Washington pre-game notes

In no particular order, here are some thoughts about the Washington game:

Jake Locker equals scary. He’s quick, and still has the read-option capability he had before he got hurt last year, and now new coach Steve Sarkisian has him running a pro-style offense. Against Notre Dame’s suspect defense, the options for what Locker can do are endless. The defensive line, while getting better pressure on Purdue’s Joey Elliott last week, still can’t be relied upon to disrupt the quarterback.

The Huskies allow 195.8 yards on the ground so far this season, which, at almost two football fields worth, bodes well for a strong Irish ground attack. Armando Allen said Tuesday he was 90 percent healthy and should produce big yardage on the ground. The Huskies gave up 200 yards to Stanford’s Toby Gerhart, so Allen (and Jonas Gray and Robert Hughes) get them legs churning for some yards.

Jimmy Clausen should play well. Apparently he’s throwing in pain, but he’s better off than last week against Purdue. Still, look for Dayne Crist to get some playing time. Charlie Weis said Tuesday that Crist was getting more reps in practice, but with plays that Weis would conceivably call with Crist in the game. This implies that Weis is planning on using Crist in the game.

Manti Te’o will play more. No word on how, when or where. Just that he’ll play more. And thank the good lord, because he’s Notre Dame’s best linebacker and right up there with Kyle McCarthy as the best defensive playmaker in my opinion. He’s young and raw, but he’s too talented to keep on the bench behind Toryan Smith.

Eric Olsen, meet Alameda Ta’amu, all 348 pounds of him, because you’ll be responsible for keeping the massive defensive tackle out of the backfield Saturday.

Weis said Desmond Trufant, brother of former Husky and current Seahawks defensive back Marcus, runs well, but that strong safety Nate Williams is the key to the secondary.

Check in Saturday and Sunday for updates. Don’t forget to listen to the Irish Insider podcast, available on iTunes or at ndsmcobserver.com/podcasts.

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