Heel Tough Blog: Notre Dame Preview
The Tar Heels return to Kenan Stadium on Saturday as they face what might just be their toughest test of the season in the form of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Here’s everything you need to know as the Tar Heels attempt to recreate the magic of 2008 tomorrow afternoon.
Team Breakdowns
Tar Heels
The Tar Heels are coming into this game off their second bye week of the early season, which followed the team’s first loss of the season to Clemson in disappointing fashion. On offense, coordinator Bobby Petrino is hoping to get things back on track after his offense failed to capitalize when they needed to at Clemson. He and the staff remain confident in quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. despite the fan bases calls for a new signal caller. Edwards spread the football around well in the first two games of the season, but became sloppy and unreliable on important downs, especially while facing pressure, against Clemson. The hope is that he can find a way to reset and at least get back to making the throws that he was in the opener. It would help him if he had more reliable pass targets that he could rely on. Wide receiver Jordan Shipp and tight end Jelani Thurman are guys that can be counted on from week to week, but that’s really it. True freshman C.J. Sadler showed some promise in the game against East Tennessee State, but missed the Clemson game because he was suspended and his status remains up in the air for Saturday. Guys like Mason Humphrey and Trech Kekahuna need to be more involved, but that could be dependent on Edwards willingness to get them the football. What will also help him is if his offensive line can hold up better than they did a couple of weeks ago. Both left tackle Jordan Hall and left guard Andrew Threatt need to recover from rough showings against Clemson, while center Christo Kelly, right guard Aidan Banfield and right tackle Jacqawn McRoy need to continue their positive starts to the season. True freshman Cristian Alvarez has seen some snaps in the last two games, but Clemson showed that it might be best to trust Banfield for the time being. This group will also be a critical piece of the run game that will have to produce at a high level again, especially if it rains. Benjamin Hall is coming off the best game of his career and the hope is that he can build on that and be trusted more in the redzone than he was against Clemson. Demon June is the guy that the team turns to in short yardage situations, but if Hall is running the ball the way that he was in the last game, the team shouldn’t be taking the ball out of his hands.
Defensively, there were some major warts that were exposed in the Clemson game, mainly in the secondary. While Greg Smith and Kaleb Cost had a good showing, the rest of the unit struggled mightily in coverage and with missed tackles. The team needs a bounce back performance from Jaiden Patterson, who had been so impressive in his career prior to that, as well as Peyton Waters and Coleman Bryson, who were picked on, too. The best thing the team can do to limit that secondary from being tested again is to create pressure on the quarterback, something they weren’t able to do as the day went along a couple of weeks ago. The team hopes to have star edge rusher Melkart Abou Jaoude back after he missed the Clemson game with a hand injury. If he’s back, he’ll combine with Xavier Lewis, who might be off the best start of any defensive tackle in college football, and Jaylen Harvey to create some pressure. The line as a whole needs to be more consistent at winning in the run game and taking pressure off the linebacking corps if the Tar Heels are gonna have any chance to win on Saturday. At linebacker, Derek McDonald, Peyton Seelmann and Jonathan Agumadu all need to play their best games of the season if the Tar Heels are going to slow down the Irish’s running game. Considering the issues that the team has had stopping the run in the games against TCU and Clemson, it is hard to feel confident that will happen.
Special teams has new life now that the team has Rece Verhoff eligible, at least for the time being. Verhoff was an All-ACC honorable mention a year ago and will immediately give them a more reliable placekicking weapon than Aeron Burrell did. Burrell will still have his hands full with the punting and kickoff duties, areas that he has found a groove in. As for the return games, they remain in solid shape, but shouldn’t be bet on to have a big day based on the results we’ve seen so far.
Notre Dame
There are plenty of reasons to believe that the Irish will be the toughest matchup for the Tar Heels all season long. Offensively, this is a pretty lethal group under the direction of coordinator Mike Denbrock. Quarterback CJ Carr might not be one of the Heisman favorites right now, but he is off to an efficient and productive start to the year. At receiver, Micah Gilbert is having a breakout season and will test the Tar Heels in the deep passing game, while Jordan Faison will be a challenge at all three levels. The tight end room hasn’t been as productive as it usually is, but it is still one that could become a factor at any time, especially in the redzone. The run game hasn’t been nearly as productive as some of the ones in the past have, but it feels like this could be a day where they lean on this group, especially if it rains. Aneyas Williams and Nolan James Jr. have split carries pretty evenly to this point and both could be major factors on Saturday. The offensive line will be the most physical that the Tar Heels will face all season, headlined by left guard Anthonie Knapp and center Ashton Craig.
Defensively, this might just be the best unit in the country. It starts up front, where the team brings one of the best edge rusher duos in the country with them. Both Boubacar Traore and Bryce Young are off to great starts to the season and there is some nice depth there with Keon Keeley and Rodney Dunham. In the middle of the defensive line, the Irish rotate a lot, but just about everyone that has come in has been effective, led by Francis Brewu and Elijah Hughes. The linebacker room is deep and talented, as well. Drayk Bowen and Jaiden Ausberry are the starters here and have been productive, but Jaylen Sneed and Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa will also contribute here at a high level. The secondary is also a very sound unit. Leonard Moore is one of the top corners in all of college football and the guy opposite of him, DJ McKinney, is having a great start to the season. The safeties, Adon Shuler and Luke Talich, have been good, but Talich’s status for this one remains a question after he missed last week’s game against Purdue. If he can go, Joey O’Brien will get the nod as he did against Purdue where he played well.
The special teams unit is a very sound one. Spencer Porath is handling the placekicking duties and has plenty of range to go along with good accuracy. Punter Jasper Scaife has been productive, as well. The return game features Jordan Faison as a dangerous punt returner and a solid kick return game to pair alongside it.
Team Stats
Tar Heels
Off. PPG: 23.3 (T-102nd)
Off. PYPG: 211.0 (89th)
Off. RYPG: 155.0 (80th)
Off. TYPG: 366.0 (93rd)
Off. 3rd Down %: 38.2% (89th)
Off. 4th Down %: 66.7% (T-36th)
Off. Red Zone TD%: 54.6% (110th)
Tackles For A Loss Allowed: 12.0 (T-16th)
Sacks Allowed: 7.0 (T-68th)
Def. PPG: 13.7 (20th)
Def. PYPG: 189.3 (T-46th)
Def. RYPG: 123.0 (61st)
Def. TYPG: 312.3 (44th)
Def. 3rd Down %: 44.4% (116th)
Def. 4th Down %: 28.6% (T-29th)
Def. Red Zone TD%: 25.0% (1st)
Tackles for A Loss: 16.0 (T-109th)
Sacks: 10.0 (T-34th)
Interceptions: 2 (T-81st)
Turnover Margin: +1 (T-50th)
Penalties Per Game: 4.3 (T-7th)
Penalty Yards Per Game: 31.7 (3rd)
Notre Dame
Off. PPG: 42.3 (17th)
Off. PYPG: 275.0 (33rd)
Off. RYPG: 141.8 (99th)
Off. TYPG: 416.8 (62nd)
Off. 3rd Down %: 41.5% (T-68th)
Off. 4th Down %: 71.4% (T-26th)
Off. Red Zone TD%: 73.7% (T-36th)
Tackles For A Loss Allowed: 8.0 (4th)
Sacks Allowed: 2.0 (T-4th)
Def. PPG: 8.3 (2nd)
Def. PYPG: 145.5 (9th)
Def. RYPG: 53.8 (5th)
Def. TYPG: 199.3 (1st)
Def. 3rd Down %: 35.2% (57th)
Def. 4th Down %: 66.7% (T-100th)
Def. Red Zone TD%: 28.6% (T-3rd)
Tackles for A Loss: 29.0 (T-16th)
Sacks: 13.0 (T-11th)
Interceptions: 3 (T-50th)
Turnover Margin: +8 (T-3rd)
Penalties Per Game: 2.5 (1st)
Penalty Yards Per Game: 26.5 (1st)
Keys to the Game
-Run the Ball and Control the Clock
-Cause Havoc for CJ Carr
-Create at Least Two Turnovers
Injury Report
Tar Heels
OUT- Keeyun Chapman (suspension), Jaxxon Warren (undisclosed)
QUEST- Jonah Rodriguez (undisclosed), C.J. Sadler (suspension), Jordan Washington (undisclosed)
PROB- Rece Verhoff (eligibility)
WILL PLAY- Melkart Abou Jaoude (hand)
Notre Dame
OUT- Matty Augustine (foot), Christopher Burgess Jr. (leg), Tiki Hola (knee), Charles Jagusah (arm), Brauntae Johnson (foot), Jason Onye (ankle), Chaz Smith (wrist), Chris Terek (knee)
QUEST- Owen Strebling (concussion)
WILL PLAY- Luke Talich (wrist)
Projected Starting Lineup
Tar Heels
Offense
QB# 9 Billy Edwards Jr., Gr.
RB# 7 Benjamin Hall, Jr.
WR-X# 4 Mason Humphrey, Sr.
WR-SL# 2 Trech Kekahuna, Jr.
WR-Z# 1 Jordan Shipp, Jr.
TE#45 Jelani Thurman, Jr.
LG#75 Andrew Threatt, Sr.
C#56 Christo Kelly, Gr.
RG#68 Aidan Banfield, Jr.
RT#71 Jacqawn McRoy, So.
Defense
RUSH# 9 Melkart Abou Jaoude, Sr.
NT# 0 Isaiah Johnson, Sr.
DT#91 Leroy Jackson, So.
DT/DE #90 Xavier Lewis, So.
JACK#11 Jaylen Harvey, So.
WLB#10 Peyton Seelmann, Jr.
BCB#18 Jaiden Patterson, Jr.
BS# 1 Greg Smith, So.
FS#16 Coleman Bryson, Sr.
CB# 7 Peyton Waters, So.
NB#21 Kaleb Cost, Jr.
Special Teams
P#92 Aeron Burrell, Jr.
KOS#92 Aeron Burrell, Jr.
H#93 Jacob Horvath, Jr.
KR# 0 Demon June, So.
PR# 2 Trech Kekahuna, Jr.
Notre Dame
Offense
QB#13 CJ Carr, Jr.
RB#22 Aneyas Williams, Jr.
WR-X#14 Micah Gilbert, Jr.
WR-SL# 6 Jordan Faison, Sr.
WR-Z# 1 Jaden Greathouse, Sr.
TE#87 Cooper Flanagan, Sr.
LG#54 Anthonie Knapp, Jr.
C#70 Ashton Craig, 5th
RG#75 Sullivan Absher, Sr.
RT#76 Geurby Lambert, Jr.
DE# 5 Boubacar Traore, Sr.
DT# 0 Tionne Gray, Jr.
DT# 7 Francis Brewu, Jr.
WILL# 4 Jaiden Ausberry, Sr.
MIKE#34 Drayk Bowen, Sr.
CB#15 Leonard Moore, Jr.
NICKEL#29 Christian Gray, Sr.
BOUNDARY# 8 Adon Shuler, Sr.
FIELD# 6 28 Luke Talich, Sr.
CB# 2 DJ McKinney, 5th
PK#35 Spencer Porath, Jr.
P#39 Jasper Scaife, Fr.
KO#18 Eric Schmidt, So.
H#39 Jasper Scaife, Fr.
PR# 6 Jordan Faison, Sr.
Game Information
Kickoff Time: 12:00 PM EST
Weather: 73°F, 44% chance of rain
TV: ESPN
Radio: Tar Heel Sports Network
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