Begorrah! 6-0 a week ago and the Guinness ban has been lifted by our benevolent leader!
Now it’s game four, and Notre Dame needs to grab a tough road win in their first ever visit to Fayetteville, Arkansas. Here’s how the Fighting Irish Preview staff see it playing out:
Phillip Houk – Senior Editor
A perfect slate by the staff last week, and the Guinness ban is gone. Whew, that was tough on everybody, including me! Arkansas has shown vulnerabilities on defense, and that means CJ Carr and the Love & Price Show continue to roll. Expect a special teams advantage for ND, and if the Irish can show just a little improvement on defense — a healthy Leonard Moore and four full quarters from Adon Shuler would help a lot with that — the Irish will be in control. Sláinte!
Prediction: Notre Dame 38, Arkansas 28
Caleb Conrad – Staff Intern
The Notre Dame offense has proved themselves to be one of the best in the country. CJ Carr continues to throw a beautiful deep ball and put up solid numbers each week. Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price both had really nice performances last week and will look to continue that this week. The big question: will the Notre Dame defense be able to stop the Arkansas offense? This game will be a shootout, but Notre Dame will play well enough to win by two touchdowns.
Prediction: Notre Dame 45, Arkansas 31
Jesse Craig – Webmaster
I smell something in the air. It’s the turn of the seasons, and as fall comes in, we won’t just get chili and pumpkin spice. No. We are gonna get DEFENSE. Coach Free pulled all hands on deck for what he described as an “uncomfortable” meeting with all the coaches on defense to address what can only be described as a defensive identity crisis, and I expect a vigorous reply. With few marquee games left on the slate, the Irish make a statement and mop the field with this SEC foe, quieting some of the angsty fan base. I do believe I’ll have another Guinness.
Prediction: Notre Dame 48, Arkansas 16
Chad Ryan – Photo Journalist / Multimedia Editor
Known: Both offenses score points. Both defenses give up points.
Unknown: Will Marcus Freeman take a more significant role in changing the course of his defense? Will the Razorbacks feel the sting of their one-point loss to Memphis and respond? I think both happen. I’m not sure, however, if the Irish struggles on D can be fixed in one week, but I think they find a way to win a close one.
Prediction: Notre Dame 41, Arkansas 38
Connor Fitzharris – Staff Writer
If the Irish want to come out of Fayetteville with their second win of the year, they’ll need to try and stop Taylen Green. After a heartbreaking defeat last week, the Razorbacks are out for blood, and blood is in the water regarding the Irish defense. Nevertheless, Marcus Freeman lit a fire in a defensive meeting this week, and the Irish defense will be ready to go. Expect the defense, led by Adon Shuler, to learn from their mistakes the first three weeks and create havoc. Of course, another big day for Love and Price. Irish take care of business.
Prediction: Notre Dame 38, Arkansas 20
Adam Schenkel – Producer / Audio Editor
Notre Dame’s offense might be the most explosive in the nation, and while the defense still leaves questions, this matchup is one where it won’t matter much. The Irish should have enough firepower to pull away from Arkansas.
Prediction: Notre Dame 38, Arkansas 24
AJ Houk – Photo Journalist / Director of Brand Strategy
The line for this game opened at -6 and has since been bet down to -4. More often than not, Vegas knows what it’s doing when setting a number, so that kind of movement would have me jumping all over the Irish as a bettor.
On the field, Notre Dame’s offense continues to impress and will force most opponents to put up points just to keep pace. The defense has been a disappointment — no way to sugarcoat it. But we did see some signs of progress last week, even if minimal. They don’t need to be perfect; they just need to make a few key plays. I’m siding with Vegas here.
Prediction: Notre Dame 42, Arkansas 27