The Notre Dame vs Texas A&M Football Preview Show

the Thursday slate of games did not disappoint as we had Arkansas and Missouri from the SEC both have major wins last night to start the season 1 and0 we will be touching base with Chris Lee of of Southeastern 16 to get his take on the matchups last night and look ahead to this upcoming weekend then we are going to be joined by ol Canon of texx radio to get his take on the Texas A&M Notre Dame game that's all ahead on this edition of The Sting Ray Show guys we've got a lot to cover so let's get things rocking and rolling right here on the sting ra show on this Friday evening hi this is Tim Brando with a reminder those of you on tide 100.9 look out you're about to feel the buzz of stingray this is Steven Ray AKA Stingray coming to you live from Tuscaloosa Alabama I'm Heath Hopkins I'm here in doto County Mississippi right outside of Memphis Tennessee you know Mark I'm going to put you on the spot do you feel that responsibility to pay it forward and give some kid a chance coming up in the ranks kind of like Tony did for you why you think I'm talking to Stingray tonight thank you man I appreciate that I mean look no he thing right here's the deal when you get involved with Texas it's like getting married to a St RPP and and let me explain to this it looks good kind of sexy on on the surface yeah but then you get the baggage you get the drama you get all that eventually comes with it and that's what you get with Tex and that's what the big 12 learned and Heath any thoughts on our show moving forward hey to everyone in Tuscaloosa listening here on Todd 100.9 with the sting ratio show if you don't like it you better learn to love it cuz it's the best show going today Baby [Music] Woo and ladies and gentlemen with all of that we want to welcome you inside the Friday evening edition of The Sting Ray Show and let's go on ahead and jump right into it week one of college football started yesterday and Arkansas knocked off Arkansas Pine Bluff by a score of 70 to nothing in in Bobby petrino's debut as the offensive coordinator and then Missouri put up 51 points in their win over Murray State so to do a deep dive into yesterday's action we are about to be joined by Chris Lee of Southeastern 16 Chris how are things going with you up there close to Nashville Things Are great football's here thanks for having me my friend it's always good to join you oh yeah absolutely so let's go on ahead and start with Arkansas we did not know what to expect with a new transfer quarterback as well as to Bobby patrino situation give us your thoughts on Arkansas putting up 70 points last night well let's set some context that Pine Bluff may be the worst football team I've ever seen play an SEC team and and there's that Arkansas if you didn't see it they shortened the quarters to 10 minutes in the second half Arkansas scored 10 touchdowns on 10 possessions it was completely lops side now having said that you can watch some guys and and kind of discern there are some players that have got some skill that you can see is there whether they're playing Pine Bluff or whether they're playing Alabama and the two guys that stood out Tor green their quarterback I think he's really athletic smooth just is going to be a headache to contain uh especially in the Run game and I really like J Quin and Jackson the tailback transfer they got from Utah that might be a guy we talked about uh or should have talked about more in the off season I thought that was a big ad for them I thought they were big and physical up front which you should be against Pine Bluff you know the defense controlled an arkans had over 200 yards before Pine Bluff got above zero so it was just a complete domination it's what you wanted to see if your Arkansas and you saw a little bit of identity there uh with an offense that could really do some exciting things and a defense that showed up the way he wanted it to and Chris nobody needed that more than Sam Pitman coming out of the gate as to first coach everybody says is going to get canned this season yeah I mean next week is is the big one right you get Oklahoma State on the road it's it's a brutal schedule but if you get that one you know you feel good about the way you played last night that that's a I think that's a winnable game I wouldn't I wouldn't bet that they win it but it's it's on the tables a possibility uh you get that you're maybe three and0 after UAB and then you got a big game at Auburn first time on the road that that's a lot of projecting but you know there's some scenarios there for the taking that can flip the script on that so Chris let's turn the page till tomorrow we've got Georgia and Clemson we've got Miami taking on Florida we've got Notre Dame taking on Texas A&M out of those three games which one are you most looking forward to if I could only watch one it would be A&M Notre Dame I think it's got potential playoff implications the feeling has been A&M has has left some meat on the bone the last decade and it's always been blamed on coaching I think we're going to find out a little bit more tomorrow Notre Dam's offensive line situation isn't what it wanted coming into the year with that injury it left tackle followed by the graduation of joal so I think there's some opportunity for an A&M team that can get after the passer I think that's number one I would actually put Miami and Florida is my number two game I'm interested in watching because I think George is gonna handle Clemson and I'm interested in seen it don't get me wrong but I think that um I think Florida we're gonna find out a little more about how good Florida is for Miami I think it's a little bit more oh I'm not going to call it meaningless because but here's my Point Miami can still win the ACC and get in it doesn't matter what it does against Florida if it does that it's going to be a top four seed in the playoff but I'm I'm very interested to see how Florida Stacks up now look we've seen misleading things in the opener before uh they gosh who was it they beat two years ago and bil Na's debut I can't remember it was Utah or somebody else Utah Utah it was Utah okay I remember they played him in the open last year but couldn't remember if that was two years in a row so there's that but um yeah I'm I'm interested in that one for a lot of reasons you talked about coaches on the hot seat certainly he's one that uh in the schedule I'm I'm not goingon to it's almost a must-win game for Florida yes they've got the maybe the toughest schedule I have ever seen um in the SEC if you throw in what they've done out of conference and so I think tomorrow's one of those if Florida can't win you start having a really hard time County wins just to get the bowl eligibility and Chris finally Sunday evening in Vegas it looks to be a shootout because both defenses last year were atrocious USC LSU give a your thoughts yeah want to see on offense Garrett NM have always liked him but they lost two first round receivers it's going to be can KY and Lacy step up and have a big year I think they got the offensive line to protect nus meire I think the bigger question is defense you know there's some Talent there you've got Harold Perkins who's going to be a first round draft pick they've got some other solid players on that side of the but they were bad or maybe not bad they they played some good teams they were very mediocre that might be generous on defense a year ago you change coordinators you got Blake Baker that should be an improvement he did wonders at Missouri I think I want to see the question is do they have a real talent problem on defense or does Blake Baker come in and it was like oh this was all about coaching to begin with now look USC you you can not look great on defense against that UFC team Lincoln Riley is a top 10 offensive coach in the game probably so that but but hey if we come out tomorrow and or if we come out at the end of the weekend and you know they've held UFC in the 20s or something like that then I think we can conclude hey maybe they've gotten better there so Chris look man thank you as always for taking time to join me have a wonderful Labor Day weekend and we will definitely catch up with you one day next week you do the same be safe and and dude enjoy covering the first weekend of SEC college football you know I will you sometimes this first week is almost a complete dog but fortunately we got some good games and I'm looking forward to that so Chris take care we will catch you next week thank you all right so guys that is going to wrap up the interview there with Chris Lee of Southeastern 16 hope you guys enjoyed it and when we come back we are going to dive further into the game in College Station between Texas A&M and Notre Dame we are going to be joined by ol Buchanon next to get the Texas A&M side of things and then later on we are going to be joined by Pete Samson of the athletic who covers Notre Dame to get their side of this matchup that's on the other side of the break you're listening to The Sting race show we will be right back with Olan you can ladies and gentlemen Bill Ferguson of south finest meets the official sponsor of the sting ray show has a message for you everything we do here is fresh and custom made custom to order you know I tell people when they come in you know if you don't see what you like ask somebody you know we've got the capability to process it make it you know if you want a different blend of hamburger meat we'll do you brisket blend we'll do you a Chuck blend we'll do you sirlo blend you know we do all that right here we are a butcher shop it's what we do so please don't be afraid to ask if you don't see what you like we can make you any size pad you want we can make you any amounts you want you know people call me say well how many patties come in the Box how many would you like in a box you know you want 12 we'll put 12 you want 25 we'll put 25 that's just one of the many things that south finest meets has to offer the official butcher shop of the stingray show [Music] [Music] welcome back inside the staying race show and now we are going to dive into the huge matchup in College Station that will kick off tomorrow evening between Texas A&M and Notre Dame and we are about to be joined by Tex a own Olan Buchanan to talk about the game from the Aggie perspective Olan how are things going with you about 24 hours before the big game there in agul land yeah right now it's going great Sting Ray now uh I think I might have told you before I got about eight uh golden domers coming to stay at my house for the weekend right uh so I don't know how well I'm going to be going how well I'm going to be doing in about about noon but right now I'm feeling great so Olan getting to the game tomorrow evening what is the vibe and what is the feel on campus down there well you know a lot of excitement and I got to tell you throughout the whole off seon the buzz or the the catchphrase was or however you say it was cautious optimism be cautiously optimistic well now you know like it is it probably everywhere that cautious things has gone out the window right yeah so uh everybody is all excited about hey it's New Year's Eve it's a new year and after the last couple of years uh with a new coaching staff and a new Outlook a new approach they're hoping for some new results and right now I think you know the the vibe is uh to expect them but I always say you know borrow the phrase from our friends up in Missouri and say hey show me first they need to do it but I think there's a there's a feeling that maybe this is the year that sleeping giant finally wakes up so ol let's go on ahead and dive into this matchup where are a couple of strengths that Texas A&M has over Notre Dame in this game well I think it's without a doubt it starts with the uh with the A&M defensive line A&M defensive line projects to be among the best in the country you know uh the the kid that that that transferred in from Purdue Nick scorton he was all big 10 last year led the Big 10 in Sachs well so he comes in he joins a defensive line that has Shamar Turner who is all SEC had six sacks as a defensive he should be playing tackle and he's moved back inide at tackle they got a guy Shamar uh uh Stewart two Shamar that's right you heard me you can't never have too many Shamar and two of them and Shamar Stewart is that guy they really believe uh is gonna have that breakout year he has all kinds of physical gifts he's about 66 about 290 and he can really run I saw him run down a a a New Mexico wide receiver in the backfield last year so he can really run all the physical gifts everything you want looks like an NFL defensive end now they're saying this could be the year he actually plays like it and then the other guy up front is a five-star guy came here as a five-star guy DJ Hicks who uh is in his sophomore year so there's a lot of uh a lot of expectation for that defensive line and in contrast if you've been following it and maybe you have maybe you have it but Notre Dame they they are projecting to start a offens line that has a grand total of six Collegiate starts among the five starting offensive linemen and scorton probably gonna be latched up against a guy who uh was a who's a true freshman I think was even recruited to play guard because Char not only did they lose their two tackles that were so good last year Joe Al was an All-American they lost both those guys to the NFL but Charles Jaga who was projected as the starting left tackle you know he uh suffered a a season ending peack injury uh back in just a couple weeks ago so Notre Dames has had to do some juggling with his offensive line so at least on the surface it appears A&M has a significant advantage or should have a significant Advantage with its defensive line against the uh Notre Dame offensive line and quite frankly I don't know if I can look at another area of the game and say well this is a a significant advantage forn so enan when you look at this game from the Notre Dame perspective where do they have an advantage where they could take advantage of Texas A&M well I think they're going to start off by saying you know their their secondary is supposed to be one of the absolute best in the country I think Notre Dame was ranked third in the nation last year on pass defense they had 16 interceptions they got the All-American Benjamin Morrison at cornerback the Bronco nersi Award winner Xavier Watts at safe and let's face it&m uh their best receiver last year is now playing for uh for the Eagles Nia Smith and uh Evan Stewart who most people you know felt like should have been their second best guy is now at Oregon so A&M has a lot of guys that are talented but unproven at receiver and they're going to get the second there that's supposed to be one of the best in the country so I'm sure the folks in the South Ben are thinking you know A&M's not going to be able to throw on them the whole game so ol if you look at Texas A&M if A&M is to beat Notre Dame tomorrow evening who is one guy that has to be the ex Factor you know what you know what I was gonna go say Noah Thomas but I'm gonna throw you a curveball here because I don't I don't want to be the guy that's gonna always say the same thing right how about this uh have you ever heard of Martin Abu all right he's and and and it may not even be him it may be kif fo the what I'm getting at is the ANM Center yeah going to be key because the best maybe defensive player but certainly the best defensive line lineman for Notre Dame is Howard Cross the third and A&M cannot let him come in and wreak havoc the Aggies are gonna have to run the football you talk about how good that Notre Dame Secondary is so the A&M offense going to have to have some success running the football Clemson had some success ESS against him last year and won the game Louisville had some success running the football against Notre Dame last year and won the game Duke had success running the football and almost won the game so I think Adam's gonna have to run the football they're gonna have a difficult time with their running game if Howard cross is just coming in there and wreaking havoc so uh even though they'll move him around let's start with him when he's at nose and saying hey that Center's going to have to you know neutralize him or at least win some of those matchups so A&M can do something offensively in the running game all right so Olan we've talked about it from both sides now give us who wins tomorrow evening in College Station between Texas A&M and Notre Dame yeah I'm gonna tell you um call it a homer pick if you want to the folks in Vegas though have established A&M as a favorite I think it's up to three and a half points now uh I'm going to take A&M at home in a close game I and and I here's the thing Sting Ray uh we've talked about this before there was Inc so much dysfunction with A&M last year yeah and yet they were in the fourth quarter with a chance to beat a realistic chance to beat Alabama had the lead in the fourth quarter against Old Miss uh had a chance in the fourth quarter to beat LSU had a chance the fourth quarter they were then three to beat and had the ball to against Tennessee and I'm just uh telling myself that being at home where by the way they were a good home team last year and Notre Dame had some issues on the road last season so with A&M at home and a new coaching staff and a new offensive system and all those things and oh by the way with their starting quarterback available which he wasn't V one any of those games uh I'm going to say uh I I'm looking for ANM to actually be able to make the play that they didn't make it's not going to be easy and they're going to have to have to have to avoid turn the ball over especially with interceptions like I said Notre Dame had 16 last year but in their three losses Notre Dame combined for just one interception those three three losses so and Conor doesn't throw typically and his historically hasn't thrown a lot of interceptions so those are the reasons I'm going to take A&M in a close game uh something along the lines of you know 24 21 so ol look man as always thank you for taking time to join us enjoy all of the festivities tomorrow evening in Aggy land gigum and we will definitely catch up with you next week thanks D so guys that is going to wrap up the A&M side of this match up and when we come back we are going to be joined by Pete Samson of the athletic who covers Notre Dame to do a deep dive into this game from the Notre Dame side of things that's on the other side of the break you're listening to The Sting Ray Show we will be right back to cover this game from the Notre Dame side of things with Pete Samson [Music] welcome back inside the Sting Ray Show hope all is well with you guys and now we are about to do a very deep dive into the game this weekend in College Station where college game day is going to be between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Texas A&M Aggies and we are going to talk about that game from the Fighting Irish perspective and in order to do that we were about to bring on the beat rider for the athletic ladies and gentl Mr Pete Samson Pete how are things going with you up there close to Notre Dame as we are counting down the hours to the big game there in College Station yeah it's uh it's funny because it people talk about like how's not going to handle the weather in College Station at the end of August um it's a high of 97 in South Bend today with a heat index pushing 110 so uh when Notre practice is outside it will be a pretty good uh pretty run up might even be hotter here than it will be in College Station on Saturday night but um it's it's a it's a fetting opener for Notre Dame because I think they have so much on the line This is a season that's sort of built around making the college football playoff and potentially hosting a game up here but uh if you win on Saturday night and you've got inside track on that the rest of the way if you lose you're sort of uh playing the rest of the season without a safety net so there's there's a ton on the line for Notre Dame on Saturday so Pete before before we do a deep dive into that game what is the expectation going into this season for the Fighting Irish that they make the playoff um that they host a game you know that that's an 11 in one minimum type of season um so yeah you it it's notame usually plays a very strong National schedule this is not one of those years so how does that fit into the committee when they're ranking the top 12 teams at the end I I think that Notre Dame they you know 10 and two this is not going to be a classic Notre Dame 10 and two if they get there so um the expectation is that they you're in the playoff um yes they've invested in coordinators they've invested in their roster uh if they don't get there it will be a a pretty disappointing season for Marcus Freeman in year three yes so right now going into year number three for the head coach up there you just mentioned is there any talk of him being on the hot seat coming into this season no I mean not into the season out of the Season maybe uh I just think that like Notre Dame has done a pretty good job of giving Marcus Freeman the first two years to learn on the job um when you when you promote a first-time head coach here I think you have to allow that so he's gotten two years of grace period but I mean the way I would describe it is like he spent two years learning on the job now it's time to take a bit of a final exam um to see how much you've actually put together you've learned from the mistakes of Ohio State Clemson at you know Clemson and Louisville last year um maybe not having the receiver room where you needed to be um rushing your offense coordinator higher uh there he's made some mistakes along the way he's won 19 games but I think what Notre Dame needs to see is like you've learned from your successes and your failures in the last two years uh and can apply that all in year three now if they're nine and three this year and it doesn't look like the program's taking a step forward then yeah then then you can start talking about like all right is this the guy is he making progress or not but so far he's taken steps each of the first two years but he got to take a big one in year three all right so with all of the conference expansion and realignment obviously Cal Stanford and SMU go to the ACC you know Texas and Oklahoma come to the SEC the Big 10 got a couple of teams and the Big 12 got a couple of teams where do you see Notre Dame shaking out and all of this conference realignment in the future I think they're they're set where they are as an independent with a partial agreement with the ACC they resigned their deal with NBC um pays them somewhere between the Big 10 in the SEC right now U so they essentially they can afford to stay independent which is you know when you hear about Clemson and Florida State suing the ACC this it's a financial issue uh notame doesn't have that Financial issue so as long as they can afford to stay independent um and they just signed a a five-year deal with NBC they'll stay independent um so I think that right now they're in a good spot and I would say they'll probably stay in that good spot for the next five years we'll see you know in 20 once we get to 2030 maybe that the uh the math changes a little bit yes so Pete going into this season where are the strengths and where are the weaknesses for this Notre Dame team defensively very strong it is um it's almost a perfect defense in terms of the experience and talent levels you have you have an All-American safety All-American Corner um Jack Kaiser at middle linebacker comes or inside linebacker comes back he is very very highend football IQ defense line they should be able to play 10 guys they'll start four graduate students up front on the defensive line so it and a third-year defense coordinator Al golden so they they should be outstanding on defense um I think it's going to be a real chore to score 20 points on them for anybody this season offensively I like Riley Leonard a quarterback but hasn't played a whole lot of football uh in the last year I think their running back Jeremiah Love is a chance to be outstanding um tight end receiver should be very good offensive line is a huge weakness though they return they're planning to go with a starting lineup at Texas that has six career starts among them uh which is just unheard of so you know I think Notre Dame we if you look at them from the outside you just assume they always have very good offensive lines because they are putting out NFL draft picks and running the ball like crazy this year might be the exception to that so how they manage a young offensive line is fascinating to me on Saturday night because that leans into Texas A&M's biggest strength their front seven on defense so how Notre Dame handles that just fascinating to me Pete I definitely want to talk about this season and things going on currently but there's one pending question that I hope that you can answer to a lot of us because a lot of folks here in SEC country kind of want to know the backstory to this but Braun Kelly left Notre Dame to take LSU and you know so many different things were out there of what was being said and what was happening I'm guessing and I don't know I'm shooting in the dark here but I'm guessing it was maybe over nil and maybe about facilities and upgrading and spending money on the program but what was the real reason why Bron Kelly left Notre Dame uh certainly facilities were part of it um and I don't think it's a coincidence that you know at the spring game earlier this year nor announced that lo and behold uh a $150 million uh football Operation Center will be built in the next two years um and I think that was always the plan to get there Brian Kelly just wanted it faster which you know like Brian Kelly is a really good football coach because he's in part because he's very demanding um he helped drag Notre Dame football into a much more of a modern era than it was when he shook up so that was part of it and I look LSU was they offered him a 10-year essentially a 10y year hundred million deal n name would have paid Brian Kelly $10 million a year but not guaranteed over 10 years so the money was better at LSU too and I think he just got to a point with LSU or with Notre Dame he's just like you know what I want to go to a place where I can get to yes a lot faster um than what Notre Dame was going to offer so it's it's a a mix of things um you know financially and Facilities those were probably the two biggest uh when it comes to you know do I what do I want to do for the last stage of my career uh I want to go out you know give it everything I can to win at the High level um he felt like LSU offered him that so it was it nil it was mainly facilities yeah I think it's facilities and then money you know the nil situation at notame actually is pretty good um they but at the time if I was Brian Kelly I'm not sure I would have had a whole lot of confidence in where Notre Dame was going to go with nil I think Notre Dame has been much more aggressive in that space than I would have thought um early on I think you see their success in the transfer portal Sam Hartman to right Leonard um they've signed you know defensive ends the last couple years it's that's not free um you know whereas at LSU Brian Kelly's boning hey we got outspent with defensive tackles in in nil so I think not's nil game is actually really strong um I think you can just you can get a lot more guys into school at LSU than Notre Dame and like he's recruiting incredibly well down there so uh I think that it's it was probably a good move for both parties got a little bit of a refresh for Notre Dame with Marcus Freeman and then Brian Kelly gets a sord to go out and just worry about winning football games uh whereas at Notre Dame there's a lot of other stuff that goes with it so Pete hold that thought because we were up against another break and when we come back we are going to dive further into the A&M game this weekend versus Notre Dame that's on the other side of the break you're listening to The Sting race [Music] show are you in need of planning for retirement St specializes in helping investors like you in your quest to build and manage your wealth and when the time comes pass it along to Future Generations stel can help you plan for retirement save for college give to your favorite charity or leave a legacy for your heirs steel can be contacted at 205 414 3375 once again that is 2054 44 3375 and their office is located off of Shades Creek Parkway in Birmingham Alabama Steve full Incorporated member SI p c and NS e [Music] welcome back inside the Sting Ray Show Our Guest this evening is Pete Samson of the athletic that covers the Notre Dame Fighting Irish we are talking with him about the program because they have a huge game on Saturday in College Station and Pete before we get to that game I do want to ask you there was a rumors and stories that are coming out that Lincoln Riley in USC w want to try and get rid of the Notre Dame game I want to get your take on that from the Notre Dame side of things how are fans reacting to that news I think there there's a feeling that like oh well you possibly couldn't get rid of that game and yet like I've seen college football in 2023 like nothing is sacred um so I think there's there's a a certain level of concern my my understanding is like Lincoln Riley might want to get rid of that game but USC doesn't so okay that is I think you look at USC schedule this year it's insane um you know you cannot open with LSU and then close with Notre Dame and then also play a big 10 schedule it just doesn't make any sense so I think that in the future USC will probably get out of whatever version of the LSU game they have scheduled um opposed to the Notre Dame game itself but um it's I think that's you know you're asking about sort of conference realignment that is something I think Notre meets to monitor like can they keep building college football playoff worthy schedules and if USC says we're not playing you anymore then you've got a problem um because our other big 10 schools also gonna stop playing you um neran has Purdue Michigan State coming on uh Michigan coming back around in a while they have some games uh Florida Alabama A&M obviously which we're talking about but um schedule inventory it's just something to monitor with Notre Dame I don't think it will be a concern I think USC will reup with Notre Dame but if they don't then I think that's something ndame needs to pay attention to so Pete let's go on ahead and dive into the game between A&M and Notre Dame give us your thoughts and break down that game for us please yeah I mean I think that uhm has advantages in their front seven against Notre Dame's offensive line uh significant advantages so how does Mike denrock who came up from LSU um mitigate that as the offensive coordinator I think that's where Notre name has some confidence in having an experienced offensive coordinator experienced quarterback um that they can do some things to sort of slow down A&M's pass rush but you know Kyle Field to me and the environment that n's walking into is it's kind of hard to overstate how significant that's going to be um Alabama went to field last year I think they had nine procedural penalties um Notre is not going to be able to win a game like that so how do you clean that up um how do you slow down Nick scorton and that pass rush that's gonna be fascinating to me and then I I do but I do think like Notre Dame Advantage defensively over A&M's offense is significant too right so I it will be a very low-scoring game um it wouldn't surprised me have Notre name one 17 13 174 um it's it's goal for me to see either team getting to 20 points unless we're talking throwing in a defensive special teams type of touchdown I do think it's going to be very Cy game um and both defenses should be way ahead of the offenses they're trying to stop you know Pete looking at that game at Cal field and it is a cult down there at Texas A&M um A&M fans will tell you that and the rest of the SEC will tell you that it's a cult but heading into that game you know uh the weather's going to be crazy um you know this time of year it's it's hot everywhere in the South and it's hot in Texas with that what outstanding you know parameters and and issues could Notre Dame have other than crowd noise and heat is there anything that concerns uh Notre Dame heading into that game because no one in the SEC really knows what to expect from A&M this year they got a ton of talent but they haven't used it in about four or five years right yeah I I mean the the weather is kind of a concern but it's a high of 97 in South Ben as we record this um right you know it's it's hotter in South Bend than it is in College Station today so you know I don't think that's going to be much of an issue um crowd noise as it relates to a very young offensive line like if Notre Dame had the same offensive line it had in like 2020 where it was returning four starters with 100 starts like I don't think Kyle Field would be that big of a deal in the game um instead they're playing offensive line six career starts I think Kyle Field is a huge factor in the game so other than that you know I I don't think there's much about Texas A&M's offense that scares Notre Dame um I think Conor wigman is a good quarterback you know with a pro potential but he's got some of the same issues Riley Leonard's gonna have like does he have receivers who can help him out um their offensive line is huge um but Wegman has not played football since the Auburn game last year year so I think that it's a low-scoring game um but I'm not sure there's anything about A&M that jumps out to me you know maybe busy their freshman um yeah you know can can they get him on a gadget Play can they get him in the return game um can they get notams linebackers moving east to west which is not not a weakness but not a strength either that that would be something kind of like an expector matchup that would be intriguing to me on Saturday night but um I think most first and foremost it's like can you handle the environment with a young offensive line I don't know if nor can um they might but that's that's the biggest question to me so Pete moving forward past the A&M game how do you see the rest of the season playing out for Notre Dame and what is your final record for Notre Dame as they look to go into the playoffs after A&M win or lose the schedule really opens up uh no will be double digit favorites I think in every game according to Vegas up until USC and at that point USC may be like a shell of itself based on the schedule they played so to me this feels like it should be an 111 team which is crazy to say with an offensive line as young as Notre name has um and I kind of feel like whether they get the A&M game or not um this team should be mature enough to handle its business the rest of the way um you know but it is a question Marcus Freeman they've had some strange slip UPS in his first two years Marshall Stanford his first year last year I think is probably a little bit more explainable um with Ohio State Louisville and Clemson but um I do think I think Notre Dame will go 11 and one I'm not sure where the one's going to be might be Saturday night might not um but uh I do think the way this defense is built that should carry Notre aame until the offense gets caught up I do think the offense will get caught up at some point but that might not be till October so it's like if you can get through A&M and that Louisville game at the end of September could be a little tricky um but after that I feel like Notre probably will hit its stride so if they've got one loss at the end of September they can live with that um it wouldn't surprise me if they ran that table from there so Pete look man as always thank you for joining us if you would go ahead and let everybody know where they can keep up and follow you on social media and read your work I yeah I work for the athletic so you can check me out at the athletic.com we've got a great team covering college football um and then also on Twitter at Pete Samson unor as my handle tweet all all my work there uh so you can follow along on that Medium as well so Pete enjoy your time in College Station are you going oh of course yeah I've been looking for this one for a few years um yeah I've been covering this is my 24th season on the beat so you sort of have been to most of the places that you're going to go to uh you only get like new venues once every few years but this is a new venue for me I've never been down there before never been to Kyle Field I really looking forward to seeing what it all looks like and sounds like on Saturday night so Pete look man enjoy your time in College Station good luck to the Irish and we will definitely catch up with you later on this season all right thank you guys thanks Pete take care all right take care so ladies and gentlemen briefly that is going to wrap up another edition of The Sting Ray Show we hope that you guys have a wonderful Labor Day weekend and enjoy Labor Day on Monday there will be no show on Monday evening because of the holidays so the Sting Ray Show will return Tuesday of next week to do a full recap of week one have a wonderful weekend the steam Rayo is out [Music]