Notre Dame football will host the Syracuse Orange this afternoon on Senior Day, as it will honor plenty of graduating Irish athletes.
It’s going to be a day with plenty of emotions, but there’s still a game to be played. The Irish are zeroing in on a College Football Playoff berth, and another win just gets them closer to one of their season goals.
They know what it would mean to get a win today on multiple fronts, and here are three keys for Notre Dame to do exactly that.
CJ Carr takes advantage of the soft Syracuse passing defense
Syracuse enters this game with one of the worst pass defenses in the country, ranking No. 122 out of 134 teams in passing yards allowed with 267-per-game. CJ Carr has to be licking his chops, especially after finding some very impressive chemistry with Malachi Fields last weekend. It’s pick your poison with the Irish offense, and most try to stop the run first, so there will be plenty of open areas for Carr to pick apart the Orange defense.
Notre Dame’s defense makes life miserable for Syracuse quarterback Joe Filardi
This isn’t going to be pretty for the walk-on, making his second-ever start and first on the road. Sure, he led a touchdown drive against Miami, but it was at the end of the game, when the outcome wasn’t really in doubt. Filardi started against North Carolina, and it wasn’t pretty, as he went 7-for-71 for 78-yards with a touchdown but didn’t throw an interception. He’s not much of a runner, and it’s really hard to see the Irish defense struggling to contain him this afternoon.
Notre Dame plays its game
This game is much more about who Notre Dame is, than who Syracuse is. The Irish are massive favorites, and they shouldn’t have any problem winning on Senior Day. Injuries have derailed their season, and they’ve shown that the depth Notre Dame has isn’t matched by many across the country. The Irish just have to be themselves, and they’ll come out with a victory. It should be a fun afternoon in South Bend.
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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Three keys for a Notre Dame Senior Day victory over Syracuse
Reporting by Michael Chen , Fighting Irish Wire / Fighting Irish Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
