In Super Bowl XXXVII, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers dominated the Oakland Raiders partly because their coach, Jon Gruden, coached the Raiders the year before and was familiar with the Oakland game plan.

The No. 22 Penn State men's lacrosse team (1-0) hopes it can duplicate the Bucs' performance when it faces No. 10 Notre Dame (0-0) at 1 p.m. Sunday in Holuba Hall.

The Nittany Lions have an advantage very similar to the one Tampa Bay enjoyed three years ago. Penn State assistant coach Guy Van Arsdale and sophomore attackman Brian Boyle were members of the Fighting Irish team that pounded Penn State 17-7 last season in South Bend, Ind. This year they are Lions, and they have been passing along any information they can to their new team about the Irish.

"I've been telling our guys about certain matchups about what some of [Notre Dame's] habits are and what they like to do," Boyle said. "[Notre Dame players] have been trying to squeeze me over there in terms of getting some information out of me, but that's not going to happen."

Boyle has been able to give his teammates insight from a player's perspective, but it's been Van Arsdale who has really been preparing the Lions for his former team.

"Guy has been helping us a lot in terms of matchups," Penn State coach Glenn Thiel said. "He knows a lot of what [Notre Dame] wants to do."

While Van Arsdale and Boyle have an inside track to what the Irish plan to do, Notre Dame coach Kevin Corrigan does not plan to change his scheme to fool his former player and coach.

"We are going to change all our numbers, disguise everyone and I might even suit up to play," Corrigan said. "No, we aren't going to change what we do. I like to think it's about execution with us. If we execute, we are tough to stop even if you know what's coming.

"Hopefully Guy's memory is as bad as mine anyway, so he will forget what we do."

Corrigan feels that his team has had an advantage in preparing for the Lions as well.

The Lions do have some intimate knowledge of Notre Dame, but they have not had a chance to see this year's Irish team play.

Notre Dame, on the other hand, has had a chance to watch the film from Penn State's 9-7 win last weekend against Ohio State, giving the Irish a look at the Lions' game plan.

"[Penn State] has the advantage in that they've played a game, but we have the advantage of seeing them play already," Corrigan said.

Boyle, who has been sidelined with a torn hamstring, has been practicing and hopes to make his Lion debut against his former teammates, but Thiel said it is very doubtful that Boyle will play. At practice Wednesday, however, Boyle sounded eager to do everything he can to step on the field Sunday.

"I've been doing a lot of rehab, going in twice a day," Boyle said. "Hopefully that will get me back out there. It would be pretty exciting. I've been talking to my ex-teammates all week. They've been jawing and talking so I hope to get out there."

Boyle, who transferred to Penn State this year, played in all 12 games for the Irish last season, scoring six points (two goals, four assists).