The 10th-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-2) take on the Navy Midshipmen (7-1) tonight under the lights inside of Notre Dame Stadium. The Irish are riding a six-game win streak and are looking to add a seventh to the total. The Midshipmen are looking to bounce back after their first loss of the season last weekend to North Texas 31-17. Notre Dame's last outing against Boston College resulted in a 15-point win, but they looked extremely sloppy throughout the night.
This is one of the most historic rivalries in college football and is known as the longest continuous intersectional rivalry in college football. Both of these programs have the utmost respect for one another; it's not very often you see two teams sing each other's Alma Maters after the game, but it's one of the best spectacles in collegiate sports.
Where: Notre Dame, Ind. - Notre Dame Stadium
When: 7:30 PM EST
Television: NBC/Peacock - Noah Eagle (play-by-play); Todd Blackledge (analyst); Kathryn Tappen (sideline)
Radio: Notre Dame Radio Network: Tony Simeone (play-by-play); Ryan Harris (analyst); SiriusXM 129
Spread: Notre Dame -27.5; O/U 55.5 (FanDuel)
What To Know: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Notre Dame is looking to clean up some execution and discipline issues after their sloppy 15-point win last weekend in Chestnut Hill. That being said, they're still the victors of six straight games, all of them by double digits. The Irish offense is led by quarterback CJ Carr, Heisman hopeful running back Jeremiyah Love and a host of talented pass catchers. The Irish offense is under the direction of offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock and his impact is being felt in year two.
Defensively, the Irish have came a long way from their first three performances. They've held every opponent scoreless in the fourth quarter since their game against Purdue and haven't allowed a team to rush for over 100 yards since their outing against Arkansas. They currently rank No. 1 in the country in interceptions and that's with their scheme still not being as consistent as we'd like it to be. They'll be tested this week with the unique task of stopping Navy's triple option.
What To Know: Navy Midshipmen
Offensively, Navy is everything we thought it would be. Their three biggest playmakers have been exceptional this season in quarterback Blake Horvath, full back Alex Tecza and Eli Heidenreich the Swiss army knife of the offense. Navy currently ranks first in the country in every meaningful rushing statistic and also ranks No. 1 in the country in passing yards per completion. Offensive coordinator Drew Cronic has modernized the way Navy runs the triple option and it's paid major dividends to head coach Brian Newberry and this team.
The Navy defense has been the more disappointing side of the ball for the Midshipmen. They rank No. 64 in the country in points allowed, No. 82 in the country in yards allowed, No. 113 in the country in passing yards allowed and No. 87 in the country in yards per play allowed. That being said, they still have good individual talent at all three levels on this defense, but this will be their toughest challenge of the season by far when they face this extremely talented Notre Dame offense tonight.
This is the 98th meeting between the Fighting Irish and the Midshipmen. This rivalry has been coined the longest continuous intersectional rivalry in all of college football. Their history and the meaning of this matchup dates back to World War II. Despite Notre Dame's 83-13-1 overall record in this rivalry, the level of respect for both programs remains undefeated.
-------
Be sure to stay locked into Irish Breakdown all the time!