Notre Dame Football: Position report cards for the Irish after Week 5 win

Notre Dame football piled it on against Miami of Ohio Saturday, coming away with a 52-17 victory over the RedHawks. Here are position report cards for the entire Irish squad coming off their 35 point win.

Notre Dame continued to roll as they took down an overwhelmed Miami squad this past Saturday. The Irish once again looked like a good team, ensuring early that this game wouldn’t be close. While the offense improved on multiple fronts, the Irish defense had some difficulty containing Miami’s top receiver in James Gardner.

Saturday’s game was just another case of Notre Dame taking care of business on the field, and a Week 6 matchup against North Carolina should provide them with a similar opportunity. The Irish rush attack was once again unstoppable, but what was most interesting was quarterback Brandon Wimbush’s passing game.

We saw plenty of new things in Saturday’s contest, some that looked good along with some that left a little to be desired. Nevertheless, here is a positional breakdown for the Irish in their latest big win.

For a Notre Dame offensive line that plays in front of the likes of Brandon Wimbush and Josh Adams, it’s difficult to have a bad game. This was again the case when the Irish took the field Saturday, as the run game managed 333 total yards. The 333 rushing yards marked the third time in as many games that the Irish had eclipsed 180 yards, a number they hope to once again build off of as they travel to North Carolina.

Notre Dame’s offensive line, held as one of the nation’s best, has maintained its top-level stature and has since recovered from a disastrous game-losing sack in Notre Dame’s Week 2 loss against Georgia. Since then, Wimbush has had plenty of time in the pocket and the Irish backfield has enjoyed some of the widest lanes in the league.

The line let up a couple of sacks against Miami, much in part to Wimbush’s pocket anxiety, but managed a successful day overall. Wimbush’s pocket anxiety should quiet down as he is awarded more time in the pocket, but his will to get outside of the pocket before it breaks down is hard to break.

Saturday’s contest was just another in a long line of strong performances from the Irish offensive front. Look for them to appear even better as Wimbush gains more confidence in the pocket in games against lesser competition. Next week’s matchup against a struggling North Carolina team should give the line even greater opportunity to prove their value to Wimbush in regard to pass protection.