Notre Dame football: 3 reasons the Fighting Irish will beat No. 17 Duke

Notre Dame football was one of the hottest teams coming into last week when they battled No. 6 Ohio State. Things didn’t exactly go as expected, as they lost on the game’s final play. If that wasn’t enough to give you a night of what-ifs, the Irish had ten players on the field on the last two plays. Yes, you read that right: 10 players on the field. They have spent all week shaking off the bitterness of that defeat.

But don’t fret; this will not ruin the Irish season. They are far too talented to let one loss tank the entire season. Like any great team, they will bounce back when facing adversity, looking to keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive.

The Duke Blue Devils (4-0) host the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4-1) on Saturday in a premier top-25 slugfest. Duke is coming off of dominating offensive and defensive efforts as they dismantled the Connecticut Huskies in a decisive victory by the score of 41-7. The Blue Devils are fighting for some respect in this contest with the Irish, as they are undervalued in the national landscape of the NCAA.

The last time a nationally ranked Duke team hosted a Top 25 opponent was 1994.

Here’s why the Irish will come away with a big Top 25 win.

3. The Irish offensive line will win the battle in the trenches

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have been one of the most productive offensive teams in college football this season as they are 10th in the country with 43.2 points, averaging 477.2 total yards per game, and are in the top 35 in the country in both passing and rushing yards per game.

A massive reason for their success is that they have one of the country’s best offensive lines. Offensive tackle Joe Alt leads the way and is widely regarded as the best offensive tackle. He is all but guaranteed to be a first-round pick in the upcoming NFL draft.

This will probably be the best offensive line that the Duke Blue Devils will face up against, along with one of the best offensive teams.

Notre Dame runs the ball incredibly well. A big reason for that is the presence of junior running back Audric Estime, who has 77 rushes for 591 yards (leads the country), 7.7 yards per carry (fourth in the country), and is averaging 118.2 yards per game (ninth in the country).
It is evident to me and all Notre Dame fans that the Irish must let Estime eat.