Ohio State outlasts Notre Dame to take home CFP National Championship
Instead of having to cry over another collapse, Ohio State can celebrate another national title with a 34-23 victory over the Fighting Irish after postponing Notre Dame’s comeback bid on Monday night.
Will Howard hit receiver Jeremiah Smith for 56 yards late on third-and-11 to seal an otherwise hilarious game. Then it turned into something else.
Trailing 31-7, Notre Dame scored two touchdowns and two two-point conversions to pull within one late in the fourth quarter.
The Irish stopped Ohio State on its first two possessions and took advantage of the timeout. But on third down, Howard found Smith in man coverage down the right sideline and delivered his best pass of the season to a second-team All-American.
It was a field goal that officially started the celebrations (and helped Ohio State close an 8 1/2-point deficit at BetMGM Sportsbook) and ended a seven-week run of losses to lowly Michigan that trailed by 20 points. Reaching the pinnacle of college football. Ohio State will bring the ‘Tidy’ back to Columbus’ Horseshoe Stadium for the sixth time and first since the 2014 season.
Getty Images
Howard was a success story as a transfer from Kansas State, throwing for 231 yards and two scores, but nothing could compare to what he did getting the ball to Smith.
The receiver was stranded by Texas in the semifinals and then was pretty quiet for most of this game, finally shaking off the performance he’s had all year. He finished with five catches for 88 yards.
Ohio State scored touchdowns on its first four possessions before converting a field goal on its fifth drive.
When Mississippi State’s Quinshon Judkins (100 yards, 11 carries, 3 TDs) rushed for 70 yards to make it 28-7, he underscored Ohio State’s success against Smart use of growing portals. The game is over.
That wasn’t the case, and now Irish coach Marcus Freeman will have to answer some tough questions — one about a failed false pun in the third quarter that turned into a field goal to make it 31-7, and another about Send Mickey Jeter in. A short field goal attempt while trailing by 16 and facing a fourth goal from the 9. It might have looked like a better call if Jeter’s kick hadn’t clanged off the left upright.
But in reality, Ohio State is the better team. The Buckeyes led Notre Dame with 445 yards to 308 yards. Howard completed his first 13 passes and was never really stopped. Evidence: Ohio State took a total of one bet.
Getty Images
The Buckeyes have won four games in the new 12-team postseason by a combined score of 145-85 — what a great time for Ohio State.
Ohio State is ranked eighth in the tournament, but its seeding is almost meaningless. The worse seeds won every game in the quarterfinals and semifinals, and the Buckeyes dominated this No. 7 vs. No. 8 championship game.
For now, that temporarily removes any anxiety about November’s 13-10 loss at Michigan — Ohio State’s fourth straight loss in the series — and has many inside and outside Buckeye circles thinking about Day. Yi, in his sixth season on a campus that hasn’t tasted a championship in a decade, is no longer useful.
Instead, he joined Urban Meyer, Jim Tressel, Woody Hayes and Paul Brown on a roster of championship coaches. Additionally, Day’s .873 winning percentage ranks third among coaches with more than 50 games played, trailing only Notre Dame legend Knute Rockne himself.
College football has yet to have a black coach win a national championship. Freeman tried to be the first.
In its place is another kind of history. This marks the first time since 1942 that the Big Ten has won back-to-back championships. Last year’s champion was Michigan State, which sat at home watching this game but still played a special role in the Buckeyes’ redemption story that few saw coming.
