Michigan Game Preview

Hail! to the victors valiant

Hail! to the conqu'ring heroes

Hail! Hail! to Michigan

The leaders and best!

Hail! to the victors valiant

Hail! to the conqu'ring heroes

Hail! Hail! to Michigan,

The champions of the West!

As a blogger, I try to be impartial, objective, and to remove bias from my posts. Last week I picked Notre Dame to win but to struggle. Nevada was the perfect school to prepare a well thought out preview for - I had no feeling about the school previously, with minimal prior knowledge to skew my preparation. The same cannot be said for the week 2 opponent of the Irish - the University of Michigan Wolverines.

So lets go ahead and get this out of the way: I hate Michigan. Reading the chorus to their fight song makes me hate them even more. Seriously - has there ever been a more desperate and screaming attempt to say "We are better than you! We are the best! Look at us!"?

Every team has a rival that their fans "hate". In the sports world, "hate" is a much less powerful word than in real life. Of course I respect the University of Michigan (mostly), and definitely their tradition, fan base, stadium, and players. The parallel would not apply if I "hated" another human being. When it comes to "hate" for Notre Dame fans, only two schools really come to mind: Michigan and USC.

While USC has been our rival for a longer period of time, the Michigan rivalry has been more heated. Numerous times during the years, Michigan tried to stop the series of games between the teams, not playing the Irish for 36 years after being beaten by Notre Dame in 1943. "They need us more than we need them", the great Michigan coach Bo Schembechler said. When Knute Rockne and the Irish tried to join the Big 10 conference during the 20s, a blackball effect was orchestrated by Michigan AD Fielding Yost. Known as being anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic - both of which were applicable to Notre Dame - Yost even threatened other Big 10 teams that would play the Irish. Traveling outside the midwest was the answer for Notre Dame - and the end result is a national following, filled with inter-sectional rivalries like USC, Georgia Tech, Nebraska, Navy, Army, etc. Please keep this history in mind as you root for the Irish on Saturday.

Now for a little bit of a game preview via keys to the game for the Irish.

When Michigan has the ball . . .

• Confusing the youngsters - Michigan will be starting a true freshman QB (Tate Forcier), and playing another in the speed Denard Robinson. Forcier is a great balance of throw and run for the spread offense, whereas Denard is more of a pure running threat. The Irish will give up some runs, but we must continue to blitz and throw confusing coverages in the hopes of a big play.
• Limit big plays on the ground - I feel confident about our ability to defend the deep pass against a younger QB and with our experienced/capable secondary. Nevada was able to get too many 9 to 10 yard runs, and we must find a way to slow down this attack from Michigan. Will be THE key to the game.

When the Irish have the ball . . .

• Get Michigan to respect the pass - Typically coaches establish the run, then pass. Today's college game requires an opposite approach, in my opinion. Until we pass Michigan out of their aggressive and capable front 7, the Irish will struggle to run the ball. Running the ball for the Irish to the tune of 150 yards will be essential in winning this game, whether is for big short yardage plays or just running some clock.
• Hit the Tight End - Kyle Rudolph is going to have some opportunities to make plays. Last year, the Irish threw up top on Michigan quite a bit with Golden Tate. I expect Michigan to prepare for the deep pass, and stop the run. That leaves Rudolph in 1 on 1 coverage against a linebacker or safety. We MUST exploit this expected tactic.

All hatred for the Wolverines aside, this will be a great football game. The underdog does incredibly well, so I would rather the Wolverines be slight favorites. The Irish must start winning and dominating some games like this - on the road, against a quality opponent - if we are going to be a BCS caliber program. Time to put up, or shut up. And I think they do.

Vatican Smoke prediction:

Notre Dame 31 Michigan 24

Jimmy Clausen throws for 3 TDs, including his first INT of the season. The Irish get an interception returned for a TD on an errant pass from Forcier for the 4 TD, and a late FG to comfort the masses by Freshman Nick Tausch.

Have a great weekend, and GO IRISH!