Some wins mean more than others, and a win over a rival like USC is definitely one of them. There are many reasons to be pleased with the Notre Dame defensive squad, and there are still a few things about them that make me nervous. How did Notre Dame’s defense perform against the Trojans of USC? Let’s take a look!
The Notre Dame defense held USC to 19 first downs, and USC was only able to convert on third down 6-of-16 times (0.375), and 2-of-3 times on fourth down (0.667). The Fighting Irish rush defense was solid on Saturday, with USC only being able to rush for 150 net yards all game.