How Notre Dame Fighting Irish Can Win the National Championship

When Notre Dame lines up against Ohio State in the finale of the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff, the Fighting Irish will aim to end two droughts. First and foremost is their 36-year spell since last winning the sport’s title.

But it has also been since 1936 that a Notre Dame team defeated the Buckeyes. With Ohio State rolling through Tennessee, Oregon, and Texas en route to Atlanta, this version of the scarlet and gray seems to have hit its peak at the ideal time.

Slowing the Buckeyes isn’t easy, but it certainly isn’t impossible. Three keys could determine Notre Dame’s national championship prospects on Monday.

Play Like There’s “Nothing to Lose” in the Red Zone

Jack Sawyer’s sack-fumble and ensuing scoop-and-score buried Texas in the Cotton Bowl, sealing Ohio State’s place in the National Championship Game in the process. But that moment was just a snapshot of the tremendous red-zone defense the Buckeyes have played throughout the campaign.

With just 15 touchdowns allowed on 36 opponent red-zone trips this season, Ohio State’s 41.7% yield is second among all FBS defenses. The only better red-zone defense belonged to Penn State at 41.5%, with 17 touchdowns scored on 41 red-zone opportunities.

Two of those red-zone touchdowns came courtesy of Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. Riley Leonard’s three-yard end-zone carry early in the third quarter capped a 75-yard drive and served as the spark the Fighting Irish desperately needed after scoring only three first-half points.

“You’ve got nothing to lose. You’ve already made it so far,’” is how Leonard described Irish coach Marcus Freeman’s message. “‘You can live with no regrets as long as you go out there and play your game, let the ball fly around.’”

Jeremiyah Love similarly capped a 71-yard drive with a go-ahead touchdown at the goal line. These possessions ended in the kind of emphatic fashion that Notre Dame left on the board in its Playoff-opening win over Indiana, which would have made that victory more lopsided.

Against Ohio State, every opportunity to score is precious. The Irish cannot afford to move inside the 20 and not come away with seven points. In that regard, they have everything to lose in the red zone.

At the same time, that message of playing with nothing to lose against Ohio State’s talented defense will be Notre Dame’s key to capitalizing on opportunities.

Create Takeaways

Notre Dame thrived all season at generating turnovers. The Fighting Irish average a plus-1.13 turnover margin per game, which ranks fifth in the FBS ahead of Monday’s National Championship Game. They will close the season with the nation’s most total takeaways, regardless of whether they force any against Ohio State.

“This just shows what we’re made of as a defense…being able to rise to the occasion in big moments and make stops when you need to,” cornerback Leonard Moore said.

Coming up with big stops for Notre Dame has often been synonymous with generating turnovers. Against Ohio State, the magic number may be two.

Simply winning the turnover battle has not necessarily been a formula for beating the Buckeyes. They came out with a negative turnover margin while decimating Tennessee in the Playoff’s first round, for example.

However, of Ohio State’s five games committing multiple turnovers this season, two were in their losses at Oregon and to Michigan.

Fighting Irish fans might grimace at their team ever being asked to emulate the rival Wolverines, but Michigan coming away with both of their turnovers against Ohio State via interceptions of Will Howard offers the Golden Domers a blueprint.

Notre Dame’s outstanding turnover generation starts with its deep and talented secondary, which boasts a variety of playmakers adept at picking off passes. Moore is one of four Irish defenders with multiple picks this season, a quartet led by Xavier Watts’ six.

The line between jumping a route in pursuit of an interception and opening the door for one of Ohio State’s outstanding, big-play receivers to make a devastating catch is especially thin. Notre Dame also needs steady pressure on Howard from its front seven, which segues into the Irish’s third key to winning the national championship.

New Faces Stepping Up in the Biggest Spot

Injuries are an unavoidable reality of football, particularly in a season as long as the unprecedented run ending Monday for Notre Dame and Ohio State. On the way to Atlanta, however, the Fighting Irish have endured a rash of injuries that could very well have derailed their season earlier.

Both lines have been particularly challenged, with the defensive side losing Jordan Bothelo in September, talented freshman Boubacar Traore in October, and Rylie Mills in the first-round win over Indiana.

Howard Cross III’s return on the interior provided some much-needed relief. Filling in for Mills, veteran Gabriel Rubio played his two most productive games in the Sugar and Orange Bowl wins over Georgia and Penn State.

Now it’s the offensive line’s turn to have contributors step up on the ultimate stage. Freeman announced left tackle Anthonie Knapp is out. Redshirt freshman Charles Jagusah could be the most critical part of the Irish offense against an Ohio State defense featuring edge rusher JT Tuimoloau, who boasts nearly 20 tackles for loss on the season.