Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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38 SEPT. 25, 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED In its loss to Georgia, though, the Irish were held to 55 yards on 37 at- tempts (1.5 yards per carry) and their longest run from scrimmage was only eight yards. Notre Dame's vet- eran offensive line struggled against the Bulldogs' front seven, and there was little room for the Irish runners. The variance in success makes it difficult to know just how good Notre Dame's ground game will be this season. It will be tested against a Spartans defense that has been im- pressive through two games in 2017. Michigan State shut down Bowling Green in the season opener, yielding only 67 yards on 24 attempts (2.8 yards per rush). A week later, the Spartans held Western Michigan to 116 yards on 36 attempts (3.2 yards per carry). Limiting a pair of Mid-American Conference teams might not seem overly impressive, but Western Mich- igan rushed for 263 yards against USC the week prior to being held in check by the Spartans. Sophomore middle linebacker Joe Bachie has led the way for MSU, post- ing a team-leading 21 tackles through two games. The other two members of the linebacking corps, senior Chris Frey and junior Andrew Dowell, com- bined for 23 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss during Michigan State's 2-0 start. The emergence of redshirt sopho- more Raequan Williams up the mid- dle of the line has been a big part of Michigan State's run defense. Wil- liams had just three tackles and one stop behind the line through two games — but he's been stout and hard to handle, which has helped Bachie get free to make plays. Advantage: Michigan State NOTRE DAME PASSING GAME VS. MICHIGAN STATE PASS DEFENSE Dantonio's pass defense struggled last season, ranking 84th nationally in pass efficiency defense. However, Michigan State dominated its first two 2017 opponents, surrendering only 112.0 yards per game and 3.9 yards per attempt. Neither Bowling Green (No. 71) nor Western Michigan (No. 49) were high-volume pass offenses in 2016, plus the Broncos lost all-time leading passer Zach Terrell and wide receiver Corey Davis, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. GAME PREVIEW: MICHIGAN STATE The emergence of redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Raequan Williams has been impactful for the Spartan defense. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN STATE ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS Offense Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. WR 6 E. St. Brown 6-5 203 Jr. 81 Miles Boykin 6-4 225 Jr. WR 10 Chris Finke 5-9½ 181 Jr. 83 Chase Claypool 6-4½ 228 So. 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. KO 19 Justin Yoon 5-10 192 Jr. 39 Jonathan Doerer 6-3 193 Fr. 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. 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