Marcus Freeman listened calmly to a question about the biggest football game of his life. It was coming so soon, everyone in the stadium for a morning of advance press conferences could feel it.
“I think it will be an atmosphere like no other,” Freeman said.
Maybe he was right. But this was early January in 2008, and Freeman — a linebacker and team captain for Ohio State — was discussing the Buckeyes’ upcoming Bowl Championship Series title game against LSU at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans. Let the record show it was the Tigers who ended up winning that one, 38-24.
With all due respect to those teams, that venue and the erstwhile BCS — not to mention Freeman himself — everything about college football’s national championship has become a bigger deal since then. And when Ohio State takes the field Monday against Freeman’s new team, Notre Dame, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, it will indeed be bigger than ever.
This, folks, is the sort of spectacle the powers-that-be in college football envisioned when the sport’s playoff was expanded from four teams to 12 heading into this season.
“It’s going to be a difficult one,” Freeman said Sunday. “We know that. But listen, go out there and enjoy it and don’t let the things outside of those white lines affect the way you play. That’s probably what’s most important. I’m grateful for this opportunity and looking forward to it.”
Freeman hails from Ohio, earned a degree from Ohio State and embarked on his coaching career there as a graduate assistant under Jim Tressel, with whom he remains very close. Perhaps someday, he’ll coach the Buckeyes himself. Or the Bears or another NFL team. Freeman, who turned 39 during this playoff, has an entire career in front of him.
But make no mistake — this is a Notre Dame man we’re talking about. Anyone who has paid any attention at all to this Fighting Irish team surely has felt that. These Irish (14-1) are Freeman, and vice versa, to a palpable, inextricable degree that some would say surpasses the dynamic that existed at any time in predecessor Brian Kelly’s 12 seasons at the school. That’s nine more than Freeman has spent as head coach.
“This isn’t about where I went to school,” Freeman said. “This is about the opportunity right in front of us.”
The Buckeyes (13-2), favored by 8½ points, have been the most talented team in the country since the pads were pulled on for the first practice of training camp. In certain obvious respects, they’ve lived up to the billing.
Offensively, their ability can be overwhelming. How many other schools would even dream of having a running back combo like Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson, let alone a pass-catching duo as magnificent as Jeremiah Smith and Emeka Egbuka? With a steady, tough, pinpoint quarterback in Will Howard to direct it all, it’s close to the ideal scenario.
And this is one of the great defenses of recent vintage. Led by Caleb Downs, Jack Sawyer, Cody Simon, Lathan Ransom and other stars, the Buckeyes rank No. 1 nationally in total defense, passing defense and scoring defense.
The playoff push — past Tennessee (42-17), Oregon (41-21) and Texas (28-14) — has been exquisite.
At their best, the Buckeyes just might be unbeatable. On the other hand:
“We’ve got good players, too,” Freeman said. “We’ve got to do what we do.”
The Irish — ninth in total defense and second in scoring defense — want to stop the run, keep Howard guessing with creative coverage schemes and stiffen up in the red zone. Offensively, quarterback Riley Leonard, who can match athleticism with anyone on OSU’s defense, must grind the clock with his legs and with smart, on-time passes. The Irish don’t have to trick their way through a game against anybody. If they execute, they’ll stay in the fight — and the Buckeyes know it.
“We have to play Big Ten football,” coach Ryan Day said. “That’s what it’s going to look like.”
It has been 36 years since Notre Dame’s last championship and forever since Notre Dame’s last win against Ohio State. The Irish are 0-6 all-time, including a 21-10 loss at Ohio Stadium in 2022 and a 17-14 loss in South Bend in 2023.
Does any of that matter this time? No, not really.
What matters is that Leonard, safety Xavier Watts, linebacker Jack Kiser have one more shot to play a game together. The same can be said on Ohio State’s side, of course.
If the Irish do it their way, they’ll put some doubt in the Buckeyes’ heads much as Michigan did in the regular-season finale, a shocking upset that made everyone wonder if OSU was simply overblown.
“This game will take you to your knees,” Day said, “and give you some of the greatest experiences in the world.”
By now — more games into the season than any other FBS team has ever played — it damn sure has been a journey like no other. No doubt, the atmosphere will live up to the moment.
The pick: Buckeyes, 24-17.