Over the last couple of weeks, Notre Dame's defense has really turned somethings around. The Irish have held Arkansas, Boise State and NC State scoreless in the second half and have held them significantly under their season averages for total yards and points per game. This weekend, they face, possibly, their toughest task to date when the USC Trojan's high-powered offense comes to South Bend. USC ranks in the top five in the country in points per game, yards per game and yards per play. We've broken down the three biggest storylines, two key battles and one player to watch Saturday night in this historic rivalry game.
Three Biggest Storylines
1. Toughest Test For The Secondary In 2025 - Notre Dame's secondary is gearing up to face what will likely be their toughest test in the regular season. USC's passing offense ranks amongst one of the best in the country and is led by quarterback Jayden Maiava. He'll be throwing to receivers Makai Lemon and Ja'Kobi Lane who the Irish have a lot of familiarity with. Cornerbacks Christian Gray and Leonard Moore along with safety Adon Shuler squared off against this unit last season and USC won the majority of the day. Notre Dame's secondary, however, came away with the two biggest plays of the day sealing the game with back to back pick-sixes. Expect more fireworks when these two units matchup Saturday night.
2. Will The Defense Be Who We Think They Can Be? - The defensive turnaround has been promising and as strong as their performance was against Arkansas, Boise State and NC State, this matchup against USC will be very telling and will let us know if this defense is truly humming on all cylinders or if they'll have to get back to the drawing boards during the bye week. Fact of the matter is, Arkansas, Boise State and NC State don't have a Lemon or Lane in the receiving corps, nor do they have a Lincoln Riley type of offensive mind orchestrating the offense. The defense's performance Saturday night will serve as a true benchmark moving forward for this unit.
3. Pass Rush Will Have To Be Impactful - Notre Dame's defense has a combined 58 pressures and eight sacks in their last two games. USC's offensive line has kept Maiava's jersey relatively clean this season which has allowed him to throw for over 1,800 yards and 13 touchdowns. The Notre Dame pass rush will be incremental to their success Saturday night to make Maiava uncomfortable and force some bad throws. Last season, Maiava spent most of the afternoon throwing from a clean pocket, but when the Irish finally got pressure, he threw back to back interceptions returned for touchdowns. Generating pressure on USC's quarterback is a necessity this weekend.
Two Key Battles
1. Chris Ash vs Lincoln Riley - As much as people won't want to hear this, former Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden is 1-2 in successful performances against Riley. In 2022, the USC offense went wild against a beaten up Notre Dame defense. In 2023, the Irish dominated the Trojan offense even with returning Heisman winner Caleb Williams at quarterback. Last season, USC put up 35 points and 557 total yards against Golden's defense. Saturday night, Chris Ash will get his first crack at Riley and this high-powered USC offense. Riley is one of the best offensive minds in the game right now, and if Ash can limit this offense, it would speak volumes to his turnaround in South Bend.
2. Nickel Corner vs Makai Lemon - The nickel position has been a relative week spot in Notre Dame's defense this season. In the first two games, Malachi Toney for Miami and Mario Craver for Texas A&M combined for almost 300 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Respect to both of those two guys, but neither of them is Makai Lemon. Lemon currently leads USC in receptions, yards and touchdowns and is on pace for a 1,200 yard, 12-touchdown regular season. Alabama transfer DeVonta Smith has been banged up this season and is questionable for this matchup. The Karson Hobbs experiment at nickel has seemingly come to an end which means they Irish will be relying on true freshman Dallas Golden to defend one of the best receivers in the country. Success in this matchup will largely dictate a victor for either team Saturday night.
One Player To Watch: Cornerback Christian Gray
Last season, Gray had one of the worst performances of his career against USC in the Coliseum. He was targeted 12 times, gave up eight receptions for 130 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Gray also finished the game with a 98-yard interception returned for a touchdown and got the last laugh. Tomorrow night, he has the opportunity to exercise some demons against this excellent USC receiving corps and right some wrongs from last season.
Gray had a rough start to the season but has turned things around for the better and is playing the like corner we remember him from early in 2024. Gray will be matched up against both Lemon and Lane at times throughout this matchup and will have to trust his technique, play aggressive and sound football to make sure he doesn't allow any explosive plays over top. These are the moments you live for when your nickname is "Franchise" and Notre Dame's junior corner will have to live up to that nickname Saturday under the lights against USC.
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