Notre Dame Football: 3 bold predictions vs. USC in Week 7

1. TaRiq Bracy doesn’t allow a catch

The Irish received their fair share of bad new on the injury front in their win over Virginia, losing defensive end Daelin Hayes for the year and cornerback Shaun Crawford for roughly a month. As for the latter, Crawford will be replaced by sophomore TaRiq Bracy for the time being. Bracy saw limited action last season, but is the best option across from Troy Pride Jr.

Things get pretty shaky behind Bracy, as Donte Vaughn would be tasked with starting should he go down. We remember what happened with Vaughn last year against Clemson, so matching him up against any of USC’s three explosive wide receivers wouldn’t be particularly beneficial for the Irish.

For now, Bracy should do. Head coach Brian Kelly would occasionally play his corners on a matchup basis last season, which explains why Bracy saw so much time when the Irish took on the Trojans in 2018. Bracy wasn’t particularly sharp in that game, but another year under his belt could mean significant improvement for the second go-around.

Not allowing a catch would be a difficult task for the nation’s elite, never mind someone in Bracy’s position. Additionally, drawing any of these three Trojan receivers is a tall order, but there’s a chance that Bracy really shows out with a starting job potentially on the line. If that’s the case, Bracy has a shot at putting up the game of his life.