Time To Shine: Notre Dame Players That Must Thrive On Defense vs Cincinnati

Breaking down the players who must be at their best for the Notre Dame defense when they take on Cincinnati

Notre Dame's defense has played outstanding football over the last two weeks, which resulted in the Irish beating a pair of Big Ten opponents by double digits. Cincinnati presents a whole different test, and the unit will have to be on top of its game.

Notre Dame must play great team defense to shut down the Cincinnati offense, but there are four players above all others that must be on top of their game.

ISAIAH FOSKEY, DEFENSIVE END

Notre Dame's ends didn't have much of a pass rushing impact against Wisconsin, and it appeared on film that it was intentional. The ends were focused more on setting the edge than they did rushing the quarterback.

The game plan will be different this week against a Cincinnati offense that is a bit more pass oriented than Wisconsin. Notre Dame will need to put pressure on Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder, and they need to do it with their front four as often as possible. 

That puts Foskey in a situation where he must be on top of his game. Great players are supposed to be at their best in the biggest moments, and Foskey has a chance to put himself onto that stage with a strong performance against Ridder and the Bearcats.

Cincinnati's ends are long and have good size, and Foskey will need to be on point with his technique, but he'll also need to turn loose and play with a bit more consistent burst off the edge. He has the talent to wreck the Cincinnati offensive line, and he needs to do it.

JD BERTRAND, LINEBACKER

Notre Dame must shut down the Cincinnati run game and force the Bearcats to be one-dimensional. The Irish need to do that without committing resources from the secondary to make that happen, which means the Irish backers have to play at a high level.

Bertrand has a chance to make a lot of plays against the Cincinnati run game, and he'll need to make them. If Bertrand is late reacting to the run game or takes bad angles the Bearcats have a back in Jerome Ford that can make Notre Dame pay in a big, big way. 

Bertrand will also have some big pass game matchups that he'll need to be good at, against both Ford and the Cincinnati tight ends. The Bearcats will also run some levels concepts and running back screens that will put Bertrand in position to make plays, and he needs to make them.

CLARENCE LEWIS, CORNERBACK

Wisconsin picked on Lewis a bit this past weekend, and Cincinnati will certainly go at him with Alec Pierce on Saturday. Lewis will need to be better with his technique and finish on the ball better than he did the last two weekends. Lewis has been solid for much of the season, but his play wasn't quite as good last week, and a bounce back is key for the Irish.

Pierce (6-3, 213) has the best size of any receiver that Lewis has faced this season, and his game reminds me a lot of former Irish wideout Javon McKinley. He isn't a burner but his game speed is good, he knows how to use his size and he can win contested throws. You know they are going to challenge Lewis down the field and on out cuts with Pierce, and the Irish corner has to be on his game and keep Pierce from making big plays.

HOWARD CROSS/JACOB LACEY, NOSE TACKLE

When Kurt Hinish was lost for the matchup against Wisconsin there were questions about how effectively Cross and Lacey could step into the lineup. Those questions were quickly answered and both players had strong performances.

The difference this week is they will be stressed both as run defenders and pass rushers against a more balanced Cincinnati offense. Another difference this week is that Cincinnati now has film on what the Irish defense with Cross and Lacey will look like, so they'll have a bit more of an idea of how to attack the undersized Irish nose tackles.

Both Cross and Lacey will have to use their quickness to thrive, play with great leverage, get off blocks effectively and when given a chance make plays up the middle.

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