Clemson Football: Oppo Research – Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Clemson Football will host the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in Week 10. One of the most storied programs in college football history will visit Death Valley on November 11th. Time has not been announced. The game will be televised on ABC.

Clemson leads the all-time series with the Irish 4-3. Notre Dame won the last contest in South Bend 35-14 in 2022. The Tigers’ last victory over the Irish was 34-10 in the 2020 ACC Championship Game, the only time that Notre Dame participated in a full ACC schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The perception of the Irish’s 2022 offense is that they struggled to move the ball through the air. . While this isn’t completely unfounded, the offense still average 31.8 points per game last season behind a strong running attack. Injuries at the quarterback position did hinder their passing game

Notre Dame has now added transfer quarterback Sam Hartman, who played previously at Wake Forest. The seemingly ageless Hartman brings a stability in South Bend that the team hasn’t had since the departure of Ian Book. Hartman will have a solid offensive line with three potential NFL draft picks blocking for him and the running attack, which will again be potent.

The unknown element for the Irish offense will be the coordinator. Tommy Rees has departed for Alabama. Head coach Marcus Freeman elected to promote Gerad Parker to the position. Parker had experience as the OC for West Virginia in 2020 and 2021. Those Mountaineer offenses weren’t able to generate many points, finishing 100th and 101st in scoring those seasons respectively. WVU didn’t boast a large collection of offensive talent either, so it is hard to know if the deficiency was Parker, the talent or both. One thing is for sure: Parker didn’t have Hartman in Morgantown.

Clemson Football will get their biggest challenge of the season from Notre Dame

The 2022 Irish defense was stingy with allowing yards…most of the time. Unfortunately they tended to give up some big plays and drives at inopportune times. They also gave up a lot of yards and first downs on the ground in their losses. DC Al Golden has talent to work with, and a second year under his tutelage should improve the side.

One of the biggest blessings for Clemson in 2023 is that they get the two best teams on their schedule at home. I don’t expect that to impact Hartman. His experience playing at Clemson when he was with Wake Forest will be beneficial, and his leadership will bring a level of confidence to the offense around him. Florida State might be ranked higher in most preseason polls, but I expect the Irish to give Clemson their toughest game in Death Valley this season.

Notre Dame 2022 Statistics

All stats per teamrankings.com against FBS competition only

• Points per game: 31.8 (33rd)
• Yards per game: 396.2 (52nd)
• Points allowed per game: 23.0 (32nd)
• Yards allowed per game: 329.5 (18th)