When the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Michigan Wolverines match up Saturday night, it will be the last time they do so for the foreseeable future. They are two of the most decorated programs in college football history that create instant classics when they meet each other on the gridiron.
For the Wolverines, the most recent history has been in their favor, as they have won four of the last five games played. In those victories, Notre Dame’s greatest downfall has been their inability to stop Michigan’s quarterback, who going all the way back to Tate Forcier in 2009, has been a signal caller with the ability to hurt the Irish with his legs as well as arm.
In fact, in the four games that Michigan has won, Notre Dame has allowed the starting quarterback to run for an average of 129 yards per game, on top of 279 yards through the air. The rock bottom came in 2010 when Denard Robinson ran for 258 yards and two touchdowns and passed for another 244 in the Wolverine’s 28-24 win over the Irish.
Forcier threw the eventual winning touchdown with 11 seconds left in the game in 2009 after throwing for 68 yards on 10-13 passing as well as running for another 40 yards and a touchdown – just in the fourth quarter.
With Gardner off to a good start (13-14 173-yards, 3 TDs), the Irish defense will be the key to end their rivalry with the Wolverines on a good note. But how do they stop a mobile quarterback when they have shown no ability to do so year after year?
It’s not what they do, but what they have become. The natural athleticism in the starting linebacker corps this year is leaps and levels above the group they had last year, even with one of those players carrying over from then.
Sophomore Jaylon Smith leads the linebacker group, as well as the defense – he made five tackles in last year’s matchup, which was only his second college start. Playing the ‘Will’ linebacker position in the 4-3 gives him the ability to run around the field better than he did as an outside linebacker in the 3-4.
Being one of the more athletically gifted players in the country, expect Smith to have a close eye on Gardner and expect him to move all over the field in order to do so.
James Onwualu made the transition from starting wide receiver to starting linebacker in less than a year, and will look to use his special blend of physicality and athleticism to help stop Gardner. If needed, converted safety John Turner will also be called upon.
Dan Fox and Carlo Calabrese were great linebackers for the Irish, eventually getting a chance at the next level – Dan Fox is currently on the New York Giants practice squad – but their real strengths were running downhill against a more traditional running attack.
When it comes to getting into a track meet with a mobile quarterback who spreads the defense out to get one-on-one matchups against them, it didn’t turn out too well.
Now with Onwualu, Smith, and Joe Schmidt, to go along with plenty of depth of athletic linebackers, the Irish have the opportunity to isolate the biggest thorn in their side when it comes to playing Michigan, and end their rivalry (for now) on a good note.
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