Notre Dame vs. Stanford: Breaking Down All the Key Individual Matchups

Even though it's going to dominate the headlines all week long, the LSU-Arkansas game won't be the only big matchup of Week 13. 

We've also got a battle between No. 6 Stanford and No. 22 Notre Dame to look forward to.

The Irish have once again rallied and turned their season around after a slow 4-3 start, winning their last four games and keeping the possibility of finishing with a double-digit win campaign alive.

This will be an opportunity for Brian Kelly's team to make a big statement, as they look to shut down Stanford's star quarterback Andrew Luck and the rest of the Cardinal.

After winning seven straight times throughout the last decade, Notre Dame has come up short the previous two times these two teams have met.

The Notre Dame seniors know what it feels like to get stung by Andrew Luck, and they'll be ready for some payback on Saturday.

Stanford seems a little vulnerable after back-to-back weak performances and it will be interesting to see if the Irish can go out to the farm and finish off the season in strong fashion.

This one could come down to which star players makes the biggest plays in the most crucial moments.

With that in mind, here's a look at the four key individual matchups that will have a major effect on the outcome of Saturday's showdown.

QB Andrew Luck vs. S Harrison Smith

Stanford QB Andrew Luck had one of his worst games of the season against Notre Dame last year, throwing for just 238 yards and getting picked off twice.

Now, Luck will be looking for redemption this time around, but remember, the veteran Irish secondary is only allowing 198 yards through the air per game this season.

The leader of the defensive backfield is safety Harrison Smith, who can be an equal factor against the pass and the run.

Luck will have his eyes locked on Smith all game long, and where he lines up will dictate what Luck does on almost every pass play.

OT Zack Martin vs. LB Chase Thomas

LB Chase Thomas has certainly stepped his game up and become the leader that the Stanford defense needed this year, after Shayne Skov went down for the season with a knee injury.

Thomas has been a nightmare to block on the edge of Stanford’s 3-4 defense, as he’s racked up 14.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks.

The speedy rush linebacker will likely be matched up with Notre Dame left tackle Zack Martin for most of the game, and it will be up to Martin to keep Thomas contained and keep QB Tommy Rees out of harm’s way.

WR Michael Floyd vs. CB Johnson Bademosi

Notre Dame WR Michael Floyd victimized the Stanford secondary to the tune of eight catches for 110 yards in last year’s meeting, but the Cardinal managed to keep Floyd out of the end zone.

Now Floyd, who has already gone for over 1,000 yards receiving this year, will be looking to tear off a big touchdown play this Saturday to make up for his lack of scoring in last year’s matchup.

Stanford CB Johnson Bademosi will have his hands full trying to contain the big, physical 6’3’’, 225-pound senior.

OG David DeCastro vs. LB Manti Te’o

Stanford, as always, is going to be looking to establish the run to set up the pass, but getting RB Stepfan Taylor going against a stout Notre Dame defensive front seven is easier said than done.

LB Manti Te’o loves to sit in the middle of the field and gobble up running backs all game long, so it will be up to All-American guard David DeCastro to get to the second level and knock Te’o out of the way.

DeCastro and Te’o are two of the strongest and most physical players in the country, and watching them butt heads throughout the game should be quite a treat for fans who enjoy hard-nosed smash mouth football.