Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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36 OCT. 12, 2024 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED GAME PREVIEW: STANFORD 4, Gray has been targeted 18 times and allowed 9 receptions for 61 yards. "I just know the ball is coming my way every time, and I'm just gonna get it," Gray said after Notre Dame beat Mi- ami (Ohio) 28-3 Sept. 21. CHANGING CULTURE Stanford is more than just Ayomanor, of course. Against Syracuse, the defense came up big. Senior safety Mitch Leig- ber took an interception 71 yards to the house in the third quarter, and early in the fourth, junior safety Jay Green picked off a pass that led to three critical points. Leigber stayed in Palo Alto through all three consecutive 3-9 seasons. Green transferred in from Washington, an- other former Pac-12 school. Together, they embody Taylor's rebuild: A com- bination of new faces who helped him change the culture and returners who embraced the new staff (Daniels and Ayomanor among them). Taylor came to Stanford from FCS Sacramento State. His first season was not easy, ironically losing to Sacramento State in Week 4. However it looks like the California native and West Coast lifer — his previous collegiate stops include Cal, Eastern Washington and Utah — has turned a corner. "Our guys [were] very resilient," Tay- lor said, about the win over Syracuse. "I thought we were physical, and made a lot of plays. Just tough down the stretch, overcoming a deficit to make plays there at the end." This may be the last Notre Dame- Stanford matchup for some time. Irish head coach Marcus Freeman is in favor of the series being renewed, but it's set to expire after the 2024 season. With that in mind, the Irish should remember the last time the Cardinal entered South Bend, when they let a Stanford team that's much worse than this one beat them in their own house. "I understand how disappointing that loss was for them," Freeman said before the 2023 matchup. "There won't be a lack of motivation this week to go com- pete for that trophy in this great rivalry that dates back many years. We under- stand how important that is to this uni- versity and our football program." With 13 days to prepare, Notre Dame should carry the same motivation into Week 7. ✦ 2024 NOTRE DAME SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Aug. 31 at Texas A&M W, 23-13 Sept. 7 Northern Illinois L, 16-14 Sept. 14 at Purdue W, 66-7 Sept. 21 Miami (Ohio) W, 28-3 Sept. 28 Louisville W, 31-24 Oct. 12 Stanford (NBC) 3:30 p.m. Oct. 19 vs. Georgia Tech# TBA Oct. 26 vs. Navy^ (ABC/ESPN) 12 p.m. Nov. 9 Florida State (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Nov. 16 Virginia (NBC) 3:30 p.m. Nov. 23 vs. Army* (NBC) 7 p.m. Nov. 30 at USC TBA # at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta; ^ at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.; * Shamrock Series at Yankee Stadium in The Bronx, N.Y. ; Games on NBC are also televised by Peacock Senior linebacker Gaethan Bernadel made a team-high 20 tackles in Stanford's first three contests. PHOTO COURTESY STANFORD ATHLETICS 2024 STANFORD SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Aug. 30 TCU L, 34-27 Sept. 7 Cal Poly W, 41-7 Sept. 20 at Syracuse W, 26-24 Sept. 28 at Clemson L, 40-14 Oct. 5 Virginia Tech (ACCN) 3:30 p.m. Oct. 12 at Notre Dame (NBC) 3:30 p.m. Oct. 19 SMU TBA Oct. 26 Wake Forest TBA Nov. 2 at NC State TBA Nov. 16 Louisville TBA Nov. 23 at Cal TBA Nov. 30 at San Jose State (CBS) 4 p.m.