The Anatomy of the Schedule: Breaking Down the 2025 Season, Volume III

Liam Farrell
20 hours ago
3 min read

As fall camp officially kicked off, it is a perfect time for Notre Dame fans to begin to comprehend the path that lies ahead of them in 2025.

Art by The Irish Tribune

In the third installment of the season preview, Notre Dame is entering the seventh game of the year, as they set off to face their arch-rival.

As the Irish attempt to navigate through the middle of the year that features games on the road at Arkansas before hosting Boise State and NC State, the Irish enter the second half of the season in a pivotal string of games.

In this volume of The Anatomy of the Schedule, Irish fans will see the uphill climb the Golden Domers will face in 2025.

Week Eight vs USC

2024 Record: 7-6

No. of Returning Offensive Starters: Five

No. of Returning Defensive Starters: Three

With all of the offseason commotion about the sake of the rivalry, this game will probably be the most hyped matchup between USC and Notre Dame in quite some time. Especially, with this year's edition being the 20th anniversary of the "Bush Push" game, tensions and emotions will be at an all-time high.

In terms of X's and O's on the gridiron, USC is in a bit of a weird position within its program. The Trojans have plenty of firepower, especially with Lincoln Riley calling the shots, but even more so with wide receivers Ja'Kobe Lane and Makai Lemon. The explosiveness of the offense relies on the arm of Jayden Maiava, who will be entering his first camp as the starter at USC. Last November, Maiava lit up the Irish's stout passing defense with 360 yards and three touchdowns. However, the only plays that will live on from that game are the two 98-yard and 104-yard pick sixes from Christian Gray and Xavier Watts that iced the Trojans and cemented Notre Dame's playoff hopes.

On defense, the Trojans don't return a lot of production, yet they were heavy contenders in the transfer portal to fill some needs. Kentucky transfer Keeshawn Silver was the prized recruit from the transfer portal haul that should add stability and an explosive presence on the Trojans' line. The addition of cornerbacks DJ Harvey and Chasen Johnson should aid the back half of USC's defense as well.

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Week Ten @ Boston College

2024 Record: 7-6

No. of Returning Offensive Starters: Five

No. of Returning Defensive Starters: Seven

After a much-needed BYE week following the USC game, the Irish will shoot up to Chestnut Hill for the first time since 2017.

It will be Bill O'Brien's second year as the Boston College head coach, and he will be returning plenty of talent from 2024. Specifically on defense, the Eagles return five defensive backs, including KP Price, the team's leading tackler from a year ago, and Carter Davis, who led the Eagles in interceptions last year with five.

On offense, O'Brien will shift from Thomas Castellanos, who transferred to Florida State, and will be running with Grayson James, who took over for Castellanos toward the latter half of last year. James was efficient in the starting role, throwing for 1,202 yards and six touchdowns. The Eagles also return Lewis Bond, who led the team in receptions by a wide margin, as he hauled in 67 receptions last year. For reference, Michael Mayer had 67 receptions in the 2022 season.

This game is one that will be overlooked when looking at the season at a glance, but this game will certainly be no small task because of the talent the Eagles return on defense.

Week Eleven vs Navy

2024 Record: 10-3

No. of Returning Starters: 17

Notre Dame will have three-night games this season, two of which we already covered in Texas A&M and USC, but the Navy game being the third night game of the season came to a surprise to most.

The pedigree of a night game is one that is reserved for the biggest of games, and maybe NBC is counting on the Midshipmen to have a similar season to 2024. A noon kickoff game, Navy entered the matchup undefeated and knocking at the door of the group of 4 CFP bid. The end result, as most fans know, a 51-14 thrashing.

Although, Navy returns starting quarterback Blake Horvath, who had one of the best seasons from a Navy quarterback in recent history. Also, add-in senior backs Eli Heidenreich and Alex Tesca, and the Midshipmen have a similar offensive attack to the year prior.