The dreams of Notre Dame ending its long national championship drought came to a crashing halt in the National Championship game last night. After a near-perfect first drive momentarily gave the Irish a 7-0 lead, Ohio State’s offense marched up and down the field on a defense that simply had no answers. The Irish fought back valiantly in the 4th quarter after falling behind 31-7 at one point but couldn’t get the stop they needed to give its offense a chance to tie the game. Riley Leonard passed for a season-high 255 yards and threw a pair of touchdowns to Jaden Greathouse, who had his second consecutive 100-yard performance.
Follow on X
when does espn fire ryan day?
It’s been said it’s not who you play but when you play them.
tOSU played nearly flawless, as they have throughout the playoffs.
NDs O’ and special teams excelled all year, but . . .
NDs D’ is what got ND to the championship game.
Their effort and excellence all season long were impressive. But this game:
They ran up against a team that seemed better prepared who better executed a game plan perhaps with too many weapons to contain.
Re: ND
They weren’t able to pressure the QB
They didn’t provide pressure up the middle
They didn’t fill the run lanes consistently and effectively enough ( a tale of two halves- other than giving up a 70 yd. run and a bomb late leading to the last FG, NDs D’ played well in the 2nd half).
They were plagued with poor execution on both sides of the ball
( with missed open receivers and over 25 missed tackles the last two games versus 4 vs GA)
ND didn’t maximize their best player #4 (especially 1st & goal from the 9)
tOSU did maximize their best player #4 (especially on 3rd & long, late)
tOSU were healthier and better Monday night. I’d have loved to have Traore, Bothello,Mills, Morrison, or at least one or two of them; plus having Cross, Love, and Rocco on two good legs.
Sooner or later, key injuries catch up.
Kudos to Greathouse (underused all season), KVA, Clark, Moore, Burnham and, of course, Dr. Watts.Thanks to all whose eligibility has expired contributing to bringing ND back to be among the elite they have become, with superb stars and depth we ND fans haven’t seen.
Looking forward to a consistently elite program in the coming years under Coach Free.
Thanks for all the memories this excellent team provided this season
Love thee, Notre Dame.