Clemson Tigers vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish scouting report: Who has the edge?
No. 1 Clemson will travel to South Bend for a top 5 matchup with Notre Dame this weekend. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence will travel with the Tigers but has been ruled out for the game after testing positive for COVID-19 last week.
True freshman QB D.J. Uiagalelei will start in place of Lawrence and will be making his first career road start. The California native made history last week, leading Clemson back from 18 points down to record its largest comeback win at home in school history.
Up next, Uiagalelei and Clemson have a chance for more history as the Tigers can earn their first top 5 road win in school history with a victory over the fourth-ranked Fighting Irish.
Let’s break down the matchup:
WHEN CLEMSON HAS THE BALL
Clemson may be without its Heisman candidate quarterback, but the Tigers have another Heisman hopeful in running back Travis Etienne. The senior is one of the most dynamic players in college football and a threat to go the distance every time he touches the ball. Clemson’s offensive line has struggled at times to open up lanes for Etienne, as the unit has four new starters in 2020. But offensive coordinator Tony Elliott has done a nice job of getting creative and finding different ways to get Etienne the ball in space. He will need to do that again this week as Notre Dame’s defense will be focused on slowing him down.
Etienne is second on Clemson’s team in receptions with 29 and receiving yards with 434. He finished with seven receptions for 140 yards and a touchdown last week against Boston College, even lining up at receiver and catching a go route against the Eagles. We will likely see Clemson to continue to make Etienne a big part of the passing game.
Notre Dame has the best defense Clemson has seen this year, and Clemson’s offensive line will need to step up to keep the Tigers from being one-dimensional. If that doesn’t happen, Uiagalelei proved last week that he’s capable of throwing 40+ times in a game and leading the Tigers to a victory, but it’s far from an ideal scenario. Receivers Amari Rodgers, Cornell Powell, Frank Ladson, Joseph Ngata and others will need to make contested catches for the young QB.
Ultimately, I think Clemson is able to move the ball through the air and will make enough plays in the passing game to put up some points, but it won’t be easy against a Notre Dame defense that is in the top 10 in total defense and scoring defense.
“Defensively these guys are as good as you’re going to see. These are unbelievable, talented guys up front. The backers are fast, physical and smart,” Swinney said. “One of the best safeties you’ll see in the country in 14 (Kyle Hamilton). Both of these corners have a lot of experience. Really good players. It’s just a complete team in every facet.”
Advantage: Clemson
WHEN NOTRE DAME HAS THE BALL
Swinney revealed some news Wednesday night that will make it harder for Clemson’s defense. The Tigers will be without three defensive starters Saturday night — defensive tackle Tyler Davis, middle linebacker James Skalski and Sam/Nickel linebacker Mike Jones Jr. won’t play.
Notre Dame has a veteran offensive line that is one of the best in the nation and a really good running back in Kyren Williams, who is averaging 100 rushing yards per game.
The Irish are averaging 231 rushing yards per game as a team and should have an easier time establishing the running game with Clemson’s injuries. Notre Dame is led by quarterback Ian Book, who went up against Clemson in the 2018 Cotton Bowl. Book is a veteran QB who makes smart decisions with the ball. He’s thrown only one interception all year and is also a threat with his legs.
The perfect scenario for Notre Dame is to get the ground game going with Williams, which will open up play-action pass opportunities for Book to find receiver Javon McKinley and tight ends Michael Mayer and Tommy Tremble. Brent Venables is the best defensive coordinator in the country and will surely have a solid plan in place to slow down Notre Dame’s offense, but the injuries in the front seven will make it tough.
“It’s certainly always better when you have your best players with you, for sure. We all know what Tyler Davis is capable of doing,” Swinney said. “It is what it is. We certainly are better with Tyler Davis than without him, but the challenge is to the other guys. ... We don’t have big numbers there but we’ve gotta make it work.”
Advantage: Notre Dame
CLEMSON-NOTRE DAME SCORE PREDICTION
Clemson’s offensive line will need to play its best game of the season so that the Tigers aren’t one-dimensional and relying mostly on a true freshman QB making his first career road start to move the ball. D.J. Uiagalelei will play well and Amari Rodgers, Cornell Powell and Travis Etienne will continue to make players around him. But I also believe that Notre Dame will find a way to win the game at home, with so many players out for Clemson. I think Clemson has the ball late with a chance to win but comes up just short. With that said, a rematch in the ACC championship game could have a much different result.
Pick: Notre Dame 30, Clemson 24
No. 1 Clemson (7-0) at No. 4 Notre Dame (6-0)
When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Notre Dame Stadium
TV: NBC
Line: Clemson by 5.5
This story was originally published November 5, 2020 at 8:45 AM with the headline "Clemson Tigers vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish scouting report: Who has the edge?."
