Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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38 SEPT. 18, 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED NOTRE DAME RUNNING GAME VS. BOSTON COLLEGE RUN DEFENSE If Notre Dame can run the ball even close to as effectively as it did in the season-opening 49-16 victory over Temple, it will dramatically im- prove on the No. 80 ranking in rush- ing offense it had last season. The Fighting Irish racked up an impres- sive 422 yards (9.6 per carry) against a Temple defense that ranked No. 25 in the country last season. Boston College was even bet- ter with its run defense last season, ranking No. 7 nationally at just 108.5 yards allowed per game. The Eagles were also No. 11 in the country in yards allowed per attempt (3.34). The Eagles are a disruptive defense that puts a lot of pressure on oppos- ing ground games. Boston College ranked ninth in the country in tackles for loss last season, racking up 106 stops behind the line in 13 games. It all starts up front with consen- sus preseason first-team All-American defensive end Harold Landry, who posted 22 tackles for loss last season. The end on the other side — junior Zach Allen — had 10 stops for loss as a rotation player last fall, and he tallied nine tackles against Northern Illinois. In its victory over Temple, three dif- ferent Notre Dame players topped the 100-yard mark on the ground. Junior running back Josh Adams led the way with 161 yards, classmate Dexter Wil- liams added a career-high 124 yards on just six carries and junior quarter- back Brandon Wimbush rushed for 106 yards in his first career start. Notre Dame enjoyed a fast start against the Owls, but it must show that it can have success on a consis- tent basis, and until it does the Eagles still hold the advantage on paper. Advantage: Boston College NOTRE DAME PASSING GAME VS. BOSTON COLLEGE PASS DEFENSE Boston College was a stingy pass defense in 2016, ranking 34th in the country by giving up just 205.6 yards per game. The Eagles' main success in the pass game came from its domi- nating pass rush, which registered 47 sacks to rank fourth nationally. Landry led the nation with 16.5 sacks a season ago, and he's expected to be one of the nation's top pass rushers again this season. Losing GAME PREVIEW: BOSTON COLLEGE Offense Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. WR 6 E. St. Brown 6-5 203 Jr. 83 Chase Claypool 6-4½ 228 So. or 81 Miles Boykin 6-4 225 Jr. WR 11 Freddy Canteen 6-0 194 Sr. or 10 Chris Finke 5-9½ 181 Jr. LT 68 Mike McGlinchey 6-8 315 5th-Sr. 74 Liam Eichenberg 6-6 300 So. LG 56 Quenton Nelson 6-5 330 Sr. 75 Joshua Lugg 6-7 300 Fr. C 53 Sam Mustipher 6-2½ 305 Jr. 57 Trevor Ruhland 6-3½ 302 Jr. RG 71 Alex Bars 6-6 312 Sr. 70 Hunter Bivin 6-6 315 5th-Sr. RT 78 Tommy Kraemer 6-5½ 314 So. 72 Robert Hainsey 6-4½ 292 Fr. TE 80 Durham Smythe 6-5½ 257 5th-Sr. 86 Alizé Mack 6-5 251 Jr. WR 15 Cameron Smith 5-10½ 202 5th-Sr. 87 Michael Young 5-10 190 Fr. or 3 C.J. Sanders 5-8 181 Jr. QB 7 Brandon Wimbush 6-2 228 Jr. 12 Ian Book 6-0 208 So. RB 33 Josh Adams 6-2 225 Jr. 34 Dexter Williams 5-11 215 Jr. or 34 Tony Jones Jr. 5-11 225 So. Defense Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. DE 93 Jay Hayes 6-3½ 290 Sr. or 98 Andrew Trumbetti 6-4 263 Sr. DT 55 Jonathan Bonner 6-4 291 Sr. 95 Tagovailoa-Amosa 6-2½ 293 Fr. NT 99 Jerry Tillery 6-7 306 Jr. 41 Kurt Hinish 6-2 298 Fr. Drop 9 Daelin Hayes 6-4 258 So. or 98 Andrew Trumbetti 6-4 263 Sr. Mike 5 Nyles Morgan 6-1 235 Sr. 44 Jamir Jones 6-3 240 So. Buck 48 Greer Martini 6-3½ 236 Sr. or 4 Te'von Coney 6-1 240 Jr. Rover 23 Drue Tranquill 6-2 231 Sr. 22 Asmar Bilal 6-2 230 Jr. CB 27 Julian Love 5-11 193 So. 20 Shaun Crawford 5-9 176 Jr. Stud 24 Nick Coleman 6-0 192 Jr. 17 Isaiah Robertson 6-1½ 195 Fr. Whip 21 Jalen Elliott 6-0½ 205 So. 14 Devin Studstill 6-0 195 So. CB 7 Nick Watkins 6-1 207 Sr. 8 Donte Vaughn 6-3 206 So. NOTRE DAME DEPTH CHART Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PK 19 Justin Yoon 5-10 192 Jr. 39 Jonathan Doerer 6-3 193 Fr. P 85 Tyler Newsome 6-2½ 210 Sr. 42 Jeff Riney 5-10 180 Jr. KO 19 Justin Yoon 5-10 192 Jr. 39 Jonathan Doerer 6-3 193 Fr. H 4 M. VanGorder 6-1 222 Sr. 85 Tyler Newsome 6-2½ 210 Sr. Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. LS 54 John Shannon 6-2 230 So. 82 Nic Weishar 6-5 243 Sr. PR 10 Chris Finke 5-9½ 181 Jr. 3 C.J. Sanders 5-8 181 Jr. KR 3 C.J. Sanders 5-8 181 Jr. 34 Tony Jones Jr. 5-11 225 So. Special Teams Junior end Zach Allen, who had 10 stops behind the line of scrimmage and six sacks a year ago, is part of a Boston College defense that ranked ninth in the nation in tackles for loss (106) in 2016. PHOTO COURTESY BOSTON COLLEGE ATHLETICS