Catholics vs Convicts

Rivalry History

Obviously, everyone is well aware of the history between the University of Miami and the University of Notre Dame. Still, I know some who may not be familiar with the series, so I'll do a quick deep dive into the rivalry. Additionally, I plan to provide a game preview, keys to the game, and share my thoughts on how the game will unfold.

The first game between the two iconic programs took place in 1955, with Notre Dame winning 14-0. The next time the two schools would meet again would be in 1960, when Miami won the matchup 28-21. From 1965 to 1980, Notre Dame won every matchup, but Miami would finally get its second win in the rivalry in 1981, 37-15. From 1983 to 1987, Miami would win four straight, with the 1985 matchup being the catalyst that escalated the rivalry, where Jimmy Johnson, the head coach of the Hurricanes at the time, would be accused of running up the score against the Fighting Irish and Jerry Faust's final game as Notre Dame's head coach.  1988, the game was dubbed as Catholic vs Convicts, where a group of Notre Dame college kids would print a bunch of t-shirts, with the shirts saying Catholics vs Convicts, with Notre Dame being a Catholic school, and Miami with their cocky, in-your-face attitude that would make them the most hated team in the 80s, which would dub them as Convicts. The game had championship implications between the two schools, with Miami ranked number one in the nation and Notre Dame ranked number 4. Before the game started, there was a scuffle between the two teams, which led to an iconic quote by Lou Holtz, Notre Dame's head coach, who said ‘If we want to fight in the parking lot after the game, that’s fine. You represent our school properly in the game. But do me one favor: After we kick their butts, you leave Jimmy Johnson’s (little kids might read this) for me.’ Notre Dame came out with a 31-30 win over the Hurricanes, marked by a controversial call in the game. Cleveland Gary fumbled the ball at the one-yard line, where most fans would argue that Gary was down at the one-yard line; however, Notre Dame recovered the ball to win the game. The following two seasons, Miami and Notre Dame would split the home-and-home series, and they would not schedule each other again. In 2010, the two schools met at the Sun Bowl, where Notre Dame won 33-17.  Their next scheduled meeting would be in 2012, where they played at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois, as part of a stadium series. However, Notre Dame won that matchup 41-3. In 2016, the rivalry returned to South Bend, where it was competitive, but Notre Dame won on a last-second field goal, 30-27. In 2017, the game that felt like The U was back, Miami was ranked 7th in the nation, and Notre Dame came in ranked 3rd. College Gameday was there, and it felt like a big party the whole day. The crowd was loud and ruckus the entire night, bringing back many memories of The Orange Bowl. Miami would jump out first and never look back in an absolute beatdown over the Fighting Irish, 41-8. The 2017 matchup was the last time these two schools would face off until tomorrow night, with it being another top-ten matchup, where Miami is ranked 10th and Notre Dame is ranked 6th.

Keys To The Game

For Miami, cause havoc and try to make CJ Carr's life a nightmare for his first college start of his career, and stop Notre Dame's run game. This is Corey Hetherman's first game as defensive coordinator for the Hurricanes, and they have a brand new secondary that needs to gel on the fly. Notre Dame has a lot of experience, but the one spot that they don't have is at quarterback, as I said before, CJ Carr is making his first start, and Miami has Carson Beck, who was 24-3 as the starter for the Georgia Bulldogs, and his career stats are 7,912 passing yards, 58 TDs, 20 INTS, with completing 628 of 923 passes for a completion percentage of 68%. Beck, who was being looked at as possibly going number 1 in the draft but had a down year last season and dealt with some injuries, would be the key to this match-up.

For Notre Dame, utilize your experience to make CJ Carr's life easier. Use the run game to ease him into the game, but don't be afraid to take a few deep shots throughout the game. Jeremiyah Love will be featured a lot in this game, and he's gonna make life easy for the freshman quarterback. Defensively, I can't really speak for Notre Dame because I'm not a fan of the team, so I can't say much about them.     

Prediction

This game will be a lot closer than what most fans from each fan base are saying, but it's understandable because you have pride in your team. However, realistically, it's going to be a dogfight all night, and everyone will be on the edge of their seats. CJ Carr, in my honest opinion, will be good; he's not gonna have a Jameis Winston breakout game. Carr is going up against the 10th-ranked Hurricanes, not Pitt, and he's going up against a sold-out Hard Rock Stadium. Carson Beck needs to be the 2023 Carson Beck, being smart where he goes to the ball, and expect Mark Fletcher and Jordan Lyle to have solid running games. On the defensive side of the ball, Reuban Bain Jr. and Akeem Mesidor need to be the disruptive defensive ends who would force Carr to be rattled. I would give a score prediction, but I can see it going either way for Miami and Notre Dame. I can see the game meaning more for Notre Dame, because they don't play in a conference where Miami can drop this one, but still make the College Football Playoffs. However, if you want to be seen as a contender, then the Canes must win this game, no ifs, ands, or buts.