Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1293421
26 OCT. 10, 2020 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED shirt junior, are projected early round picks in the NFL Draft, but have com- bined for zero sacks or tackles for loss through two games. Wilson is consid- ered an early first-round prospect. Senior safety Hamsah Nasirildeen, another highly regarded draft pros- pect, has not played this year. He was the lone safety in college football last year to earn PFF grades of at least 80 in run defense, coverage and as a tackler. Redshirt junior defensive end Joshua Kaindoh, a former five-star recruit, has also not played. As if all the on-field issues weren't enough, off-field strife arose before the team played a snap. In June, Wil- son refuted Norvell's statement he had one-on-one conversations with each player after George Floyd's murder, calling it a lie on Twitter and threatening a player boycott. Norvell admitted yes, his words were lost in translation, and the ac- count of speaking with every player wasn't accurate, though he said he texted each one offering an opportu- nity to talk about social justice and many accepted the invitation. Wil- son and Norvell made up, a team meeting was held, and there was no player boycott. In August, redshirt sophomore wide receiver Warren Thompson al- leged on social media he had been "lied to multiple times about the conditions of other players' health as well as mine." Other teammates, including Wilson, defended the pro- gram's COVID-19 protocols and transparency. "We are where we are," Norvell said. "I don't think anyone sitting back nine months ago would have imagined the things we've had to work through and the things that have occurred up until this point. "I know there are a lot of things we have to do to grow as a football program, a lot of things we have to do to make sure we're doing things to the standard of what it takes to win football games. I embrace every challenge we have." This season appears to have plenty of them in store. ✦ GAME PREVIEW: FLORIDA STATE Senior defensive tackle Marvin Wilson is a possible top-10 pick in the NFL Draft, but he had no sacks or tackles for loss through two games. PHOTO BY DON JUAN MOORE/COURTESY ACC MEDIA 2020 FLORIDA STATE SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Sept. 12 Georgia Tech L, 16-13 Sept. 26 at Miami L, 52-10 Oct. 3 Jacksonville State (RSN) 4 p.m. Oct. 10 Notre Dame (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Oct. 17 North Carolina TBA Oct. 24 at Louisville TBA Nov. 7 Pittsburgh TBA Nov. 14 at NC State TBA Nov. 21 Clemson TBA Nov. 28 Virginia TBA Dec. 5 at Duke TBA 2020 NOTRE DAME SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Sept. 12 Duke W, 27-13 Sept. 19 South Florida W, 52-0 Oct. 10 Florida State (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Oct. 17 Louisville (NBC) 2:30 p.m. Oct. 24 at Pittsburgh TBA Oct. 31 at Georgia Tech TBA Nov. 7 Clemson (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Nov. 14 at Boston College TBA Nov. 27 at North Carolina TBA Dec. 5 Syracuse (NBC) TBA Dec. 12 at Wake Forest TBA Facts & Figures FLORIDA STATE AT NOTRE DAME Game Info Date: Oct. 10, 2020 Site: Notre Dame Stadium Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. ET Television: NBC Radio: This game can be heard on Notre Dame's IMG affiliates Series Facts: Florida State leads the series 6-3, but Notre Dame won the last meeting 42-13 in South Bend on Nov. 10, 2018. Head coaches: Florida State — Mike Norvell (0-2, first season); Notre Dame — Brian Kelly (94-37, 11th season). Noting Florida State: The Seminoles' 36- year bowl streak was snapped in 2018, when they went 5-7 … Miami has now won four straight games against Florida State and held the Seminoles to 20 combined points the last two seasons … Florida State has finished 99th or worse in sacks allowed each season since 2017 … Redshirt junior wide receiver Tamor- rion Terry caught 60 passes for 1,188 yards and nine touchdowns in 2019 … Terry's aver- age touchdown length was 57.89 yards, which led the country … Norvell's Memphis offenses finished in the top 10 in yards per play from 2017-19.