Notre Dame coaches should follow Texas’ defensive game plan to stop Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith
Notre Dame defensive coaches will take a hard look at how Texas was able to stop Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith. It just might provide the clues for the Fighting Irish to win the national championship. The Longhorns heard plenty of talk going into the Cotton Bowl about the sensational Smith. The 6-foot-3 freshman appears […]
Notre Dame defensive coaches will take a hard look at how Texas was able to stop Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith. It just might provide the clues for the Fighting Irish to win the national championship.
The Longhorns heard plenty of talk going into the Cotton Bowl about the sensational Smith. The 6-foot-3 freshman appears to be NFL ready right now. And Smith deserves all the praise he receives as a 1,200-yard receiver.
But the Horns went out and held him to one catch for three yards in the College Football Playoff semifinals. Smith ended up being targeted only three times and was a total non-factor in the Cotton Bowl. Quarterback Will Howard went elsewhere throughout the day and targeted Cornell Tate a team-high nine times.
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“I think they rolled some things to Jeremiah to try to take him away, some bracket coverages and a guy inside, guy outside, guy over the top,” Ohio State play-caller Chip Kelly told reporters. “And Will did a great job of diagnosing what they were doing. I think Cornell had a huge game for us.
“So the beauty of what we have is we have more than one weapon,” the former Oregon and UCLA head coach added. “So I think the quarterback has to make really good decisions on what they're trying to take away and then adjust accordingly. And I think Will did a good job of that.”
To be clear, it took a full team effort on Texas’ part. Cornerbacks Jahdae Barron and Malik Muhammad took turns guarding Smith, and safeties Michael Taaffe and Andrew Mukuba provided extra help.
“They really didn't play us any differently than some of the other teams that we played,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said. “But we weren't able to sustain a few of those drives and connect on a couple other plays.
“We know typically how teams are going to take a look at us and play us. They’re going to play some man, and they'll certainly know where Jeremiah is, and then they'll play some one high and they'll play some two high and they'll mix it up.
“But ultimately at the end of the day we've got to execute at a high level and continue to move the ball down the field, so we'll do the same thing this week,” Day continued. “We'll put our game plan together. But he's obviously a huge part of our offense, as you know.”
Ohio State has the nation’s best pass defense, having allowed 161.1 yards per game. Notre Dame is second. The Irish allow 165.3 passing yards per game. Anyone who completes a pass in the CFP national title game should be applauded.
The Buckeyes are going to look hard for Smith, though. That puts the onus on the Irish to lock him up, just like the Horns did.
“Yeah, as you watch film, not many teams are successful just sitting in man coverage versus these receivers,” Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said. “We’ll obviously have to mix some things up and come up with a great plan to try to limit what they do in the passing game.
“You’re not going to be able to stop their receivers totally. They're a talented bunch. So we'll come up with a plan and be able to adapt and adjust based off what's going on in the game.”
