Blue and Gold Illustrated

January 2025

Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football

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24 JANUARY 2025 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED GAME PREVIEW: INDIANA C O L L E G E F O O T B A L L P L A Y O F F BY JACK SOBLE INDIANA RUNNING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME RUN DEFENSE Let's get this out of the way early: Notre Dame has a significant talent advantage in this game. And nowhere do talent differentials show up more than in the trenches. Indiana's rushing offense ranks as a middle-of- the-road group, coming in at No. 57 in the country with 4.5 yards per carry. But against the toughest defensive front on the Hoosiers' schedule — Michi- gan — their running back tandem of senior Justice Ellison and redshirt senior Ty Son Lawton put up 3.4 yards per carry (21 attempts for 72 yards). They did better against Ohio State, with 141 yards on 32 attempts (4.4 yards per carry). But the Buckeyes are, as Lou Holtz once eloquently implied, soft. Indiana's offensive line struggled to deal with Michigan star junior defensive tackles Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant, who freed up the Wolverines' linebackers to make plays near the line of scrimmage. Grant himself picked up 3 run stops. What Indiana does have is continuity; each of its starting offensive linemen have played more than 570 snaps and four have played more than 700. But the interior offensive line hasn't looked the best against top competition, which it will be facing in Notre Dame graduate student defensive tackles Howard Cross III and Rylie Mills. The Hoosiers' run game does tend to be efficient, picking up first downs on 31.3 percent of its car- ries (16th in the nation). But it has only produced 13 plays of 20 yards or more (85th). Indiana relies on misdirection and staying ahead of the chains, rather than mauling at the line of scrimmage and creating explosive gains. This actually plays into Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden's hands. The Irish have typi- cally been happy to let teams march down the field in short bursts on the ground, knowing that if they give up points on a long drive early, they can adjust. They also know that this strategy requires success on every play, and if they can just force one mistake per drive, they can succeed. Ohio State generally takes the same approach. That, and Notre Dame's advantage on the inte- rior, give the edge to the Irish. Advantage: Notre Dame INDIANA PASSING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME PASS DEFENSE Indiana redshirt senior quarterback Kurtis Rourke's overall numbers are outstanding, with 9.9 yards per passing attempt, 27 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. That last number is significant against a Notre Dame defense that thrives on tak- ing the ball away, with 17 picks this season. But against a comparable pass defense in Ohio State, Rourke completed only 8 of 18 throws for 68 yards. He was also sacked 5 times, which is the biggest issue at hand. Rourke has prototypical quarterback size at 6-foot-5. He is not, however, a great athlete. Rourke and the Hoosiers are smart about picking their spots for him to run, and not including sacks, he has 21 attempts for 109 yards. Buckeyes defensive coordinator Jim Knowles Junior wide receiver Elijah Surratt leads the Hoosiers in total receptions (49), receiving yards (890) and touchdown catches (8). PHOTO COURTESY INDIANA On PaPer

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