Notre Dame vs. Clemson: 5 Keys for the Irish

5 min readDec 15, 2020

Notre Dame and Clemson perhaps already played the biggest game of the year this season. The Irish prevailed in a double-overtime thriller in South Bend 47–40 over the #1 ranked Tigers. Notre Dame had not won a game against the #1 ranked team in the country since 1993 against Florida State. Trevor Lawrence is back for Clemson, and Notre Dame will need to play even better than they did on November 7th to come away with the ACC Championship. What do the Irish need to do on Saturday in order to take down Clemson for the second time this year?

Shut down Travis Etienne…again

Notre Dame’s defense is no stranger to Etienne. Etienne is the best running back in the country, and he is Clemson’s all-time leading rusher. In the College Football Playoff Semifinal in 2018, Etienne crushed Notre Dame. Etienne averaged a whopping 7.8 yards per carry and had an explosive 62-yard touchdown run that destroyed Notre Dame’s hopes of advancing to the championship.

However, when Notre Dame faced Clemson this year, the Irish defense flipped a switch. Etienne was held to 1.6 yards per carry and Etienne only rushed for 28 yards. Etienne also had a costly fumble, which led to a scoop and score by Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. If Notre Dame is able to contain Etienne, the Irish can shift their focus to Clemson’s dominant passing attack led by Trevor Lawerence.

Notre Dame’s offensive line needs to shine

These past few weeks have not been easy for Notre Dame’s offensive line. Injuries have plagued the Irish. Starting center Jarrett Patterson is out for the season after he suffered a foot injury, and Zeke Correll will take his place this weekend, who is also banged up. Right guard Tommy Kraemer had an appendectomy a few weeks back and missed the North Carolina game, but Kraemer is expected to suit up this week.

Even though Notre Dame’s offensive line may not be 100% this weekend, the offensive line still needs to be a huge factor on Saturday. Notre Dame averaged 5.2 yards per carry and had 208 rushing yards against Clemson in their first meeting. If Notre Dame’s offensive line can pave the way for Kyren Williams and Chris Tyree to run the football, the Irish will have success on offensive just like on November 7th.

Red zone trips=touchdowns

The field goals in the red zone did not haunt the Irish in the first meeting against Clemson. However, if Notre Dame wants to win the ACC Championship this Saturday, touchdowns in the red zone will be essential. Shockingly, Notre Dame is 83rd in the nation when it comes to red zone scoring. Notre Dame has entered the red zone 55 times this season, and the Irish have only scored 33 touchdowns (60%).

The Clemson offense will be buzzing and taking advantage of their speed on the outside all game with playmakers Amari Rodgers and Cornell Powell. When Notre Dame has the ball in the red zone, they need to punch the football in end zone if the Irish want to keep up with the Tiger offense.

Containing Clemson’s defensive line

The first time Notre Dame and Clemson played, Clemson missed multiple star players on defense. Xavier Thomas missed the first half of the game because of a suspension, and Clemson was without Tyler Davis and Mike Jones Jr. the last time these two teams met in November. Thomas, Davis, and Jones Jr., are all active for Saturday’s game.

Clemson’s front seven also has 38 total sacks this year, which is second in the nation. Clemson also averages 3.80 sacks per game, which is fifth in the nation. Ian Book was only sacked twice when the Irish faced Clemson earlier this year. If Notre Dame can limit the havoc Clemson’s front seven can cause against opponents, the Irish will be in good shape. As we saw in 2018, if Clemson can dominate the line of scrimmage, Notre Dame will be in trouble.

Who will be the playmaker on offense other than Ian Book?

There is no doubt the Notre Dame offense has dramatically improved since the Louisville game. Multiple players have stepped up in certain games for Notre Dame: Ben Skowronek against Pittsburgh, Kyren Williams against Clemson, and Javon McKinley against Syracuse. Notre Dame will need another offensive playmaker to shine against Clemson if the Irish want to win the ACC Championship.

Chris Tyree has shown moments of brilliance with his speed. Michael Mayer is one of the best tight ends in the country and Mayer is only a freshman. C’Bo Flemister can run defenders over at will. Who will be the offensive playmaker and lead Notre Dame to victory on Saturday?

Clemson is a much better football team than when they first met Notre Dame. On the flip side, it seems Brian Kelly and Notre Dame has turned a corner since November and this is Notre Dame’s best team since 2012. Clemson is playing for a bid to the College Football Playoff on Saturday. Notre Dame needs to be better than ever on Saturday if they want to knock Clemson out of the playoff picture.

Notre Dame 31, Clemson 27