Notre Dame is two wins away from potentially hosting a first-round playoff game. They will face two of their toughest matchups in November as they square off with 9-0 Army in a neutral site showdown and rival USC on the road. Marcus Freeman aced the first test against the triple option with Navy and will look to replicate that success against another service academy. This primetime Top-25 matchup is a “must-win” for the Fighting Irish looking to make the College Football Playoffs.
Essential Game Info:
- Game Time: Saturday, November 23rd at 7:00 PM ET on NBC
- Location: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York
- Matchup History: Notre Dame is 39-8-4 all-time against Army (Last Meeting 2016: Irish won 44 to 6)
- Fact of the Week: The Black Knights are Notre Dame’s 6th most-played opponent at 51 all-time meetings
Weather
The current game day forecast shows a 15% chance of rain with a high of 50 degrees and a low of 42.
Details
- Conference: AAC
- Head Coach: Jeff Monken
- 2024 Record: 9-0 (7-0)
- 2023 Record: 6-6 (0-1)
Army Storylines:
Notre Dame Army will have major playoff implications. The Black Knights have already secured a spot in the American Athletic Conference Championship, and if they finish the season undefeated, they will undoubtedly make the college football playoffs.
On the other sideline, Notre Dame has had a lackluster schedule this season, but there is always a team that comes out of nowhere on the calendar. Just as this matchup had national championship implications 100 years ago, this “WW2 era rivalry” gets reignited.
How have the Black Knights looked this past month? Jeff Monken’s team is coming off a bye week and will be fresh for their matchup with the Fighting Irish. Prior to their “off week,” Army defeated North Texas 14 to 3 and Air Force 20 to 3. However, as I write this article, Army is barely in the top 25 of the CFP because they have yet to face a quality opponent, much less ranked competition.
Quarterback Bryson Daily leads the Army Offense. This season, Daily is 29 for 51(57%), with 644 passing yards, 7 passing touchdowns, 1 interception, and one sack takeone. He has 174 carries for 1,062 yards (6.1 yards per carry), with 21 rushing scores on the ground.
Kanye Udoh is the leading rusher for the Army. This Fall, Udoh has 128 attempts for 856 yards (6.7 yards per carry) with 9 rushing touchdowns.
Notre Dame Storylines:
Notre Dame Defense continues to carry the team. Al Golden’s defense has wreaked havoc on opponents each week. This group held a respectable Virginia Cavaliers team to 6 of 18 on 3rd downs, 4 yards per rush, 4.8 yards per pass, and forced three turnovers (5 if you include the opening kickoff).
There is no doubt that this group can lead the Irish to the playoffs.
Is the Irish passing attack good enough to win a national title? Last Saturday, Riley Leonard went 22 for 33 with 3 passing touchdowns and one interception. On the ground, he had 8 carries for 32 yards. But, these statistics only tell part of the story.
Notre Dame’s Offense started the contest with four straight “3 and outs”. I like Riley Leonard as a person and quarterback, but for a senior to shake his head as often as he does throughout game #10 tells the entire story. Fans should be worried about this passing attack, if not for these final two games, but for a potential playoff matchup against an elite defense.
Mike Denbrock’s Offense only scored once in the second half, and it was on a 76-yard run by Jeremiyah Love. Disregarding that play, Notre Dame could not muster any more “style points” for the playoff committee. Yes, I know that as long as they win their next two games, style points do not matter, but playing a complete game will matter in December.
Head-to-Head Matchups:
Notre Dame Offense vs. Army Defense: The Fighting Irish Offense averages 199 yards per game passing and 217 yards rushing, while the Army Defense allows 274 yards per contest.
The Black Knight Defense has been alongside the Fighting Irish Defense as one of the best units in the country. As I alluded to earlier, they have yet to face an opponent anywhere close to Notre Dame. Recall how high the Navy was before they went back down to reality after facing the Irish.
Although Riley Leonard and company are not even averaging 200 passing yards per game, they will still be able to put up enough points this Saturday Night. With the inconsistencies in the passing attack, I give this matchup a tie.
Advantage: Tie
Army Offense vs. Notre Dame Defense: The Army Offense averages 85 yards passing and 335 yards rushing per matchup, while the Fighting Irish Defense allows 277 total yards per game.
This Black Knights Offense is more of an “old school” triple option; they will not pass as much as the Naval Academy last month. Notre Dame is strong up front, with Rylie Leonard and Howard Cross leading the way.
Notre Dame’s defense has a long history of facing this triple option and the better athletes. Army will present a tougher challenge than Navy did a few weeks ago, but it will not be enough for an upset.
Advantage: Notre Dame
Special Teams: The Notre Dame kicking game has been inconsistent, to say the least, as Mitch Jeter has not been 100%, and the Irish have been forced to utilize walk-ons Zach Yoakam and Marcello Diomede. For more information on the Irish kicking game, check out Frank Vitovitch’s article.
Army’s kicker, Trey Gronotte, is 5 for 5 this season, with his longest conversion at 35 yards.
I give a slight advantage to the Army.
Advantage: Army
My Prediction:
There are only two games left in the regular season, and Marcus Freeman still has all the preseason goals right in front of him. If the Irish can find a way to beat a “good” Army team and tough USC group, Notre Dame will likely host a playoff game, and anything can happen in the postseason.
As I referenced earlier, this Army team is better than the Naval Academy that the Irish faced recently. I would not be worried about the Notre Dame Defense, but the Irish Offense cannot afford “3 and outs” with the “possession-happy” Army team.
This must be the best game Notre Dame Football has played all season. It sounds obvious, but the turnover battle and penalties will be the difference in this matchup. Last week, turnovers were the difference against Virginia, and offensive penalties forced a “run-heavy” Irish Offense into “3rd and longs”.
I believe this will be a close game until the fourth quarter, and the Irish passing attack can make a few big plays (like we have seen at times) to be the difference in this old-school matchup.
Prediction: Notre Dame 31, Army 17
