Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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36 SEPT. 23, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED Vanderbilt and Murray State didn't have the pass rushers or perimeter athletes to handle Geor- gia, so the Bulldogs' young receivers have yet to be challenged. Fromm lost his top five pass catchers from last season, and through his first two games his top targets were talented freshman George Pickens and Dominick Blaylock. Georgia's tight ends also combined to haul in eight passes for 113 yards. Notre Dame featured one of the nation's top pass defenses in 2018, ranking second nationally in yards allowed per pass attempt (5.6), fourth in yards allowed per completion (9.8), third in touch- downs allowed (10) and sixth in pass efficiency defense (105.57). The Irish return three starters from that second- ary, which is headlined by productive seniors Alohi Gilman and Jalen Elliott, who both ranked among the top 12 safeties in the country according to Pro Football Focus. PFF also ranked the Irish pass rush as the na- tion's fourth-best last season, and Notre Dame returns every end who played a snap in 2018. Notre Dame's pass defense kicked off the 2019 season playing as effectively as it did last season, holding Louisville to just 134 yards, a 42.9 percent completion rate and a 83.06 pass efficiency rating. The Cardinals averaged just 4.8 yards per attempt, and the Irish defense racked up four sacks with 21 total quarterback pressures. If there is a defensive front good enough to put pressure on Fromm, who will be guarded by a long and skilled line, it would be Notre Dame's. Advantage: Notre Dame NOTRE DAME RUNNING GAME VS. GEORGIA RUN DEFENSE Neither team was among the nation's best in either category, and neither was tested early this season. That makes this matchup a major test for both teams. Notre Dame rushed for 190.5 yards per game during the regular season in 2018, but it was mostly up and down due to an inexperienced of- fensive line. Four of its five starters return, and the Irish churned out 230 yards (5.5 yards per carry) and four touchdowns in the season-opening vic- tory at Louisville. Senior Tony Jones Jr., who rushed for 110 yards on just 15 carries, fueled the Irish ground attack in the win. His success helped the Irish overcome the loss of junior Jafar Armstrong, who went down after the first series and is now expected to miss at least a month of the season due to an abdominal muscle tear. Behind Jones is a group of running backs who lack experience, but the same cannot be said for the line. Notre Dame has two seniors and two juniors up front, and it will enter this game with 65 career starts and four players who have made at least 10 starts. Notre Dame rushed for just 55 yards in the matchup against Georgia two years ago, so the Irish will have much to prove in this game. Estab- Sophomore nose tackle Jordan Davis anchors a Georgia defensive line that has limited opponents to just 129.9 rushing yards per game the last two seasons. PHOTO COURTESY UGA SPORTS COMMUNICATIONS GAME PREVIEW: GEORGIA Offense Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. WR 87 Tyler Simmons 6-0 201 Sr. 14 Trey Blount 6-2 200 Jr. WR 16 Demetris Robertson 6-0 190 Jr. 8 Dominick Blaylock 6-1 195 Fr. WR 5 Matt Landers 6-5 200 R-So. 15 Lawrence Cager 6-5 220 5th-Sr. LT 71 Andrew Thomas 6-5 320 Jr. 78 D'Marcus Hayes 6-5 315 Sr. LG 66 Solomon Kindley 6-4 335 R-Jr. 54 Justin Shaffer 6-4 330 Jr. OC 55 Trey Hill 6-4 330 So. 50 Warren Ericson 6-4 305 R-Fr. RG 77 Cade Mays 6-6 318 So. 74 Ben Cleveland 6-6 335 R-Jr. RT 79 Isaiah Wilson 6-7 340 R-So. 69 Jamaree Salyer 6-4 325 So. TE 89 Charlie Woerner 6-5 245 Sr. 17 Eli Wolf 6-4 236 5th-Sr. QB 11 Jake Fromm 6-2 220 Jr. 13 Stetson Bennett 5-11 190 Jr. RB 7 D'Andre Swift 5-9 215 Jr. 35 Brian Herrien 6-0 210 Sr. 4 James Cook 5-11 190 So. Defense Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. DT 52 Tyler Clark 6-4 300 Sr. 95 Devonte Wyatt 6-3 301 Jr. NT 94 Michael Barnett 6-4 304 5th-Sr. 99 Jordan Davis 6-6 330 So. DE 51 David Marshall 6-3 274 Sr. 10 Malik Herring 6-3 280 Jr. LB 84 Walter Grant 6-4 245 Jr. 11 Jermaine Johnson 6-5 240 Jr. LB 13 Azeez Ojulari 6-3 240 R-Fr. 4 Nolan Smith 6-3 235 Fr. LB 30 Tae Crowder 6-3 235 5th-Sr. 25 Quay Walker 6-4 240 So. LB 32 Monty Rice 6-1 235 Jr. 17 Nakobe Dean 6-0 220 Fr. LC 27 Eric Stokes 6-1 185 R-So. 7 Tyrique Stevenson 6-0 202 Fr. RS 20 J.R. Reed 6-1 194 5th-Sr. 26 Tyrique McGhee 5-10 187 Sr. LS 2 Richard LeCounte 5-11 190 Jr. 6 Otis Reese 6-3 210 So. RC 14 DJ Daniel 6-1 185 Fr. STAR 23 Mark Webb 6-1 200 Jr. 1 Divaad Wilson 6-0 195 R-So. GEORGIA DEPTH CHART Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. P 90 Jake Camarda 6-2 180 So. 93 Bill Rubright 6-3 182 R-So. PK 98 Rodrigo Blankenship 6-1 191 5th-Sr. 97 Brooks Buce 6-0 175 R-So. KO 98 Rodrigo Blankenship 6-1 191 5th-Sr. LS 47 Payne Walker 6-2 249 R-Fr. Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. H 90 Jake Camarda 6-2 180 So. 13 Stetson Bennett 5-11 190 Jr. PR 87 Tyler Simmons 6-0 201 Sr. 10 Kearis Jackson 6-0 200 R-Fr. KR 16 Demetris Robertson 6-0 190 R-Jr. 4 James Cook 5-11 190 So. Special Teams