Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 14, 2026 35 GAME PREVIEW: SMU BY JACK SOBLE SMU RUNNING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME RUN DEFENSE We begin with the weak spot of SMU's offense. The Mustangs do not run the ball very much, nor are they particularly good at it. SMU averages 4.18 yards per carry, ranking 82nd nationally heading into Week 10. Its running game should struggle against Notre Dame's 10th-ranked run defense — even if that run defense is missing senior linebacker Drayk Bowen and potentially ju- nior defensive tackle Francis Brewu and sixth-year defensive tackle Jason Onye. The Irish are deep at Mike linebacker, where Bowen's "backup," junior Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, is one of the best run defenders in college foot- ball, regardless of position. They are also deep at defensive tackle, where junior Sean Sevillano Jr. and senior Elijah Hughes have proven capable of handling significant roles. As for the Mustangs, running the ball being a weakness is curious, because they had reason to feel good about it coming into the year. Cal transfer Kendrick Raphael has run well, compiling 692 yards through Week 9 and averaging 5.1 yards per carry with 9 touchdowns. They also boast a quality offensive line, with Blue & Gold Illustrated All-Opponent Team members PJ Williams (tackle), Joshua Bates (center) and Addison Nichols (guard) all staying healthy. The problem is, all three of those linemen are better pass protectors than they are run blockers. That's good news for fifth-year quarterback Kevin Jennings, who is very much a part of the run game as well. But it's meant Raphael hasn't been able to find a great rhythm this season. Notre Dame likes to attack these types of match- ups by making the opponent truly one-dimen- sional, which means the Irish will want to give this run game no room to breathe whatsoever. They have a pretty good chance to make that happen. Advantage: Notre Dame SMU PASSING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME PASS DEFENSE SMU floated Jennings as a Heisman Trophy can- didate before the season even began. That's not happening, but he's still had a prolific year. As of Nov. 6, Jennings was fourth nationally in pass efficiency rating and third in the Power Four at 178.13. The only two Power Four quarterbacks ahead of him: Miami's Darian Mensah and Ohio State's Julian Sayin. Jennings is a gunslinger who operates head coach Rhett Lashlee's "power spread" offense extremely well. That's to be ex- pected because this is his third season as Lashlee's starting quarterback. Jennings entered Week 10 averaging 9.6 yards per attempt, largely due to Lashlee's prolific use of play action. Through Week 9, it was 39.5 percent of what Jennings' dropbacks (according to Pro Foot- ball Focus), compared to 16.3 percent for Notre Dame's CJ Carr. Despite a middling run game, Jen- nings' yards per attempt on play action jumps up to 11.0, with 9 touchdowns and 1 interception. SMU also runs an "everybody eats" type of of- fense. Jennings' favorite target is 5-foot-8 senior slot dynamo Yamir Knight, who has 44 receptions for 523 yards through Week 9. But in addition to Knight, six (!) other pass catchers have at least 14 receptions and four have at least 200 yards. It's a big game for Notre Dame senior nickel back Christian Gray, considering how dangerous Knight is out of the slot. But the entire secondary will have to step up here, given that the Irish entered the Miami game as college football's 31st-best pass efficiency defense. They will also likely still be without fifth-year cornerback DJ McKinney (ankle) and perhaps junior safety Brauntae Johnson (foot). SMU's vulnerability, however, is pass protec- tion. But wait, you may ask, didn't you say the Mustangs have three awesome pass-protecting offensive linemen? Well yes, I did. But the non- Williams tackle spot has been a revolving door in every sense of the word. Williams has allowed 10 quarterback pressures, but Andrew Chamblee and Drew Evers at the other tackle spot have combined to allow 29. On PaPer Senior slot dynamo Yamir Knight, who stands just 5-foot-8, had hauled in 44 receptions for 523 yards through Week 9. PHOTO COURTESY SMU ATHLETICS