It’s not uncommon to have a common opponent or two with a semifinal foe, but of course, there’s nothing common about this college football season.
The conference-only schedules and, well, the fact Notre Dame is in a conference at all is enough proof of that. In the absence of those apples-to-apples comparisons, film study becomes even more crucial in the buildup to Alabama-Notre Dame in the Rose Bowl (played in Texas).
Several Irish players, coach Brian Kelly and offensive coordinator Tommy Rees gave their impressions of Alabama during Monday morning video conference interviews leading up to the 3 p.m. CT Friday kickoff in Arlington.
There was at least one comparison made with a former common opponent who shared a style with the top-ranked Crimson Tide. The fact Notre Dame played Georgia in 2017 and 2019 wasn’t lost on Rees.
“There are some similarities,” the Notre Dame OC said. “It’s not the same defense. And if you go back and study obviously what Alabama was in the past, you see a lot more similarities to what Georgia was in ’17 to ’19. There’s certainly some carry-over. I’m not saying there isn’t. But it’s funny you mentioned that, because going into the game, that’s kind of what I anticipated was, hey, it’s going to look a lot like Georgia.”
That said, he noted it wouldn’t be a mirror image by any means. Also, Notre Dame lost both games with the Bulldogs, 20-19 in 2017 and 23-17 last fall. Quarterback Ian Book said he also sees similarities in how Alabama’s defense plays compared to Georgia’s.
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Clemson is another peer that both teams have seen in recent years. Alabama last faced the Tigers in the national title game to close the 2018 season -- an embarrassing 44-16 loss. The Irish faced Clemson twice this year with a 47-40 overtime win at home followed by a 34-10 dud of a loss in the ACC title game.
“Alabama keeps it a little more I don’t want to say simple, but Clemson has some pretty exotic schemes,” Notre Dame receiver Ben Skowronek said. “So you never know what you’re going to get on each third down. But obviously they both have great players on defense. They have a lot of future pros on defense. So the talent level is pretty similar between a Clemson team and an Alabama team.”
Giving the basic scouting report, Kelly said they follow the Nick Saban model by building a big, physical defensive front with athletic linebackers. Patrick Surtain is “probably the best corner we’ve seen,” Kelly said.
Offensively, he called Alabama “electric” and noted it “scores bushels and bushels of points.” The Irish play somewhat differently when it has the ball.
“So I think we’re not running the Princeton four-corner offense, but we are trying to run our offense, which has been one that has traditionally been a ball-control offense,” Kelly said. “So that still has to be in our mind in terms of we can’t come into this game and change who we are, but the nice part about it is that’s kind of been our DNA this year.”
Kelly also mentioned the fact that Georgia and Ole Miss were able to run the ball on Alabama and they were two of the three teams who stuck with the Tide.
“We want to run the ball,” Kelly said. “We need to run the football. Based upon who we are and how we have operated this year, we will have to run the ball more effectively than we did the last time we played.”
The Irish ran 30 times for 44 net yards against Clemson in the rematch loss in Charlotte. That was the lowest rushing total by more than 100 yards for a ground game that ranks 20th in FBS.
Given Alabama’s averaging 49.7 points a game, does that put a burden on the Notre Dame rushing attack?
“I don’t think it’s much pressure,” running back Kyren Williams said. “We just play the game and stay true to who we are as an offense that we’ll be able to complement our defense and give them more breathing room for -- more breathing room to make plays.
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The Alabama defensive speed impressed Skowronek, the receiver. Surtain’s film stood out.
“I think it starts with his feet,” Skowronek said. “He has really good feet, able to mirror routes. But when you combine that with his length and over athleticism, that’s going to make him a top cornerback prospect for the upcoming NFL draft. He has all the tangibles. I’m excited to go out there on Friday and compete against him.”
Rees, a backup quarterback when Notre Dame lost to Alabama in 2012, said he sees a well-coached Alabama defense.
“They’re structurally very sound,” Rees said. “Their players play with an extremely high IQ and are able to adjust and make checks when you give them different looks, which is a sign of a well-coached team. Tackle very well, as well as anyone we’ve played, which shows how tuned they are in the fundamentals. Personnel-wise, for me, it starts with (Surtain) probably as good a corner as I’ve seen in college football any year, to be honest with you. We played them in ’12, and they had a real good corner, Dee Milliner.”
That Notre Dame team lost 42-14 in the BCS title game after entering as the top-ranked team. The Irish is a three-score underdog this time as the No. 4 seed in the playoffs with low outside expectations.
Williams, the running back, said that’s motivating.
“Not everybody in the world believes in us. And it’s okay because we don’t want anybody to believe in us besides us,” he said. “As long as we’ve got us as a team and the coaching staff, as, like, everybody else in the building believes in us we know what we can do. We’ll go out there on Friday and do what we do best and play to the Notre Dame football standards.
“Being the underdog is nothing new to us. We’re just going to keep proving to the world who we are.”
Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.
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