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Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman and run game coordinator Al Washington talk the Irish spring game
The Blue Team won the Blue and Gold game 28-21 on Saturday, ending the spring season for Notre Dame. Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman and run game coordinator Al Washington spoke on what they liked, and didn't like, from the game.
Notre Dame football starts its 2024 season in style this Saturday.
The Fighting Irish visit SEC country, heading to College Station, Texas, to take on No. 20 Texas A&M at Kyle Field.
Here's how to catch the top-20 showdown, and what to know about the match up.
Notre Dame at Texas A&M game information
Date: Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024
When: 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Kyle Field - College Station, Texas
TV: ABC
TV Announcers: Chris Fowler, play-by-play, Kirk Herbstreit, color analyst, Holly Rowe sideline reporter
Radio: Notre Dame Radio Network (broadcast on WBBM)
Radio Announcers: Tony Simeone, play-by-play, Ryan Harris, color analyst
This is the first season for Tony Simeone in the play-by-play role at Notre Dame. Harris, a former Irish player, is in his seventh season.
Saturday's game also gets the ABC/ESPN A-team of Fowler, Herbstreit and Rowe, who have been College Football Gameday mainstays for years.
3 Notre Dame players to watch
1. Riley Leonard, QB
Notre Dame's new quarterback comes in with experience and a NIL bag. The former should serve him well this year, especially on the road against Texas A&M. What remains to be seen is how he moves coming off his offseason ankle surgery.
2. Xavier Watts, S
Watts is one of Notre Dame's preseason All-Americans. He returns to South Bend with a chance to be one of the best players in college football. He can kickstart that campaign with a strong performance on Saturday when the lights have shined brightest.
3. Howard Cross III, DL
Like Watts, Cross is another one of Notre Dame's All-Americans. He returned to South Bend and has a massive chance to disrupt opposing offenses with his versatility. Distrupting Texas A&M's offense, and giving the Irish offense a chance to catch its footing, will be crucial.
Notre Dame's X-factor vs. Texas A&M
It's never optimal when you have to start an 18-year old left tackle at Kyle Field, one of the most hostile environments in college football, but that's what Notre Dame has to do.
When Charles Jagusah was lost for the season, that sent the Irish looking for a left tackle to replace the NFL Draft hopeful. After preseason camps, Marcus Freeman said Anthonie Knapp will start at left tackle.
Knapp, a true freshman, come to ND as a three-star left tackle prospect from Roswell, Georgia. He chose Notre Dame over Duke and Cincinnati. He'll now start a top-20 game against an SEC opponent for a team with massive aspirations.
Behind him is veteran Tosh Baker, but losing Jagusah put the Irish in a difficult spot. They needed to configure their offensive line.
Knapp has to display talent and composure. Not only will he go up in one of the loudest environments in college football, he'll be tasked with guarding Nic Scourton who transferred to A&M after leading the Big Ten in sacks at Purdue last season.
Notre Dame can win if…
The offense settles in.
Starting a true freshman left tackle is not ideal. It's certainly not what Notre Dame had in mind, especially as Jagusah was in line to be the next big Irish offensive line product.
But, the pieces are in place for Notre Dame to be successful right away. The offense has experience in its skill positions and at quarterback. The defense returns All-Americans, and has the talent to hold the Aggies in check.
If the offense takes care of the football and moves the ball consistently, the Irish should be in a good position on Saturday against A&M's Mike Elko, the former ND defensive coordinator who came to College Station from Duke.
It will be loud on Saturday, but losing this game does not tank Notre Dame's College Football Playoff chances with the CFP moving to 12 teams.