Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/605097
GAME PREVIEW: STANFORD He knows the defense inside and out, and he's a big player but he can still move, and is generally a sure tackler. He's a physical player with all the attri- butes, but at this stage of his career he's also very comfortable in the defense and with the mental game." The Cardinal secondary could also be hampered with injuries when they line up against the Irish. Senior cornerback Ronnie Harris — whose 10 passes bro- ken up in 10 games ranked second in the Pac-12 — injured his ankle in the loss to Oregon, although Shaw said he hopes to have him back for the game against the Irish after he sits out the contest versus California Nov. 21. "He is going to work like crazy to come back next week versus Notre Dame," Shaw said. All things considered, Drukarev pre- dicts a very close game. The Cardinal offense should be able to move the ball on the Irish defense, but Notre Dame's offense should also put up some points, especially if Harris cannot play. "Notre Dame's very good this year, but Stanford has a lot going for it as well," Drukarev said. "I certainly don't foresee a blowout; I think that'd be very surprising at Stanford. "But I do think it'll be higher scoring than in years past, even though Stan- ford's held Notre Dame largely in check the last few years. The key will be can Notre Dame get some big plays in the passing game; can DeShone Kizer and Will Fuller take advantage of Stanford's secondary? On the other side, obviously Notre Dame has some very good play- ers in their front seven, but maybe Stan- ford can get it going in the ground game with some four- to five-yard gains and then initiate some play action. "It should be a high-intensity game in a great environment." ✦