Notre Dame’s defense against Miami draws mixed review from former Irish player Bob Morton

Did Notre Dame have its worst performance in recent memory when it lost to Miami on Aug. 31? No. But it was still a frustrating game on both sides of the ball for Fighting Irish fans coming off a magical 2024-25 season.

“It felt like we hung on,” former Notre Dame offensive lineman Bob Morton said Sept. 2 in a Blue & Gold YouTube live show. “It never felt like we were able to transition from fighting from behind to getting aggressive. It never felt like we had the momentum; we were just relieved to get within 7 and then get the field goal. Everything felt like a relief; it didn’t feel like energy.”

But a few defensive players showed great energy and impressed Morton, starting with Virginia Tech transfer Jalen Stroman, who led the Irish with nine tackles.

“I loved [safety] Jalen Stroman’s energy,” Morton said. “After a play, he’d be jawing with guys. He’d celebrate with his guys. We need that energy to permeate through our defense.”

Notre Dame sophomore linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, who had four tackles and one for loss, was another standout for the Irish in Week 1.

“He needs to be on the field more because he does everything,” Morton added. “In the first half, he shouldered a pulling lead blocker, blew up the blocker and then makes the tackle three yards in the backfield. He gets up and his head is bobbing up and down. That confidence lacked almost everywhere on Sunday night. I want to see more of that coming from playmakers.”

According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), Viliamu-Asa was Notre Dame’s highest-graded defender at 85.4. The next highest was Louisville transfer Jared Dawson, who played 37 snaps.

“When he was defending the run, he was aggressive and wasn’t getting blown back,” Morton continued. “When he was in there for a pass rush, he attacked the edge. As an offensive lineman, if you come right to my chest, there’s no way you’re going to get through me to the quarterback by the time the quarterback will get rid of the ball.

“You’ve got to attack an edge to pressure me inside or outside. It felt like our interior line specifically — and even our defensive ends — were content with pushing the offensive linemen back and try to pressure Beck, rather than trying something different. An exception was when Traore pulled his spin move on the three-man rush and got a sack on it.”

Chris Ash vs. Al Golden

Notre Dame had a defensive coordinator change in the offseason, with news breaking after the national championship game that Al Golden was leaving for the same position with the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Irish hired former Rutgers head coach Chris Ash to replace him. In Golden’s first two games as defensive coordinator, Notre Dame lost to Ohio State and Marshall — so it wasn’t a smooth start to his tenure either. There’s no reason to panic over Ash yet, but the Miami game did raise questions.

“I don’t get this defense,” Morton stated. “I understood — from an early point — what our Al Golden was trying to do. We were talking previously about what Chris Ash does well, which is finding ways to get creative pressure with four — sometimes zone blitzing and things like that.

“I never saw a Notre Dame defense move as fast as we have over the last three years. What I saw on Sunday night wasn’t the worst I’ve seen, but it reminded me of five or ten years ago. It felt we were a step slow on everything.”

“I was not impressed with Week 1. I don’t know Chris Ash besides what he did on Sunday night, but it just looked like it wasn’t a step forward from what Golden’s defense was last year.”

There’s always a yin and yang to football. While Notre Dame didn’t generate much pressure with four, Miami quarterback Carson Beck was also getting the ball out quickly. Morton noted that in zone looks, when cornerbacks drop, quick passes to the outside before linebackers reach the flats can be dangerous.

“If we’re going to be a zone defense, we have to be a lot better at it,” he said. “We have the dogs to play more man, and I’d like to see us rely on that more and bring pressure with our gifted pass-rushing linebackers.”