MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Earlier than Mitch Jeter’s 41-yard discipline aim despatched Notre Dame to the nationwide championship sport, earlier than Christian Grey’s diving interception set it up or earlier than Jeremiyah Love’s mutant efficiency on a braced proper knee, Marcus Freeman stood earlier than his staff contained in the Diplomat Lodge on Hollywood Seashore on Wednesday afternoon.
Notre Dame’s head coach had simply returned from a remaining information convention earlier than kickoff, the type of throwaway media gathering often forgotten earlier than the final bowl trophy picture might be snapped. This wasn’t a kind of instances. Not for Freeman, Notre Dame’s head coach whose youth had reduce towards the grain of what it takes to achieve this sport of previous guards and classic attitudes. A head coach panned for not profitable sufficient massive video games determined to make some extent about his counterpart.
Penn State head coach James Franklin playfully requested Freeman how previous he was. He complimented his hairline. He would possibly as properly have patted the 38-year-old on the pinnacle and informed him what a superb job he was doing. As a result of that’s how Freeman heard it, gritting his tooth all through. And now Freeman was going to provide that vitality to a brand new supply.
His gamers may hardly imagine it.
“He was indignant. He was indignant with the press convention factor, no matter was occurring between that,” security Xavier Watts stated. “He was mad about that. All of the anger went towards us and that anger went onto the sector.”
In a sport the place Notre Dame wanted every little thing, from its backup quarterback to 2 backup offensive linemen, Franklin managed to provide the Irish just a bit bit extra. There was extra to this spectacular School Soccer Playoff semifinal than Franklin’s self-inflicted verbal wounds — the confetti littering Arduous Rock Stadium informed that story. Notre Dame didn’t win due to one thing stated from the opposite sideline. It received as a result of this program is aware of find out how to catalyze each benefit and find out how to deal with each problem.
Franklin simply provided a bonus one.
“I’m not gonna converse on their head coach, however we felt like their staff didn’t actually respect us,” Love stated. “We wished to come back into this sport and make an announcement. Be the aggressors. Dominate them bodily. That’s the message. Be bodily and play violent. The entire sport.”
In the long run, Notre Dame’s 27-24 victory over Penn State was all of that and extra. The Preventing Irish misplaced three offensive starters within the first half, with two offensive linemen happening for the sport and quarterback Riley Leonard struggling a head damage, which Notre Dame cleared as one thing apart from a concussion. In his absence, backup Steve Angeli saved the primary half, if not the day, main Notre Dame on a discipline aim drive after the Irish fell behind 10-0, their first double-digit deficit of the season.
There was extra hearth on the half, Freeman demanding Notre Dame observe its best bowl win in a technology towards Georgia on the Sugar Bowl with one thing larger right here. The Irish had been gashed on the bottom by Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton within the first half, by no means thoughts tight finish Tyler Warren. They didn’t set the perimeters, didn’t make their drops, didn’t get the main points proper that they’d nailed all 12 months.
And Notre Dame’s offense, a catastrophe class within the first half, wanted Like to play the hero when so few others may. Left deal with Anthonie Knapp had already been misplaced, changed by profession backup Tosh Baker to face a future top-five choose in Abdul Carter. When guard Rocco Spindler went down, redshirt freshman Charles Jagusah stepped in, a deal with who hadn’t performed all season requested to make it work at guard. And inexplicably he did, as Notre Dame constructed a 17-10 early within the fourth quarter when Love’s 2-yard run by way of 4 Penn State tacklers by some means outshined his 98-yard rating towards Indiana to open the School Soccer Playoff.
This view of Jeremiyah Love’s landing 😳 pic.twitter.com/oSdhKereqU
— ESPN School Soccer (@ESPNCFB) January 10, 2025
Love aggravated his MCL damage towards Georgia, sufficient that his availability appeared to be in query earlier than Notre Dame arrived in Florida. And even through the week, Love didn’t know if he’d be capable of do extra than simply take snaps, which wouldn’t have been sufficient for Notre Dame. Not in a sport like this.
“I type of simply type of got here out right here and stated f— it and went on the market and performed,” Love stated. “No matter occurs occurs, I belief in God. I belief in his plan for me.”
After two Singleton touchdowns pushed Penn State forward 24-17, making it appear to be Notre Dame may not have a response to those newest questions being requested, Leonard shook off a brutal interception to seek out Jaden Greathouse for a 54-yard landing with 4:38 to play. It was a part of Greathouse’s seven-catch, 105-yard night time, the primary 100-yard efficiency of his school profession.
“This staff has battled adversity all 12 months, challenges and struggles, we’ve been capable of face all of them,” Greathouse stated. “That’s the sensation tonight.”
Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman turned 39 on Friday. (Carmen Mandato / Getty Pictures)
After which Notre Dame closed the door on Penn State the way in which it finest is aware of how, baiting Drew Allar into an interception it believed had been coming all night time. One by Grey within the first half bought wiped off by penalty. One other within the second half by linebacker Jack Kiser bought taken off the board by move interference. Grey made certain the third would stand, enjoying a protection that defensive coordinator Al Golden stated he hadn’t known as all night time.
“He’s gonna throw us one, he’s gonna throw us one,” Watts stated. “We knew it was coming in some unspecified time in the future and it got here on the largest second.”
Linebacker Jaylen Sneed bought simply sufficient strain on Allar to go away the quarterback rather less time to throw, which was all Grey wanted. Once more, advantageous margins. Some earned within the movie room. Some taken on the sector. Some gifted, if the place to hear when the microphones are rolling.
Notre Dame turned Grey’s choose right into a seven-play, 19-yard procession into discipline aim vary. By then, Franklin had burned by way of his timeouts, not even capable of ice Jeter’s game-winning attempt. And possibly it wouldn’t have mattered anyway. The switch kicker drilled his second 41-yarder of the night time to ship Notre Dame to Atlanta, looking its first nationwide championship since 1988.
Contained in the Notre Dame locker room, Kiser tried to make sense of all this, his six-year journey to changing into an Irish captain beneath this up-and-coming head coach, employed to take this system the place some felt it may not go once more. Kiser didn’t need to get into an excessive amount of element in regards to the hearth and brimstone Freeman spewed the day earlier than kickoff when the 38-year-old head coach confirmed that this program has a weapon main it.
And but, as Kiser turned again to the locker room, a crimson digital clock flashed 12:17 a.m. Midnight had handed. It was now not sport night time. It simply occurred to be Marcus Freeman’s birthday, now the early morning minutes of Jan. 10.
“Let’s simply say that 17 minutes in the past coach Freeman turned 39,” Kiser stated. “So he’s not that younger man that lots of people deal with him as. Guys need to play for coach Freeman, and whenever you put gasoline on that fireside, it will possibly get actually explosive on this locker room.”
GO DEEPER
Drew Allar’s late interception in Orange Bowl loss leaves Penn State with acquainted intestine punch
(Picture: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Pictures)
