The wait is over! After a week one win over Louisville and a bye week, the Fightin’ Irish are ready for their home opener. The Irish have not played at home since a cold night in November against Florida State. Yes, I predicted the cold weather for that evening. Saturday appears to be just tremendous for a home opener. A fall afternoon indeed in Notre Dame, IN.
For the Freshman, it will be there first time running out of the tunnel into a stadium full of cheering Irish fans. But they know there is work to do. So they can enjoy the moment, but there is a mission to complete. Get to 2-0 and make sure their performance meets the teams #GoldStandard. They have prepared for this moment, and now it’s about execution.
Three Key Factors
Defensive Discipline
In the game against Louisville, the Notre Dame defense had penalties that extended drives and led to the Cardinals putting points on the board each time. Extending drives like just tires out a defense. Mental discipline is what wins games. Giving teams extended drives, lets them to gain confidence. Shutting down the confidence factor will allow the defense to flourish at all positions. During the Louisville game, once the confidence of Pass was taken away, the defense did not allow Pass to maintain a controlled state of play.
Offense Needs To Convert On Short Yardage
The Irish offensive line must protect Book and make seams for the Running Backs. Part of that success will be conversion of third and short scenarios. Too many opportunities against Louisville led to Bramblett punts, and turning over the ball on downs. Though Bramblett was able to “flip the field” on most occasions, they don’t want to be on an opponent running back a punt for a touchdown. Playing a faceless opponent will allow for the Irish to play their game and not be dictated by the Lobos defense.
Win The Mental Game
Most coaches will say we need to execute in all phases of the game, offense, defense and special teams. Well what should be said is that most importantly is win the mental game. As previously mentioned, Pass had lots of confidence in the first quarter. Up and down the field on consecutive drives. They threw a hard punch and the Irish were stunned. With adjustments made after that, Louisville punted on three consecutive drives, followed by two fumbles to end the first half. A fumble to start the third quarter and two punts, the Cardinals could not score. Dictating style of play is what this team needs to do.
Our Picks: New Mexico At Notre Dame
Before we dive into the picks, remember these picks were done before the start of the season and Bob Davie had a health situation develop. That’s the great thing about prognostication, it’s a guess at best. So let’s look into the picks for Game 2/Week from our prognostication article .
Jimmy
New Mexico was 3-9 last season under Bob Davie. The New Mexico Lobos finished last in the Mountain West Conference. They are returning 11 starters from last year’s squad. The question remains will they be motivated to play for Bob Davie?
Jimmy chooses ND 56-10
George
Bob Davie would love nothing more to comeback to ND and stick a loss against his employer. Davie is going to need to figure out how to outwit, outlast and outplay Brian Kelly and his staff. Bob Davie is going to need to dig deep and really get his team motivated to outscore the Irish.
Once again, the Irish are going to need to play smart football for sixty minutes. Discipline on both sides of the along with the will to really pour pressure on New Mexico. Also, this could be a trap game if the Irish look past New Mexico as Georgia is next on the schedule. Another decisive will be needed to keep the eyes of the CFP on the their performance.
George chooses ND 48-17
ND Announcements
2019 Pep Rally Locations and Times
The University of Notre Dame announced the Friday pep rally locations for the 2019 Fighting Irish football seasons. The first four pep rallies will be held at various outdoor locations before the final three are held inside Compton Family Ice Arena.
The pep rallies on Sept. 13 (New Mexico), Sept. 27 (Virginia), Oct. 4 (Bowling Green) and Oct. 11 (USC) will begin with live music at 5 p.m. ET, followed by the formal pep rally program at 6 p.m. ET. The three indoor rallies at Compton Family Ice Arena on Nov. 1 (Virginia Tech), Nov. 15 (Navy) and Nov. 22 (Boston College) are slated to begin at 6 p.m. ET. Click here for further information on pep rally activities.
Cheers and Go Irish! ☘🏈⚡