Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 12, 2024 39 GAME PREVIEW: STANFORD skewed the statistics. Stanford passed for 318 yards and 3 touchdowns as a team against Cal Poly. Daniels completed 19 of 23 throws for 221 yards with 2 scores. What he did against the Horned Frogs and Orange is obviously more indicative of what he might do against Notre Dame; he com- pleted 54.8 percent of his passes for 170.5 yards per game with 2 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Daniels was sacked 6 times in the first three games of the year, too. The Cardinal allowing 6 sacks through Week 4 ranked tied for 58th nation- ally. After only notching 1 sack through the first two games, meanwhile, Notre Dame turned up the heat and recorded 4 in back-to-back weeks against Purdue and Miami (Ohio) to bring the season total to 9. That's more the type of pass-rushing team Notre Dame believes it has, and that's probably the one that will show up against a Stanford side that is susceptible to allowing pressure on the quarterback. Add in Notre Dame picking up where it left off in pass efficiency defense, ranking as the No. 6 team in the nation in that regard through Week 4, and the Irish should have a shutdown game against the Stanford passing attack. Advantage: Notre Dame NOTRE DAME PASSING GAME VS. STANFORD PASS DEFENSE Baby steps. Let's face it; Notre Dame's passing numbers were Todd D. Burlage: Notre Dame 40, Stanford 10 Coming off of three consecutive 3-9 seasons, and now trying to acclimate itself as a first-year member of the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2024, Stanford brought minimal expectations into this year. While three games does not a season make, an impressive 26-24 upset at undefeated Syracuse Sept. 20 gave the Cardinal hope that maybe some better times are coming under second-year head coach Troy Taylor, who faced a massive rebuilding project. The resignation of longtime Stanford skipper David Shaw before the 2023 season left Taylor with a mass exodus of players and a deep roster shortage. So, armed with a fresh-start strategy, Taylor seems to be improving team culture, and the upset of Syracuse can only help boost hopes the rest of this season. Early season momentum is great, but the talent gap is too severe for the Cardinal to keep this one close. Steve Downey: Notre Dame 31, Stanford 7 Wide receivers Elic Ayomanor is the best player on Stanford's offense, but as good as he is even he will have a tough time making a dent in Notre Dame's impenetrable pass defense, which ranked sixth in the nation while holding op- posing passers to a 79.13 pass efficiency rating through Week 4. As long as the Irish can keep Stanford quarterback Ashton Daniels from hurting them with his legs, points will be tough to come by for the Cardinal. The Irish's ground attack, which averaged 238.2 yards per game (18th in the country) through four weeks, has the ability to carry the day while the passing game continues to work out the kinks against a subpar Stanford pass defense. The Cardinal ranked third in the country in rush defense (51.7 yards allowed per game) through Week 4, but that is likely more a product of the competition they played in their first three games than anything else. Kyle Kelly: Notre Dame 30, Stanford 20 The last time Stanford came to Notre Dame Stadium, the Cardinal upset the Irish 16-14 and exposed Marcus Freeman's inexperience as head coach. While questions surrounding his tenure still remain midway through Year 3, the Irish should be healed and rested after the bye week and hungry to avenge another loss. It's been since 1990 and 1992 since Stanford won two straight outings in South Bend, and I don't see this year's result producing the next one. Tyler Horka: Notre Dame 38, Stanford 10 It would truly be time to sound every alarm bell within earshot if Notre Dame lost to a Stanford program that has gone 3-9 in three straight seasons in South Bend for a second time in three years. It just cannot happen, and I do not believe it will. The score line that the Fighting Irish put on the Cardinal in Palo Alto last No- vember, 56-23, is more indicative of what will happen in this game than the 16- 14 loss the Irish suffered in 2022. It's just going to be lower scoring on both ends as the Irish offense tries each week to get to a place where it believes it should be operating in the final third of the season. Even as that progression continues pro- cessing, no worry at all for Notre Dame in taking down a longtime rival. Irish roll. Mike Singer: Notre Dame 36, Stanford 10 The Cardinal knocked off the Irish in 2022, but Notre Dame had their number on the road in 2023. I expect the Irish to get revenge for the embarrassing set- back a couple years ago in a big way. Jack Soble: Notre Dame 34, Stanford 13 Stanford is much more competitive than in recent years, but there's still a tal- ent gap between the Cardinal and the Irish. Notre Dame has typically done well against offenses built around elite No. 1 wide receivers since Benjamin Morrison joined the fold, which will pay dividends against Stanford star Elic Ayomanor. Notre Dame rolls, and the Irish build some confidence entering an intriguing "road" game at Georgia Tech. Staff Predictions Graduate student linebacker Tristan Sinclair ranks second on the team with 19 tackles through three contests. PHOTO COURTESY STANFORD ATHLETICS