Cavalier Corner Digital

✦ top storylines: notre dame vs. stanford By Lou Somogyi mum of a plus-two turnover advantage, and a defensive or special teams score, to help compensate for that deficiency. Nowhere To Run? Over the past three years, Notre Dame has scored 14, 14 and 13 points in regulation time against Stanford, and the Irish are currently 74th nationally in scoring (27.7 points per game). During those same three seasons, Notre Dame rushed for 44, 57 and 150 yards versus the Cardinal, respectively, or an average of 76.7 yards per game. The Irish probably need to get into at least the 150yard neighborhood on the ground to give itself an opportunity at victory this season. That will be a tall order against a Stanford unit that ranks third nationally against the run (89.5 yards allowed per game). Meanwhile, the Cardinal is not an operation that will dazzle top opponents with flash and speed on offense, either. In the six conference games from Oct. 5 through Nov. 16, Stanford averaged 23.1 points per game, never tallying more than 31. Last weekend it did finally detonate with a 63-13 victory against hapless 1-11 Cal. Nevertheless, this game has a similar feel to last year in that the team that can reach 20 points first will win. This is straight-up, old-school football, and last week's physical contest against Brigham Young in inclement conditions was a good primer for the Irish, especially rushing for 235 yards. Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly said "in terms of physical, mental toughness, it could have been our best [game] of the year," and a similar effort will be needed at Stanford to have a chance. "You cannot play finesse football against Stanford," Kelly said. "Oregon has shown that you can't go in there and try to finesse them and play fast-break football. You've got to play physical football again Stanford if you have a chance to win against them. How Much Is Left In The Tank? Senior running back Tyler Gaffney has led the way for the Cardinal's smash-mouth rushing attacking, compiling 251 carries for 1,296 yards (5.2 yards per carry) and 16 touchdowns. photo courtesy stanford "[BYU] was a step in the right direction. What we have to be able to do is prove that we can do this consistently." Senior running back Tyler Gaffney, who missed the 2012 season while playing minor league baseball, is a meat-and-potatoes runner (similar to the graduated workhorse Stepfan Taylor) in a power-oriented offense that even includes — egads! — a fullback, without running the triple option. Third-year head coach David Shaw has maintained the elementary precepts of the blue-collar, physical culture instilled during the Jim Harbaugh regime from 2007-10: 1) run the ball and 2) stop the run. If Notre Dame posts another low rushing figure at Stanford, it will need a mini- One of the reasons we have liked Notre Dame's chances against Stanford was because of the Cardinal's difficult November schedule. The gauntlet began with the showdown against Oregon on a Thursday night (Nov. 7), which was deemed the de facto Pac-12 championship game between the conference's two best programs the past four years. One week after that emotion-laden contest, Stanford had to travel to USC, which was aching to end a four-game losing streak to the Cardinal. Then the week after was "The Big Game," with Bay Area archrival Cal. Although the Bears had maybe their worst season ever, there was still much investment that is made into the contest by both teams. Finally, after all that, there is Notre Dame. It's always popular to say that "every team gives Notre Dame its best shot." But when you play that many crucial or rivalry games consecutively, sometimes diminished returns become part of the package. Seldom do you ever hear of a team coming out flat for Notre Dame. Furthermore, this has been a red-letter game at Stanford since last year's 20-13 overtime loss at Notre Dame. However, it also should be noted that the result of the Notre Dame game will have no bearing on whether Stanford advances to the Rose Bowl. The Pac-12 title game versus Arizona State Dec. 7, a revenge match for the Sun Devils, will. Each of Notre Dame's final three regular-season opponents this season — Pitt, Brigham Young and Stanford — appeared ✦ Page 8 to have the Irish beaten last year, only to see the Fighting Irish stage their gamewinning rally in the fourth quarter, and in the cases of Pitt and Stanford, in overtime. Cal was bad enough this year where Stanford did not have to be at its best to still emerge victorious, yet still have enough fuel in the tank to compete at a high level against Notre Dame. And what of the Irish? Since the BCS National Championship Game loss Jan. 7, the program has suffered major attrition via graduation, academics (Everett Golson) and a plethora of injuries on defense, most recently season-ending surgery to its anchor, Louis Nix III at nose guard, and starting center Nick Martin (MCL). Notre Dame has become a shell of the program it was last year at this time, and with BCS aspirations eliminated earlier this month, how hungry it will remain, or how much is left in its emotional reservoir after a letdown season, might be in question. According to Brian Kelly, that shouldn't be the case for either team that is renowned academically — but also wants to prove that academic prestige and football dominance are not necessarily exclusive entities. Stanford has been to three straight BCS games, and Notre Dame advanced to the BCS National Championship Game last season. "Both teams want to be the smartest, toughest football teams in the country," Kelly said. "Stanford right now is ranked eighth in the country. We are ranked 25th. We get a chance to decide it on the football field, and last year we were able to get Stanford. "Now we've got a chance to settle it again on Saturday. It's a great rivalry." Strength Vs. Strength It's a classic matchup for the laws of physics: Notre Dame's immovable object

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