Aztec Football Preview: San Diego State Squares off with Notre Dame

Earlier this week, Notre Dame head football coach Charlie Weis had some choice words for his offensive plan against all of his regular season's opponents, starting with his first rival, the San Diego State Aztecs.

"We're going to pound it."

Sensing an obvious weakness in the Southern California squad's defensive line (five players suffered injuries in the Opening Week loss to Cal Poly-SLO last Saturday, including a season-ending injury for DE Tony DeMartinis), Weis saw no reason to be coy about his play selection, considering the Aztecs ranked 118th out of 119 Division I schools against the rush in 2007.

Coming off a season that saw Notre Dame lose the most games in a single season in its history (nine), Weis and the Fighting Irish couldn't have picked a better opponent for their season opener.

At best, San Diego's offense is a one-trick pony, relying on the arm of freshman QB Ryan Lindley and the team's talented wide receiver corps to move the chains via the passing game.

At worst, the Aztecs will turn the ball over constantly upon the slightest of contacts, fumbling and risking interceptions with its pass-first, ask-questions-later style of offense. San Diego showed both facets of this against the Cal Poly Mustangs.

Notre Dame, on the other hand, also has a number of questions about their offense, namely the offensive line. QB Jimmy Clausen was sacked a team-record 34 times in 2007 and was benched after winning only one of his first six starts in favor of Evan Sharpley.

In front of their home crowd, though, and coming off a horrible season, Notre Dame cannot afford to lose a game like this against a team that shouldn't provide too much resistance.

Weis' insistence to run the ball will be apparent in this game, and despite running behind a line that was questioned in 2007, Irish tailbacks will probably find holes often in the banged-up Aztec front four.

Losing to the Cal Poly Mustangs after turning the ball over five times was a disaster, and despite the unfavorable matchup on the road against a hungry Notre Dame, head coach Chuck Long's major coup will be keeping his offense mistake-free and his run defense under 200 yards or so.

If My Life Savings Depended On It: I'd pick Notre Dame.