Notre Dame Football: 5 areas of concern heading into Michigan State game

Notre Dame football is looking at a tough Week 4 matchup with Michigan State in East Lansing. What are the biggest areas of concern for the Irish?

Just last season, Notre Dame entered a Week 2 battle with Michigan State coming off a tough loss to Texas on the road. This year, the Fighting Irish are in much better spirits with a 2-1 record and a close loss at the hands of the Georgia Bulldogs.

Things feel different for the Irish after a horrid 4-8 season, but Michigan State had an even worse 3-9 campaign, even after downing Notre Dame on the road. This time, the Fighting Irish will be hitting the road to take on the Spartans who look much more improved as well.

However, there are some areas of concern for Notre Dame in this matchup. Let’s take a look at the five areas that might be the most concerning heading into this tough road matchup under the lights in Week 4.

5. Offensive line protection

While Michigan State’s defensive front has five sacks in the first two games of 2017, it’s evident that the coaching staff has been dialing up more blitzes. Notre Dame has surrendered six sacks through three games which ranks 67th in the nation, but with more blitzes likely coming, that could be an issue for this offensive line.

Obviously Brandon Wimbush likes to run with the ball, but Michigan State will be practicing containing him all week. The Spartans will force him inside and that’s when they will bring blitz packages to blow any potential tuck and run up.

The offensive line isn’t void of talent, don’t get me wrong, but the Spartan defense is better than it was a season ago and it already has about half its sack total from all of 2016 in just two games. That should be a concern for this front and for Brian Kelly.