutely has to dominate. If they can they should be able to shut down Oregon State's talented backfield, which is dangerous even if Damien Martinez doesn't play. If Notre Dame cannot dominate this matchup the Beavers will be able to control the clock and shorten the game, which will be one of its top objectives in this game.

2. Be Disciplined - This includes multiple aspects of the game. Oregon State likes to run a lot of pre-snap motions, it will use a lot of unbalanced or overloaded alignments, and it does a lot of post-snap games with reverse looks, jet looks and it likes to use the play-action game. Of course, those reverse looks don't mean much if an offense isn't willing to hand the ball off, but Oregon State is more than willing to do that. I will be shocked if dynamic wideout Silas Bolden doesn't get at least a couple of jet or reverse touches in this game.

Simply put, Notre Dame needs to be prepared for all of these games and be prepared for some trick plays. Oregon State has to know it isn't talented enough to just line up and beat Notre Dame snap after snap. They'll have to figure out ways to generate big plays and steal some yards. If Notre Dame can have a plan for this and shut it down the defense will dominate.

Discipline also refers to playing smart, which means no silly penalties that extend drives or give cheap yards. It means lining up correctly snap after snap, and executing assignments snap after snap, which also helps eliminate the kind of mistakes that can give OSU cheap yards.

Tackling is a concern as well. Notre Dame's tackling was better this season than it was the previous two seasons, but it was still spotty at times. Bolden's dynamic ability in space is a concern, and the big backs are hard to bring down. Notre Dame's undersized linebackers will have their hands full in this game. If they play well, play smart and they tackle well as a team they will shut OSU down.

3. Early Down Success - Oregon State wasn't a very good third-down offense all season, ranking 58th nationally. It went just 6-23 combined in back-to-back regular season ending losses to Washington and Oregon, and the Beavers scored a combined 27 points in those games.

That was with all of its starters in the lineup.

Notre Dame needs to control early downs and limit ground game success, force incompletions (something it was great at all season), and put Oregon State in as many third-and-long situations as possible. Oregon State will have an incredibly hard time scoring enough points to win if it has to consistently attempt third and medium to long situations. That requires strong early down success.

4. Help The Offense - Notre Dame's defense will look a lot like it did during the season, but the offense will have a much different look. Notre Dame has a new starter quarterback, new running back, new starters up front and a new play-caller. That unit will have its hands full against a quality Oregon State defense.

The defense can help the offense out in many ways. One is to dominate the OSU offense early and keep them off the board, which gives the Irish offense time to get settled in and prevents it from having to play from behind. Early stops should also help the Irish be in position to win the field position battle, which could be huge in this game.

Finally, if the defense can force some turnovers in the game, especially those that give its own offense short fields. These are all ways the defense can help out its offense, and if they have success in this regard the Irish will roll in this game.

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Bryan Driskell
BRYAN DRISKELL

Bryan Driskell is the publisher of Irish Breakdown and has been covering Notre Dame football for over a decade. A former college football player and coach, Bryan and Irish Breakdown bring a level of expertise and analysis that is unmatched. From providing in depth looks at the Fighting Irish, breaking news stories and honest recruiting analysis, Irish Breakdown has everything Notre Dame football fans want and need. Bryan was previous a football analyst for Blue & Gold Illustrated before launching Irish Breakdown. He coached college football at Duquesne University, Muhlenberg College, Christopher Newport University, Wittenberg University and Defiance College. During his coaching career he was a pass game coordinator, recruiting coordinator, quarterbacks coach, running backs coach and wide receivers coach. Bryan earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Salisbury University, where he played quarterback for the Sea Gulls. You can email Bryan at bryan@irishbreakdown.com. 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! Follow Bryan on Twitter: @CoachD178Like and follow Irish Breakdown on FacebookSubscribe to the Irish Breakdown YouTube channelSubscribe to the Irish Breakdown podcast on iTunes Sign up for the FREE Irish Breakdown daily newsletter