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The N.C. State Wolfpack heads to South Bend on Saturday riding a five-game win streak, a 6-1 record, and the #14 ranking in the AP Poll. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are coming off of a 49-14 beatdown of rival USC. That’s some turnaround. Here are the depth charts for Saturday.
Notre Dame Offensive Depth Chart VS NC State
| WR | TE | LT | LG | C | RG | RT | WR | WR | RB | QB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | TE | LT | LG | C | RG | RT | WR | WR | RB | QB |
| Equanimeous St. Brown | Durham Smythe | Mike McGlinchey | Quenton Nelson | Sam Mustipher | Alex Bars | Tommy Kraemer | Cameron Smith | Chase Claypool | Josh Adams | Brandon Wimbush |
| Miles Boykin | Alize Mack | Liam Eichenberg | Joshua Lugg | Trevor Ruhland | Hunter Bivin | Robert Hainsey | Michael Young | Chris Finke | Dexter Williams | Ian Book |
| Nic Weishar | OR CJ Sanders | OR Tony Jones Jr. | Montgomery VanGorder | |||||||
| OR Brock Wright | OR Deon McIntosh | |||||||||
| OR Cole Kmet |
After missing the last three games, Brian Kelly said that he expects running back Dexter Williams to be 100 percent against NC State. It was, apparently, a conscious effort to not play Williams until he was 100 percent, and Notre Dame fans got a glimpse of what Tony Jones Jr. and Deon McIntosh could do with increased carries. It’s all helped along, of course, by the dominance of the Notre Dame offensive line and the fine running of Josh Adams. We’ll see if Dexter gives the Irish any explosive plays this Saturday.
Notre Dame Defensive Depth Chart VS NC State
| CB | FS | ROVER | DE | DT | NG | DE | BUCK | MIKE | SS | CB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CB | FS | ROVER | DE | DT | NG | DE | BUCK | MIKE | SS | CB |
| Julian Love | Nick Coleman | Drue Tranquill | Daelin Hayes | Jonathan Bonner | Jerry Tillery | Jay Hayes | Greer Martini | Nyles Morgan | Jalen Elliott | Nick Watkins |
| Shaun Crawford | Isaiah Robertson | Asmar Bilal | OR Andrew Trumbetti | Myron Tagovailola-Amosa | Kurt Hinish | OR Andrew Trumbetti | OR Te'von Coney | Jamir Jones | Devin Studstill | Donte Vaughn |
| Troy Pride Jr. | Julian Okwara | Micah Dew-Treadway | Brandon Tiassum | Khalid Kareem | ||||||
| Ade Ogundeji |
Similar to Williams, Greer Martini is expected to be back for the Fighting Irish defensive unit. When you see a returning starter demotes a guy who won awards for his play in fill-in duty as a starter, you start to see the talent the Notre Dame defense (and particularly the linebackers) has. We’ve been seeing the stars from the recruiting services for our defensive hauls over the past four years, but it looks like Mike Elko is finally turning potential into productivity.
Notre Dame Special Teams Depth Chart VS NC State
| KO | PK | P | LS | HOLDER | PR | KR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KO | PK | P | LS | HOLDER | PR | KR |
| Justin Yoon | Justin Yoon | Tyler Newsome | John Shannon | Motgomery VanGorder | Chris Finke | CJ Sanders |
| Jonathan Doerer | Jonathan Doerer | Jeff Riney | Nic Weishar | Tyler Newsome | CJ Sanders | Michael Young |
Punter Tyler Newsome has done some really good work this year, including this gem. The punt coverage team also created a turnover that led directly to a touchdown on Saturday against USC. This is a unit that, in the event of a close game (which may be a likely scenario this weekend), could provide a game-changing play.