No. 2 Notre Dame vs. No. 8 BYU Picks, Predictions & Preview

Notre Dame travels to Provo to face the BYU Cougars on Saturday night, with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.

Both teams are undefeated and have played great defense, but neither has faced an opponent of this caliber yet.

BYU’s toughest opponent so far has been Arizona, which ranks around 37th in ESPN’s Football Power Index. Notre Dame’s toughest test has been North Carolina, ranked around 39th.

BYU beat Arizona 28-17, while Notre Dame defeated North Carolina 37-26. Both games remained relatively close into the fourth quarter before the Cougars and Irish pulled away.

Now we’re going to find out how these teams respond to a much tougher challenge.

Notre Dame vs. BYU Prediction

I’ve got Notre Dame winning this one, 27-10.

Can BYU Score Against Notre Dame’s Defense?

I really wonder if BYU can put up enough points offensively to keep up in this game.

I don’t think Notre Dame is going to go out there and score 30 or 35+ points, but I also don’t think it’s going to take that much.

This Notre Dame defense is really freaking good, and I worry about BYU’s ability to play complementary football without LJ Martin.

I don’t expect Notre Dame to give up 100 rushing yards to Bear Bachmeier in this matchup. Knowing that BYU might have to throw the ball to win is what concerns me.

Notre Dame’s edge defenders are outstanding, and the coverage unit is just as good. That doesn’t even account for the linebackers.

They cover so well and rush the quarterback so effectively that if BYU finds itself facing a bunch of 3rd & 8 situations, it’s going to be a scary outcome for the Cougars.

Notre Dame has forced 14 fumbles this season, not to mention what the Irish have done in terms of interceptions.

I think the combination of pressure and coverage is almost unmatched in college football right now.

BYU’s Path to Victory

The key to this matchup is how much BYU can shorten the game.

How many times can Bachmeier get the Cougars into 3rd & 3 situations and convert? How many nine- or 10-play drives can they put together, even if those possessions only result in three points or a punt?

If we get to the end of the game and both teams have only had seven or eight possessions, that’s how BYU can win.

And when you have a gritty quarterback like Bachmeier, that’s absolutely within the realm of possibility.

He’s a great athlete who loves running the football. He plays quarterback like a linebacker, and he’s built to handle that type of workload.

Without Martin, BYU may need Bachmeier to be its predominant ball carrier again. Last week, he rushed for 109 yards and threw for more than 300, essentially carrying the offense.

But Notre Dame’s defense is a completely different challenge.

The Irish are going to stop the run and force BYU to throw the football. We’ve already talked about how good that secondary is, so becoming one-dimensional isn’t exactly a recipe for success.

BYU has to find a way to stay ahead of the chains, sustain drives and remain within striking distance.

Notre Dame’s defense makes all of that much less likely, but that’s the path for the Cougars.

Notre Dame X-Factor: Jonaz Walton

My X-factor in this game is Jonaz Walton, the true freshman running back for Notre Dame.

He’s averaging 7.8 yards per carry right now, but he’s going up against his toughest test of the season and maybe his toughest until Notre Dame faces Miami.

BYU is allowing only 80 rushing yards per game, which makes this a really important matchup.

If Notre Dame is going to score as many points as it needs without getting into a defensive rock fight, the Irish will have to maintain balance offensively.

And this Notre Dame offensive line is legit.

I think the world has started to recognize that because of the way Walton has played over the last game and a half.

The first couple of games, Notre Dame didn’t really unleash him. Now they’ve figured out that he’s the guy they need to move forward with.

When we broke down the Irish against Purdue, we talked about how the running backs weren’t maximizing their carries. That wasn’t an offensive line issue. They weren’t hitting the correct holes or reading the concepts properly.

Then Walton started getting opportunities in the second half against Purdue, and we saw what this rushing attack was supposed to look like.

He followed that up with 181 yards on just 13 carries against Stanford, including a 97-yard run.

That’s maximizing carries. He’s legit, and he’s my X-factor for this matchup.