After two weeks of no football, the Fighting Irish return to the grid iron. A small hiccup slowed the Irish’s momentum down after they blasted the South Florida Bulls 52-0. Now the focus shifts to another sunshine state team in the Seminoles of Florida State. As the Irish look to get their momentum back, the Seminoles will look to continue to build off of last weeks win against Jacksonville State.
This matchup won’t be like previous meeting’s in the past where both teams come in a dominant position. The Seminoles have been less than stellar thus far needing a come from behind victory to beat the Jacksonville State Gamecocks while getting their first win of the 2020 season. The Seminoles are also winless in conference play so far. They will be looking to get into the win column in that regard against the Fighting Irish. While the Irish come in unbeaten with wins over the Duke Blue Devils and USF Bulls.
The Seminoles should not be taken lightly though. They have a lot of talent that just hasn’t been able to put it all together. With three top 15 finishes recruiting class wise in the last three years, the Noles are a dangerous bunch and the Irish shouldn’t think this upcoming game is going to be a cake walk. Quarterback James Blackman leads the way for the passing attack on the Seminole offense as he is a dual threat QB with 318 yards through the air. The Irish Defense will have to be on their toes to keep him contained. The Seminoles are averaging 21 points game while the Notre Dame defense gives up only 13 points. So the defense will look to continue to be dominant against the Noles.
The Irish who average 39.5 points a game will look to get their running game going in a big way against the Seminole defense comes in at 44th in the country. I personally want to see the passing game open up a little more. In the last game for the Irish against the Bulls they scored on the ground at will. Although it’s a very good thing that rushing attack is that solid, the passing game needs to be more of a threat. The Irish have to come out strong against the Seminoles. Hopefully the two weeks off won’t slow the momentum that Irish had. FSU doesn’t jump out on paper, but football is not a game where teams should be overlooked.
Health and depth help the Irish a lot! Notre Dame has had two weeks to rest and recover which helps big namers such as Hamilton get healthy! Look for the Passing game to get going in a big way against this very porous Seminole defense. If the Irish can win the turnover battle, keep penalties to a minimum, and be dominant on both sides of the ball the Irish should win this one easily 42-7 to improve to 3-0.