Typically, Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman tells his players on defense that he wants them to play loose and free and not get too caught up in technical details.
Freeman senses an exception to the rule, however, as No. 12 Notre Dame (6-1) prepares to kick off against No. 24 Navy (6-0) on Saturday afternoon at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
Technical details are vital to stopping Navy’s triple-option offense, Freeman said, so playing “fit ball” could take priority over playing “football” for once.
The undefeated Midshipmen are averaging 44.8 points per game, good for fourth in the nation. The only teams with higher-powered offenses this season are Indiana (48.7 ppg), Miami (48.3) and Boise State (46.8).
“I don’t want to get caught up by playing just ‘fit ball’ defensively, but you’ve got to be disciplined,” Freeman said. “It’s really hard to simulate in practice the speed at which they run their offense. So it can take a little time, especially for guys who have not faced that type of offense, to realize the speed at which they run their offense.
“And then, all of a sudden when you’re trying to adjust to the speed, you can lose your eyes — keeping your eyes on your assignment. We have to be disciplined. We have to practice until we can’t get it wrong, but then we’ve got to understand that it’s going to take a little time to catch up to game speed on Saturday.”
Navy coach Brian Newberry said his team could perform even better. The Midshipmen are looking for their first 7-0 start since 1978.
“I don’t think we’ve peaked yet,” Newberry said. “I don’t think we’ve really come close to our ceiling.”
The Fighting Irish are no slouches on offense, either, averaging 34.6 points per game.
Riley Leonard leads Notre Dame with 1,182 passing yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions to go with 456 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground. Jeremiyah Love is the No. 1 running back with 462 rushing yards and seven scores.
By comparison, Navy quarterback Blake Horvath has passed for 888 yards and 10 touchdowns, with one interception, and has rushed for 621 yards and 10 scores. Alex Tecza ranks second in rushing with 306 yards and seven touchdowns.
Notre Dame linebacker Jack Kiser provides a steadying influence over the rest of the defense, Freeman said. Kiser, a senior, ranks second on the team with 34 tackles.
“He’s a problem solver when he’s out there,” Freeman said. “The ability for him to communicate and get other people lined up … is tremendous.
“My challenge to Jack, I keep reminding him he’s gone in a couple games, this is it. Now you’ve got to challenge that room to step up. You can’t always make all the calls and the checks. Your job is to leave that room better than how you found it.”
Navy’s defense is led by Justin Reed (team-high four sacks) and Dashaun Peele, who leads the group with three interceptions. Linebacker Colin Ramos has a team-best 68 tackles.
This will be the 97th all-time meeting between the programs. Notre Dame leads the series 82-13-1 and has won the past six matchups.
