Notre Dame is back in a familiar position. They have the most efficient offence in America.
The Irish are back to the top spot nationally in offensive efficiency, scoring on 43.4% of their offensive possessions according to lacrosse reference. They led the nation in offensive efficiency last season and finished second in 2023.
But it hasn’t been smooth sailing all year. During back-to-back losses to Maryland and Ohio State, the Irish offence stumbled. Many (including myself) had questions about their offensive identity and their potential this season.
But they rebounded quickly and decisively with a 19-goal effort at Michigan (a team that is suddenly climbing the rankings) and a 14-goal demolishing of Duke.
In those two losses, the offence clicked at roughly 25% efficiency. In their wins, the rate is above 44%.
So what has been the secret to their turnaround? Lets look at the numbers and the film.
Maybe They Never Left?
Let’s start with the basics. Notre Dame’s two losses came to two of the best defences in the nation, and they came on bad shooting efforts.
As units, Maryland and Ohio State are third and sixth respectively in defensive efficiency according to lacrosse reference. At the time both of them played Notre Dame, we probably didn’t realize just how good they were, which may have impacted the general feeling that Notre Dame was struggling. Both teams have silenced several other very good offences since they did so to the Irish.
The same is true of the shooting. Logan McNaney and Caleb Fyock are third and second respectively in save percentage according to ncaa.com. McNaney in particular was incredible, making the game winning save on a great look by the Irish.
LOGAN SEALS THE MARYLAND WIN pic.twitter.com/2gW8mNB06X
— Maryland Men's Lacrosse (@TerpsMLax) March 1, 2025
They have also cleaned up silly mistakes. After making 15 offensive turnovers against Maryland, 14 against Georgetown, and 13 against Ohio State, they committed just 15 TOTAL against Duke and Michigan. Turnovers can obviously be the result of good defence, but in general the Irish have turned the risk down and opted for first downs instead of deep shots (I’m tired of the “hit singles” analogy).
So the first answer for how the Irish have gotten their offensive groove back, is that they never really lost it… they ran into some good teams and had some sloppy stick-work.
But that’s not very fun. There are some identifiable things that the Irish have figured out in their resurgence.
Lineup Stability
The Irish have decided on a lineup. Devon McLane is now a lefty attackman.
This change came after the Maryland game, when freshman Brady Pokorny was getting the short stick against the Terps. Coach Corrigan and his staff decided to put veteran midfielder McLane down low with Chris Kavanagh and Jake Taylor.
This was an interesting decision, as McLane is neither an attackman (at least not at Notre Dame), nor a lefty. It was also interesting because McLane is not a dodge-first kind of player. So they replaced Pokorny with a player who was still likely to get the short stick.
I questioned this move on the College Lacrosse Show, and discussed the challenges of playing without a lefty. (Start the clip at 24:25 if it doesn’t work).
But the move is starting to pay dividends. Against Duke, McLane was the primary pick setter for Chris Kavanagh in big/little scenarios, and his veteran presence kept the ball moving for Notre Dame.
The other element for Notre Dame is that they solidified two midfield lines. Last year, they ran three lines, and they tried to do the same this year. Realizing that chemistry was lacking, they decided to land on two lines. Despite losing Max Busenkell, they replaced him and kept rolling.
Around the same time, football dual-athletes Jordan Faison and Matt Jeffery started to look healthier after their time on the gridiron. The result is that the Irish midfield has generally been much more effective.
West-Coast Offence
The big thing I noticed with the Notre Dame offence as of late is the number of times they force the defence to shift. This is important both east-west (i.e moving the ball from the left to the right of the field) and north-south (above and below the goal).
When they struggled against Ohio State, there were too many possessions like this one. They got just two or three passes, flipped the field only once, and got the ball behind the goal only once. This led to an unassisted, low angle shot.
It’s a decent look, against one of the nation’s best goaltenders. In other words, it’s not very good look.
The same is true on this one.
And they forced several shots early in possessions, looking for the big play instead of keeping the flow moving.
Now compare that against this possession against Duke, which lacrosse nerds will love. By my count, they made 15 passes, swung the ball from one side to the other six times, and crossed behind the net three times. The result was a two-man game with their two veterans and an assisted goal. Nobody in this clip holds the ball for more than 3-4 seconds.
The result of this ball movement is they get their best players in space. It’s not fancy, but the Irish dodge and move it twice with regularity. With Faison, Angrick and Jeffery on the first line, they put major pressure on defences.
Against Duke, Jeffery was starting his dodges lower on the wing, rather than from the high corners. This gave the Irish a defacto lefty attackman, and got him close to the goal. Sometimes the long run can make players excited and give them a lot of time to think. Against Duke, the freshman broke ankles and stuffed it.
This is simple, old school lacrosse. Alley dodge, throw forward, swing it twice, go again. No skip passes are necessary.
As a side note, Duke didn’t help themselves in this one. They were too urgent to slide to dodgers, and lacked urgency on adjacent players to close gaps and have support. On both the above goals, Duke isn’t prepared off-ball.
This one is a broken play, but the fundamentals remain the same. After picking up the loose ball, Notre Dame moves it with consecutive, low risk passes that beat Duke on the backside.
Here is another good example. Notre Dame goes to the big/little, and three times re-establishes themselves behind the goal. Again, they flip the field several times left to right, and several times above and below the goal. The result is a great look for McLane and a great save by Patrick Jamieson.
Big Time Players
Strategically, the Irish are very multiple. They show a number of different looks and sets throughout the game. I originally planned to outline these strategies, but there are too many to concisely explain. More importantly, it is the way the Irish are playing, not the plays they are running, that is making the difference.
By turning down the risk, the Irish are letting their talent shine. Chris Kavanagh is everywhere on the field. Other than maybe Harvard’s Sam King, I can’t think of a player who attacks from more varied positions on the field. Irish offensive coordinator Chris Wojcik will use him as the “pop” man in the high wing, as the picker OR carrier in the big/little, or an initiator from somewhere else.
Likewise, Jake Taylor continues to solidify himself as a college lacrosse legend. His feel and lacrosse IQ are incredible. Against Duke, Notre Dame buried the Blue Devils with power play and broken play goals. This one was both.
Jake Taylor 🤝 #SCTop10 pic.twitter.com/YTUSKOvbXz
— Notre Dame Lacrosse (@NDlacrosse) March 30, 2025
In other words, the Irish boys are back to their old tricks.
If you’re an Irish fan, nature is healing.
If not, look out. The Irish are gearing up for a three-peat.