Consistency Key In Notre Dame Win Streak

Since dropping a home tilt to 2nd-ranked Cincinnati the first weekend in October, Notre Dame has reeled off four consecutive wins, three of them by 10 or more points. And head coach Brian Kelly believes that their success has as much to do with consistency as it does the luck of the Irish.

“You know, consistency and performance is important, right, in anything you do. And so, what we're doing, how we do it on a day-to-day basis, is, for us, about our process every single day, and we stick with it,” Kelly said after Saturday’s win over Navy. “And it’s proven to be effective."

A key to the 7th- ranked Irish’s four-game win streak has been their defense, which has allowed just over 21 points per game during that span. Last weekend versus Navy, the defense allowed only six points. They’ll try and keep that defensive consistency over the final three weeks of the regular season, beginning Saturday with a road game against Virginia and their talented quarterback, Brennan Armstrong.

“We've got a team that is one of the more prolific passing offenses in the country,” said Kelly.“... Let's go see how we handle Brennan Armstrong and the Cavaliers.”

Though Armstrong and the Cavaliers are the top ranked offense in the country, Kelly and the Fighting Irish don’t plan on altering their game plan.

“ one hundred percent bought-in on how we do things on a day-to-day basis, and our standards have shown that it's been really effective. So, we won't be changing anything anytime soon,” added Kelly.

It's tough to argue with his approach. Notre Dame has handled unranked opponents consistently, riding a 39-game win streak against teams outside the Top 25. They can extend that streak to 40 with a W on Saturday evening.

"Going on the road, great challenge, night game on ABC,” said Kelly. “We'll get an opportunity to play before a big audience and a great opportunity for our football team to continue to improve on both sides of the ball.”

FanDuel Sportsbook believes that the Irish consistency will continue again this weekend. They have Notre Dame favored by 5.5 points over the Cavaliers.

 

Follow along on Twitter: @OhioAF