How Pittsburgh defense poses challenge to Notre Dame offense

With 30 seconds left in the third quarter in the Pittsburgh-Louisville game on Oct. 14, Cardinals redshirt junior wide receiver Jamari Thrash got knocked off his route.

Running a slant from the Panthers’ 20-yard line in a 3-point game, Thrash took a hit from redshirt junior linebacker Solomon DeShields. It was just a bump — a legal bump, because it occurred within 5 yards of the line of scrimmage and graduate quarterback Jack Plummer still had the ball — but it was enough. Plummer threw it where Thrash would have been if DeShields didn’t obstruct him, and the ball went right to redshirt senior cornerback M.J. Devonshire instead.

Devonshire caught it and took it the distance. The pick-six created a 10-point lead from which Louisville would not recover. And it serves as a reminder of what can happen Saturday if Notre Dame isn’t careful.

“I think of tough, I think of physical, I think of aggressive,” Irish head coach Marcus Freeman said about Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi’s teams Monday. “Especially his defense, it’s something I’ve studied for years.”

Notre Dame can expect a physical back seven, led by DeShields (team-leading 74.3 Pro Football Focus coverage grade) and Devonshire (Atlantic Coast Conference-leading 8 pass breakups). In describing the physicality of Pittsburgh’s cornerbacks, Irish offensive coordinator Gerad Parker said his wide receivers have to be prepared for a “complete street fight.”

“Our guys are going to have to be gritty in how they pull out of stuff and how we get through stuff, because they’re going to be relentless in how they approach us,” Parker said.

The wideout who might have to deal with Devonshire and company the most is freshman Rico Flores Jr., who does not back down from a physical battle. 

Flores led all wide receivers in snaps for the Irish in 2 of the past 3 games. That’s a lot to put on a freshman, but the Folsom (Calif.) High graduate is up for the challenge.

“I feel like I’ve gained respect from a lot of the corners through my toughness and physicality and the way I play the game,” Flores said. “But yeah, there are a lot of corners that probably do put it in their head. They try to talk. They do talk, but I’m not the type to talk. I let my game play and talk for itself.”

From a schematic standpoint, Notre Dame knows Pitt will likely follow the Louisville game plan because it’s what the Panthers like to do, too: load the box, play man coverage on the outside and dare the Irish to throw the ball.

Freeman and Parker know they have to take more shots downfield, often with play action, to crack Pitt’s defense. But they also want to stay true to Notre Dame’s offensive identity. The Irish are a run-first team, and they want to run the ball down the other team’s throat with pro-style concepts.

Finding that balance could be the key to the game Saturday. Being the tougher team definitely will.

“It will be a game of physicality, right?” Freeman said. “And that’s what I think the challenge for our group is: we have to exceed their physicality.”

USC tried that plan too, but Notre Dame consistently ran the ball with an offensive line that entered the game with something to prove. The Irish have a prideful front five, Parker said, and they were determined to be more physical and execute better than the Trojans.

Junior offensive tackle Joe Alt — who, in all likelihood, is entering his last four games at Notre Dame — confirmed that Tuesday.

“Every game, you’ve got to look at the film and you’ve got to look at where you’re going to get better at,” Alt said. “I think for us, we came to that game with an edge. I think the offensive line, we had an edge on our shoulder, chip on our shoulder, that we have to perform better, and I think we did that.”

With the bye week between games, Notre Dame has had plenty of time for the USC celebration to wear off and the post-Louisville edge to return. The Irish, blockers and route-runners alike, will need it against a Pitt defense that should enter Notre Dame Stadium ready to attack.

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