Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com SEPT. 11, 2017 37 BY BRYAN DRISKELL GEORGIA RUNNING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME RUN DEFENSE Notre Dame will not face a better backfield this season. Georgia trots out a group that includes seniors Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, sopho- mores Brian Herrion and Elijah Holy- field, and freshman D'Andre Swift. Chubb ranks second on the Bull- dogs' all-time rushing list (3,424 yards entering 2017), despite miss- ing half of the 2015 season with a devastating leg injury. He trails only former great Herschel Walker (5,259 yards), the 1982 Heisman Trophy winner that led Georgia to its lone consensus national title. Michel ranks 10th in career rush- ing yards (2,411 entering 2017), and a repeat of his 2016 season — when he compiled 840 yards on the ground — will result in him passing former UGA star backs Garrison Hearst, Knowshon Moreno and Rodney Hampton on his way to fourth place on the list. Despite their backfield talent, the Bulldogs ranked just 50th nationally in rushing offense (191.2 yards per game) and 54th in yards per carry (4.7) last season. Georgia struggled to get good play from its line, and it entered the 2017 season needing to replace three starters from that unit. The issues up front created an in- consistent ground attack. Georgia had plenty of highs, such as its 326 rushing yards versus South Caro- lina, 289 yards against North Caro- lina, 263 yards versus Georgia Tech and 248 yards in a bowl victory over TCU. The downs were a 21-yard perfor- mance in a loss to Florida, a 75-yard effort in a loss to Vanderbilt, a 101- yard output against Missouri and a 135-yard showing in a 13-7 win over Auburn. Notre Dame is coming off its worst three-year stretch of run defense in school history, giving up at least 171.2 yards per game in each of the last three seasons. The Irish ranked 72nd in rushing defense (182.4 yards allowed per game) a season ago, but it was much improved following the September firing of former coordina- tor Brian VanGorder. The Irish defense will have to be at its best against a talented Geor- gia backfield. Tackling well — an is- sue for the Irish defense in recent seasons — will be imperative in this matchup. Advantage: Georgia GEORGIA PASSING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME PASS DEFENSE Sophomore quarterback Jacob Ea- son was a five-star recruit in the class of 2016, and Rivals ranked him as the nation's No. 7 overall player. He quickly took over the starting quar- terback duties last fall, and there were moments when his outstanding physical tools were evident. On the year, Eason was not overly productive, passing for just 2,430 yards (186.9 per game) while ranking 94th nationally in completion per- centage (55.1). He was a true fresh- man, so he deserves some leeway for his performance. Now a sophomore, Eason is ex- pected to take his game to another level. If he doesn't show significant improvement, a five-star signal-caller from the 2017 class — freshman Jake Fromm — could push him for play- ing time. Georgia's revamped offensive line included the move of 2016 starting left guard Isaiah Wynn to left tackle, and the insertion into the lineup of freshman right tackle Andrew Thomas. Eason is not an overly mo- bile quarterback, so the line will have to hold up if he's going to make the necessary improvements the offense needs. The Bulldogs have one of the na- tion's best tight end units, led by sophomore Isaac Nauta, who hauled in 29 passes for 361 yards as a true freshman last season. Outside there are more question marks, and Georgia might have to rely on its No. 3-ranked freshman class, according to Rivals, to provide a downfield threat. Notre Dame ranked 21st nationally in passing defense last season (196.4 yards allowed per game), although its 7.5 yards per attempt allowed was 88th. The Irish pass defense should continue to improve thanks to the re- turn of senior cornerback Nick Wat- kins and junior cornerback Shaun Crawford. Nothing will improve Notre Dame's pass defense more than get- ting more from its pass rush. Notre Dame had just 14 sacks last sea- son, which ranked 118th out of 128 schools. New defensive coordinator Mike Elko led a Wake Forest defense that tallied 41 sacks last season, includ- ing five against Heisman Trophy- winning quarterback Lamar Jackson of Louisville. If Notre Dame comes anywhere close to Wake Forest's 2016 production, its defense will be vastly improved. Advantage: Notre Dame NOTRE DAME RUNNING GAME VS. GEORGIA RUN DEFENSE The Bulldogs ranked a respectable 36th in the land in run defense last year, yielding 143.7 yards per game. Their 4.0 yards per rush allowed ranked 40th. GAME PREVIEW: GEORGIA On PaPer Senior running back Nick Chubb is Georgia's second all-time leading rusher. PHOTO COURTESY GEORGIA