Malcolm Greene says Tigers and Irish will be 'a great game'

Malcolm Greene saw his playing time go up last time out versus Syracuse.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Sat Nov 05 07:00:05 GMT-04:00 2022

CLEMSON – Clemson’s defensive players know what Notre Dame’s offense will bring to the table Saturday night: a running offense and throws to the tight end.

No. 4 Clemson travels to South Bend to take on the Fighting Irish at 7:30 pm (NBC). Notre Dame has a three-headed monster at running back as Audric Estime, Logan Diggs, and Chris Tyree have combined to rush for 1,311 yards this season on 272 carries.

In the passing game, Notre Dame relies on tight end Michael Mayer, who has 47 receptions on the season.

Clemson defensive back Malcolm Greene said the Irish come right at you with what they do best.

“I see they are a team that loves to run. I see they are a team that loves the tight end,” Greene said earlier this week. “They love the tight end’s versatility and they do a lot in the passing game. They use their receivers a lot and they like to block. The offensive line is very sound and fundamental in what they do. Their quarterbacks never have a drop-off and they do great things and they play to a standard there.”

Greene said the matchup between Mayer and the Tigers’ linebackers and defensive backs will be fun to watch.

“He plays hard. We play hard. It’s going to be a great game,” Greene said. “It’s going to be a lot of competing out there. There are going to be a lot of guys trying to make plays. Everybody on our side of the ball, if we follow our keys and fundamentals, we’ll take the strides we need to. I’m sure they’ll do the same.”

Playing at an iconic venue like Notre Dame Stadium is never easy, and Greene said he knows what his mindset has to be.

“My mindset heading into this game is to definitely make sure we aren’t too fazed or out of whack about the size of the moment or anything going on around in the environment,” he said. “Just understand it’s the next game and we have to dominate each moment in front of us and have everybody collectively on the same path and with the same mindset. It’s going to do great things for us.”

Greene was a freshman the last time Clemson played at Notre Dame. The Tigers lost 47-40 in a double-overtime heartbreaker.

“DJ (Uiagalelei) had a good game. It was a good, pretty cool environment. A lot going on,” Greene said. “A good-looking campus when we drove through. Their fans rally behind their team a lot, just like our fans do. I’m sure our fans will come out and support us more than when things were restricted with Covid.”