Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1179920
44 NOV. 2, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 88.3 pass-blocking grade. He will need to be on his game again against the Irish. Notre Dame ranked 21st in the land with 3.0 sacks per game, thanks to a potent pass rush led by senior defensive ends Julian Okwara and Khalid Kareem. According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), heading into their matchup at Michigan Oct. 26, the duo had compiled 27 and 24 pressures, respec- tively, while Okwara ranked sixth in the country with a pass-rush win percentage of 25.3 percent. The Irish also ranked 21st in the country in pass efficiency defense (113.76 rating), and feature an opportunistic secondary that recorded six inter- ceptions and two fumble recoveries through six contests. Advantage: Notre Dame NOTRE DAME RUNNING GAME VS. VIRGINIA TECH RUN DEFENSE In arguably the best storyline for the Fighting Irish through the first six games, senior running back Tony Jones Jr., moved from being a backup to becoming a workhorse and the leading candidate for team MVP. With myriad injuries in this position group — specifically junior Jafar Armstrong's abdominal tear in the season opener at Louisville and sophomore Jahmir Smith's toe injury that cost him two games — and some early season struggles, the impor- tance of Jones was highlighted. A 46-yard rushing effort against Georgia dropped the Irish ground attack to No. 85 in the coun- try through three games. Following that contest, though, Jones recorded three straight 100-yard GAME PREVIEW: VIRGINIA TECH Offense Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. WR 83 Chase Claypool 6-4½ 229 Sr. 88 Javon McKinley 6-2 220 Sr. WR 10 Chris Finke 5-9½ 184 5th-Sr. 13 Lawrence Keys III 5-10½ 173 So. LT 74 Liam Eichenberg 6-6 305 Sr. 75 Joshua Lugg 6-7 307 Jr. LG 69 Aaron Banks 6-6 325 Jr. 57 Trevor Ruhland 6-3½ 292 5th-Sr. C 55 Jarrett Patterson 6-5 300 So. 61 Colin Grunhard 6-0½ 289 Jr. RG 78 Tommy Kraemer 6-6 319 Sr. 56 John Dirksen 6-5½ 309 So. RT 72 Robert Hainsey 6-4½ 295 Jr. 73 Andrew Kristofic 6-5 280 Fr. TE 84 Cole Kmet 6-5½ 250 Jr. 89 Brock Wright 6-4½ 246 Jr. or 24 Tommy Tremble 6-3½ 235 So. WR 25 Braden Lenzy 5-11½ 180 So. 18 Joe Wilkins 6-1½ 194 So. QB 12 Ian Book 6-0 212 Sr. 15 Phil Jurkovec 6-4½ 227 So. RB 6 Tony Jones Jr. 5-11 224 Sr. 8 Jafar Armstrong 6-0½ 220 Jr. Defense Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. DE 42 Julian Okwara 6-4½ 248 Sr. 44 Jamir Jones 6-3 255 Sr. DT 95 M. Tagovailoa-Amosa 6-2½ 286 Jr. 57 Jayson Ademilola 6-3 279 So. NG 41 Kurt Hinish 6-2 295 Jr. 54 Jacob Lacey 6-2 293 Fr. DE 53 Khalid Kareem 6-4 265 Sr. 91 Ade Ogundeji 6-4½ 253 Sr. Buck 22 Asmar Bilal 6-2 225 5th-Sr. 33 Shayne Simon 6-3 232 So. Mike 40 Drew White 6-0 230 Jr. 52 Bo Bauer 6-3 230 So. Rover 6 J. Owusu-Koramoah 6-1½ 216 Jr. 13 Paul Moala 5-11½ 216 So. CB 5 Troy Pride Jr. 5-11½ 194 Sr. 8 Donte Vaughn 6-3 212 Sr. or 9 Cam Hart 6-2½ 208 Fr. S 11 Alohi Gilman 5-10½ 201 Sr. 14 Kyle Hamilton 6-4 210 Fr. S 21 Jalen Elliott 6-0½ 210 Sr. 3 Houston Griffith 6-0 198 So. CB 20 Shaun Crawford 5-9 180 5th-Sr. 28 TaRiq Bracy 5-10 170 So. NOTRE DAME DEPTH CHART Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. KO 39 Jonathan Doerer 6-3 23 Jr. 98 Harrison Leonard 5-10 203 Fr. PK 39 Jonathan Doerer 6-3 203 Jr. 98 Harrison Leonard 5-10 203 Fr. P 19 Jay Bramblett 6-1 188 Fr. 98 Harrison Leonard 5-10 203 Fr. H 19 Jay Bramblett 6-1 188 Fr. 17 Nolan Henry 6-0 193 5th-Sr. Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. LS 54 John Shannon 6-2 225 Sr. 65 Michael Vinson 6-2 224 So. PR 10 Chris Finke 5-9½ 184 5th-Sr. 11 Alohi Gilman 5-10½ 201 Sr. KR 13 Lawrence Keys III 5-10½ 173 So. 20 C'Bo Flemister 5-11 200 So. Special Teams On the heels of a 17-tackle performance in a 43-41 six-overtime win over North Carolina Oct. 19, junior linebacker Rayshard Ashby ranked 11th in the country in tackles per game (10.1). PHOTO COURTESY VIRGINIA TECH ATHLETICS