And finally it can all shut up for a bit, as we are within 12 hours ...
Nice little way to kickoff the Season, with a storied rivalry.
I'm curious to see how much will have changed with ND's offense, since their OC was poached by Saban. We'll see what Gerad Parke has to offer the leprechauns' O
The Domers also have a first time starter at QB for their team, but not a first timer on the field, as Sam Hartman from Wake Forest to the Clovers.
Whereas, Navy will be starting with a new Head Coach; though not new to the staff.
Brian Newberry stepped up from Defensive Coordinator, to HC.
Newberry's comments about the game:
Brian Newberry ~ “When you play Notre Dame in the opener, it forces you to have a little bit of a heightened sense of urgency. We’ve certainly seen that. We’re not going over there hopeful, we’re going over there with some expectations.
They’re good. They’re going to be good. They’ve got a great coaching staff. Great players across the board. A really veteran bunch. On the defensive side, they’ve got some fifth-year starters. A lot of experience coming back. Another year in Al Golden’s system there.
Offensively, they’re talented. Three really good players coming back up front. I think the tight end is a really good player. They’re talented at wideout. Talented with their running back. The addition of Sam Hartman was huge, obviously. He’s a tremendous player. Tremendous leader, winner. Sounds like he’s really gelled well with that unit over there. Saw he was recently voted captain. For a guy transferring, to be voted captain at Notre Dame is a huge honor.
They’re big. They’re long. They can run. They’ve got experience in a lot of places. So it’s going to be a huge challenge for us.
Certainly they are talented. Some big receivers. Some highly recruited receivers. A lot of expectations, I think, on their side. Our secondary may be the most improved group on the defensive side of the football. I’m excited by where we’re at. I do think we match up. Certainly some concerns with their wideouts with some of the speed and size they have. We got to be smart about what we’re asking our guys to do, and we’ll be giving them help. I feel good about the matchup, and I feel as good about our secondary as I have since I got here in 2019.
You always want to adapt to your personnel and what your strengths and weaknesses are. I think the addition of Sam Hartman at quarterback is going to allow them to open things up and be a little more creative with what they’re doing. When we played them last year, they had committed to being a run-first football team. I think we are going to see a more balanced offense, would be my guess. I think they’re going to spread the ball around a little bit. They’ve been preparing for some time for some things that we do. I would imagine we’d see a decent amount of throwing. I think they’re going to get the ball out quickly, identify pressure, things like that. They certainly have the quarterback to be able to get the ball out and throw it around.
Last year was last year. This is a different team. A different year. I certainly feel like our players think they can play with Notre Dame. I don’t have any doubts about that. But trying to think too much about last year despite some success we had in the second half has nothing to do with this year’s team, our team or theirs. There are certainly takeaways that you look at. But I don’t think last year’s performance gives us any confidence in our ability to do a job this year. The confidence we have is based on what we’ve been doing since December and the preparation we’ve had for this game.
We want to get off to a fast start. The important thing is to keep the chains moving and protect the football. We may have to grind it out a little bit. They’re big, long and fast. A play that may be a 10- to 12-yard gain with some may be a three- to four-yard gain against these guys. We have to be patient. We have to peck away. We can’t beat ourselves. And we’re going to have to execute at a really high level to have those 12-, 13-, 14-play drives. And you hope to sprinkle in some explosive chunk plays as well. First game of the year, they’ve had a lot of time to prepare for us, but it’s hard to simulate what we do. It’s hard to simulate schematically. It’s even harder to simulate the speed at which we do it. The speed at which we play and the confidence at which we play is going to be extremely important.
It’s a business trip. This is not a bowl game. There is not a whole lot of down time over there. But this is exciting to get to go to Dublin. We have some guys getting on a plane for the first time. Most of our team has never been over the pond. It’s a great opportunity for them to see a different part of the world. We’re not going to be there long. We’re not going to see a whole lot of it. Our primary focus is on the game.
There is a fine line. You want your players to enjoy it and take it all in, the pageantry of it and all that. But when it’s time to get dialed in and focused we have to drown out the noise and distractions and focus on Notre Dame. It’s an awesome opportunity. It looks like an awesome venue. Excited for our players to have an opportunity to play in a venue like that against an opponent like Notre Dame. Excited about our fans traveling over. Just a great opportunity overall for everybody.
Yeah, they do have a little more time to prepare for us. Are they preparing for the right things will be the question I propose. But yeah, it’s a little bit of an advantage. But like I said earlier, hard to simulate what we do. Hard to simulate the speed of it. I feel good about our plan right now and excited about the matchup.”
Looks like they believe they're ready.
I'm certainly ready.
So, let's go ... get this season started, already!
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