Stanford and Notre Dame have a history that dates to the 1925 Rose Bowl, a legendary game in the annals of college football with the Four Horsemen on one side and Pop Warner coaching Ernie Nevers on the other side. The Fighting Irish won 27-10 despite Nevers out-gaining all four horsemen combined.
Flash to the present. This Saturday in South Bend it’s No. 7 ranked Stanford (4-0) going up against No. 8 Notre Dame (4-0). It’s the first matchup between the two with both teams undefeated since that 1925 Rose Bowl.
Notre Dame leads the series 19-13 and the Cardinal is only 4-12 in games played at Notre Dame.
“It’s a difficult place to win and it’s one that has gotten louder,” Stanford coach David Shaw said. “You’ve got to be prepared for noise, got to be prepared for the crowd being into it.”
The series has become increasingly competitive in recent years. The last 14 games have been split 7-7 and decided by 18 total points.
So how does Notre Dame stack up as a rival of Stanford?
“Talk to our players,” Shaw said. “It’s right up there. We have a ton of rivals: Cal, USC, Oregon, Washington, UCLA. Notre Dame is right up there. We recruit nationally, a lot of our guys are from the Midwest or the East Coast, grew up watching Notre Dame or not liking Notre Dame. We’ve had a lot of great games over the years.”
Junior defensive lineman Jovan Swann hails from Greenwood, Ind. He was asked if he grew up as a Notre Dame fan:
“I was born in Detroit,” Swann said. “I was a diehard Michigan fan.”
Senior center Jesse Burkett knows what it’s like to take on the Irish on the road.
“Playing at Notre Dame you’ve got to know some calls aren’t going to go your way,” Burkett said, with a laugh.
Stanford is coming off a hard-to-believe comeback win at Oregon. Quarterback K. J. Costello had one of his best games, completing 19 of 26 passes for 327 yards and three touchdowns.
“K. J. has made a lot of growth since last year,” Shaw said. “He has a high ceiling and is going to continue to grow.”
Costello’s performance has been crucial in the Cardinal’s 4-0 start as opposing defenses have stacked the box to try to contain Bryce Love.
“Defenses are going to try to stop our runner, which they should do,” Shaw said. “Every game we have to be ready for the defense to say, ‘we don’t want number 20 to beat us.’ We still have some inconsistency up front. We have one of the most explosive backs in America and he’s only had a couple of shots to make plays. But when they load up the box our receivers get single coverage.”
Notre Dame won its first three games by close scores over Michigan (24-17), Vanderbilt (22-17) and Ball State (24-16) with Brandon Wimbush at quarterback. Last week Ian Book was inserted at quarterback and the Irish exploded for a 56-27 win over Wake Forest. Book was 25 of 34 for 325 yards. He ran for three touchdowns and passed for two.
“The kid’s got an accurate arm and quick release,” Shaw said. “He’s a good athlete who can escape and pick up first downs. He can beat you outside the pocket.”
The play of cornerbacks Alijah Holder and Paulson Adebo was a strong point for Stanford’s defense against Oregon. They will need to have another good game against Book.
“I’m liking where our two corners are right now,” Shaw said. “I’m real excited where we are corner wise.”
After breaking up three passes against Oregon, all in overtime, Adedo ranks No. 1 in the country in pass breakups with 11. The first-year starter also has 22 tackles, tied for third on the squad.
NOTES: Stanford ranks No. 10 nationally in scoring defense at 13.5 point per game and has allowed 7.5 in the second half … Love made his first career start at Notre Dame in 2016 in place of injured Christian McCaffrey and rushed for 129 yards and a fourth-quarter touchdown to seal a 17-10 win. In two games against the Irish, he’s run for 254 yards … Junior quarterback K.J. Costello tossed four scoring passes against Notre Dame last year … Most recent 4-0 starts for the Cardinal: 2010, 2011, 2013 … Stanford’s 29 fourth-and fifth-year seniors are the most of any Pac-12 team.