Notre Dame Football: 3 reasons the Irish will shock No. 4 Clemson

1. The Irish will run successfully on Tigers’ defense

Notre Dame has a very talented trio of running backs on their roster. The rushing attack has shown numerous times they are the strength of the offense in 2022.

Look no further than last week against Syracuse. Audric Estime led the way rushing for 123 yards and two touchdowns. Logan Diggs had 85 yards and a touchdown as well. Chris Tyree had 23 yards but has that breakaway speed that will be needed against an athletic Clemson defense.

Running the ball will not be easy on Saturday as Clemson features multiple players along the defensive line that will be hearing their names called early in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Clemson comes into this game giving up an average of 87.9 yards on the ground which ranks seventh-best in the country according to the NCAA website. At the same time, Syracuse was able to run for 124 yards against Clemson two weeks ago. While Notre Dame was able to hold Syracuse to 61 rushing yards.

The Irish come into Saturday night as the 50th-best team in the country against the run. It’s a small sample size compared to only one mutual opponent but shows that teams have found success against Clemson on the ground running the ball.

The three-headed trio of Estime, Diggs, and Tyree will do enough to move the ball, help set up the pass, and keep the Clemson defense on the field to wear them down in the fourth quarter to secure the win.

Notre Dame comes into this game as a 3.5-4-point underdog. The way Notre Dame plays against good teams this year I feel this is a game that they will play well in and will win outright. Freeman gets his first top-five win under his belt knocking off Clemson on Saturday night in South Bend under the lights.

Prediction: Notre Dame 24, Clemson 21