Notre Dame Football: 3 takeaways from victory over North Carolina
By Jacob Wilson
1. This Irish defense is for real
Heading into Notre Dame’s matchup with North Carolina, the Tar Heels’ defense was expected to be their biggest problem, not their offense. While the defense was certainly an issue, UNC’s Chazz Surratt led offense couldn’t get much of anything going against the Irish. North Carolina finished with only 265 total yards, a good testament to Notre Dame’s solid defensive outing.
The Irish once again maintained the pace in terms of turnovers, capitalizing on a fumble by Surratt along with a great tip and catch by defensive end Julian Okwara. Captain Drue Tranquill also forced and recovered a fumble late in garbage time. The Irish brought in defensive coordinator Mike Elko due to his proficiency in capitalizing on turnovers, and he’s done nothing but produce thus far.
Notre Dame’s front seven allowed only 86 rushing yards, a total greatly lower than their 143 rushing yards per game average. The Irish secondary also performed better than usual, letting up only 179 passing yards compared to their 242 yard average. All in all, Notre Dame turned in a very impressive effort in today’s contest, much to the relief of the inexperienced Book.
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The Irish will get a well-deserved bye before a big test against the USC Trojans. With Wimbush likely to be back in the lineup in their next game, expect this defense to carry much momentum into their most significant game of the season.