It's not that OSU will be great on defense, but they have elite talent to play with so they *might* be good. It's that Notre Dame's quarterback play is a HUGE variable and the same shortcomings of previous years are still here: lack of interior run game (Patterson being hurt doesn't help) and a WR corp that cannot get separation.
I pulled the 31-3 out of my ass as a reference to the Clemson playoff game wherein the Irish were beat 30-3. Is Ohio State's defense Clemson good? Hell no. But I think the Notre Dame offense could be ranked around 50ish if Buchner doesn't show significant passing improvement from his true freshman campaign.
Everyone wants to say Knowles won't turn it around immediately... but are we to forget that Notre Dame was 79th in rushing ypg last season?
I'm a Doubting Thomas for Notre Dame's offense until proven otherwise. I think OSU can guard WRs one-on-one well enough to blitz Buchner and/or stack the box. It's pretty obvious that Rees has to get the TEs and RBs split out so much to take pressure off of this inevitable defensive mindset. But great, you've split Mayer and RBs out, can Buchner actually go through his reads under the pressure they will bring? It's just a lot to ask and I would not be surprised if they fell flat on their face week one.