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✦ TOP STORYLINES: NOTRE DAME VS. NAVY "They're an awesome, awesome offense to defend," Diaco said. "There is no mo- ment where it's like, 'Okay, we got this.' Players rotate out, coaches rotate out and it's never the same. "As much time as we could possibly have to prepare, we need it, we want it and we need every minute of it and every second of it. Even then, it won't clearly be enough." Given a choice, it still appears to be bet- ter now than later for the Irish. ADDING SOME SHORTENING In an average football game, an offense is expected to have 12 to 14 possessions per game, or about three per quarter. However, Notre Dame often has been limited to eight to 10 against Navy be- cause of the Midshipmen tactic to keep the clock running with their methodical, run-oriented offense. In the 23-21 loss to Navy in 2009, the Irish amassed 512 yards total offense in eight series — but three turnovers and two missed field goals negated the fact that the Irish didn't have to punt and scored touch- downs on their other three possessions. Notre Dame opened last season with five turnovers apiece in losses to South Florida and at Michigan. A comedy of turnovers versus the Midshipmen, espe- cially with a first-time Irish starting quar- terback, could likely result in a similar outcome. Jumping to an early lead against a tri- ple-option team forces them to play left- handed. In Notre Dame's 2010 and 2009 losses to Navy, the Midshipmen scored touchdowns on their opening possessions, had 21-10 and 14-0 leads at halftime, and never trailed. Conversely, last year Notre Dame scored touchdowns on five of its first six possessions versus Navy to take a 35-7 INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR This year's game in Dublin, Ireland, marks Notre Dame's third appearance on the international stage. The first occurred in Tokyo, Japan, on Nov. 24, 1979, to conclude the 7-4 reg- ular season (and no bowl game) with a 40-15 victory versus first-year head coach Howard Schnellenberger's Miami Hurricanes. The "Mirage Bowl" was an annual event from 1977-93 hosted by Mitsubish Motors in Japan, named after its sub- compact Mirage, to help increase foot- ball interest in Japan. It was played in Olympic Stadium, and 62,574 were in attendance during the downpour that saw Irish running back Vagas Ferguson cap his career with 177 yards rushing and three touchdowns. Then on Nov. 2, 1996, Notre Dame and Navy played in front of 38,651 fans in Dublin's Croke Park. The Americanized "Fighting Irish" Senior inside linebacker Brye French (6-1, 216), who tallied 55 tackles in 2011, leads the way for an undersized Navy defense. halftime advantage. Against Air Force, the Irish were up 14-0 before the Falcons ran their second play of the game. Forcing option teams to throw when they have to rather when they want to usu- ally works out favorably. WEIGHED DOWN Every time Notre Dame plays a triple- option team, the foremost story angle usu- ally entails all the problems the Irish will encounter while facing the dreaded triple option. Less mention is made of the immense size advantage Notre Dame's offense has romped to a 54-27 victory while rushing for 303 yards, led by sophomore Autry Denson' 123 yards, plus three touch- downs from fullback Marc Edwards. Thanks to a bye Saturday the previous PHOTO COURTESY NAVY on the Navy defense — and the major adjustment smaller players in the military academy have to make. Other than junior nose guard Barry Dab- ney (6-1, 297), the Navy defense is quite undersized by Football Bowl Subdivision standards. The starting ends in the 3-4 are 6-2, 255 and 6-2, 247, while the out- side linebackers are 212 and 218 pounds. Imagine what you would think if the Irish had to face the rest of their 2012 schedule with those dimensions. Contrast that with an Irish offensive line that has no projected starter under 300 pounds. ✦ PAGE 7 week, Notre Dame players, staff and ad- ministration spent five days in Ireland prior to the game. This year, Notre Dame will de- part Wednesday (Aug. 29) evening at 6:30 p.m., arrive 7 a.m. local time on the 30th, and have a couple of short workouts before playing two days later. — Lou Somogyi Last year was a prime exhibition of how if the Irish play relatively clean on offense, a smaller military team should not be able to hold it to less than 30 points. Notre Dame scored 59 points against Air Force and 56 versus Navy, the first time since 1996 it had multiple 50-point games in one season. ✦