Saturday will be the last game at Notre Dame for a group of seniors who have only lost 6 games since walking on campus back in 2017…and half of those losses came when they were freshmen. Covid-19 will prevent giving a proper send-off, but the goal doesn’t change: beat Syracuse and stay perfect at Notre Dame Stadium. There is very little, if anything, that worries me about Saturday’s game. As long as Notre Dame leaves the locker room and takes the field, they should beat Syracuse. I know that sounds extremely disrespectful to Syracuse but it’s 100% true. Since starting this blog, I have always found players on the opposing team that I think will play well, or how the other team could pull off the upset. But this week, I found none of that with Syracuse.

Tomorrow we 𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 for the seniors. #GoIrish x #BeatOrange pic.twitter.com/h3qQ8xyPaF

— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) December 5, 2020

Notre Dame has gotten better every game this year, and this game can’t be any different with a week off before playing Clemson again. Just because they are light years better than Syracuse doesn’t mean they can throw it in cruise control. The defense had a stellar game last week vs North Carolina, and I expect nothing less this week. Syracuse will have a long afternoon vs a Top 10 Notre Dame defense; on offense, the Orange average less than 100 yards rushing per game, and only 172 yards in the passing game. Ian Book and the Irish offense should be able to tee off on Syracuse’s lackluster defense. The Orange defense is allowing 453 yards of total offense to opponets. A game like this which could be over by half time means back ups and younger guys get meaningful reps. With the giant games ahead, getting guys real playing time could pay off big time.

I am still going to pick 4 Irish that I expect to have big games Saturday, but with it being Senior Day I am going to stick to 4 seniors. So here are the 4 Irish seniors (not named Ian Book), who I expect to have big games Saturday:

• Javon McKinley – The fact that McKinley leads the team in receiving yards but has zero touchdowns is wild. The Orange defense gives up about 251 passing yards per game. With that said, I fully expect the senior wide out to get his first touchdown catch of the season. He has one big catch after another all year, and it’s time he finds the end zone.

• Robert Hainsey – There were other seniors I was looking at picking on offense but none stuck out more than Hainsey. He has been a staple on the O-line for years. I am expecting a lot of rushing yards tomorrow and Hainsey will be a big reason. The senior right tackle will join many other former Irish offensive linemen to play on Sundays.

• Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa – The defensive tackle has been making plays all year and been a big time player on a top 10 Irish defense. I am expecting Tagovailoa-Amosa to wreak havoc vs an Orange offense that is already awful at running the ball. Tagovailoa-Amosa adds his name to the list of great Notre Dame football players from the state of Hawaii.

• Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah – This name should come as no surprise. Owusu-Koramoah will leave Notre Dame as one of the greatest players to play there. His play vs Clemson will also go down as one of the best plays ever. He should have another game where he flies around the field making play after play. He is two tackles back from Kyle Hamilton for most on the team, so if Owusu-Koramoah has another normal game he will catch Hamilton.

It has been anything but a normal college football season, thanks to Covid. I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this year, but with that said the Irish surpassed any expectations I did have. The season started slow but this Notre Dame team got better each week. Yes, there is another giant game on December 19th – but the Irish need to focus on Syracuse. There is still work to be done, and things to improve. If this season has showed us anything, it’s that Brian Kelly gets his guys for every game, from Clemson to USF. Notre Dame no longer plays down to its opponents, and I expect that trend to continue Saturday. The spread is currently 34, would I be shocked if the Irish covered? Absolutely not. Thank you, seniors.