Notre Dame football: 3 hot takes from blowout win over Navy

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Aug 26, 2023; Dublin, IRL; The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Navy Midshipmen prepare for the snap in the second half at Aviva Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Notre Dame football has a top-10 run defense

A year ago, Notre Dame had the No. 36 run defense in the country, allowing just over 130 yards per game on the ground. It was a solid showing for the first defense under Marcus Freeman as head coach and it just felt like they could do even better with the pieces that they had on the roster.

Against last year’s No. 4 rushing offense, Notre Dame looked elite. The run defense on Saturday afternoon looked like it could finish the 2023 season ranked in the top 10.

And I’m starting to talk myself into that.

Sure, Navy was led by a first-year head coach with a new offense and new schemes, but the leading rusher from last year, Daba Fofana, returned and yet he only had 32 rushing yards on 16 carries, averaging 2.0 per touch. Not many defenses were able to corral him like that last year.

Navy, which averaged over 230 rushing yards per game last year, finished with a mere 128 yards on 47 carries and no one crossed the goal line. That’s an elite defensive front.

This defense is top-10 worthy.

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