National Championship: Ohio State vs Notre Dame Score Prediction Thread

Notre Dame beat the team that provided Texas’ other 2 losses by 13 points, so, yes, it is fair to say they are better than Texas. Oregon may very well be the 2nd best team in the country, I will grant you that, but they did beat Ohio State!
UGA was missing their starting QB. That is kind of a big thing.
 
UGA was missing their starting QB. That is kind of a big thing.
QB was not the reason why Georgia lost to Notre Dame, even Georgia fans will admit that. The backup played well, and he’s the same guy that led a comeback for Georgia to beat Texas in the SEC championship. Georgia also basically pushed Carson Beck out this offseason to make room for the guy to start next year. Notre Dame is definitely better than Texas.
 
QB was not the reason why Georgia lost to Notre Dame, even Georgia fans will admit that. The backup played well, and he’s the same guy that led a comeback for Georgia to beat Texas in the SEC championship. Georgia also basically pushed Carson Beck out this offseason to make room for the guy to start next year. Notre Dame is definitely better than Texas.
Did you forget the strip sack that led to a TD? Probably a more experienced QB senses the pressure and prevents that from happening.
 
For what, believing in my team? That’s fine; I can take the heat.

I would think your ire would be better directed at the Ohio State fanbase, including several of the Ohio State posters on this board, who wanted Ryan Day fired after the Michigan loss and said the playoffs were an afterthought that the team just might go through the motions with and get bounced in the first round. And then let their stadium get taken over by Tennessee orange.

It seems like I had more faith in the Ohio State team this season than many Ohio State posters.
Meh. I have a lot of experience with the Ohio St fanbase. Most of them are very fine and reasonable people. A fraction needs to find a little balance in their life. I'm used to them.

That said, the expectations are that you beat TTUN, win the B1G, and at least compete for a national championship. When those expectations are not met, people will not be happy. The overly emotional ones will say all kinds of crazy things.

The Ohio State fanbase cares a lot about that football program. With that comes some blessings and curses.

But as I'm typing this, I have an NFL analyst on breaking down this game and he is laying it out in the terms I have understood football games, that is, paths to victory.

He goes into all kinds of analytic minutia of the strengths and weaknesses of both team's units and then translates that into most likely ways for each team to win.

In short, he does not see ND scoring more than 17-20 points in this game and Ohio St scoring less than 24-27. So, to make that up, the Irish are going to have to have multiple turnovers, non-offensive scores, and some unexpected explosive plays to score enough and hold Ohio State's scoring down.

The good news for ND fans is that the Irish have been really good at doing those things. The bad news is that OSU has been pretty good at not allowing that.

In short, ND has a narrow path to win this game that involves a lot of things going right for them. It's narrow, but not impossible. Ohio St can win this game in a variety of ways. That is why they are pretty big favorites, but ND has a legit shot and if they play exceptionally well, we will call them national champions.
 
Meh. I have a lot of experience with the Ohio St fanbase. Most of them are very fine and reasonable people. A fraction needs to find a little balance in their life. I'm used to them.

That said, the expectations are that you beat TTUN, win the B1G, and at least compete for a national championship. When those expectations are not met, people will not be happy. The overly emotional ones will say all kinds of crazy things.

The Ohio State fanbase cares a lot about that football program. With that comes some blessings and curses.

But as I'm typing this, I have an NFL analyst on breaking down this game and he is laying it out in the terms I have understood football games, that is, paths to victory.

He goes into all kinds of analytic minutia of the strengths and weaknesses of both team's units and then translates that into most likely ways for each team to win.

In short, he does not see ND scoring more than 17-20 points in this game and Ohio St scoring less than 24-27. So, to make that up, the Irish are going to have to have multiple turnovers, non-offensive scores, and some unexpected explosive plays to score enough and hold Ohio State's scoring down.

The good news for ND fans is that the Irish have been really good at doing those things. The bad news is that OSU has been pretty good at not allowing that.

In short, ND has a narrow path to win this game that involves a lot of things going right for them. It's narrow, but not impossible. Ohio St can win this game in a variety of ways. That is why they are pretty big favorites, but ND has a legit shot and if they play exceptionally well, we will call them national champions.
Not necessarily. All of the Ohio State fans just assume that they will shutdown Notre Dame’s #1 ranked (in EPA/play) rushing attack. They might! But Notre Dame is 4th nationally in ypc despite only being 26th in rushing success rate, and it’s because they are actually pretty darn explosive. If Ohio State allows too many successful runs, the odds of a big play and Notre Dame having an explosive offense go way up.
 
All of the Ohio State fans just assume...
Quiz: What is the problematic word in the sentence above?

Hint: It's 3 letters and it isn't "the".

When you begin your point with a false assertion, what follows tends to not be very sound. But loose language and hyperbole is common among fans, so we will move on to the more substantive part of your comment.

I don't think anyone who has watched these two teams and understands a little football thinks Ohio St running the ball, or being stopped, is the primary factor in this game.

There are two main questions.

1) To what degree can ND contain the OSU passing game?

2) How is ND going to move the ball on that Ohio St defense that will be set for RB and QB run.

R Leonard has this incredible talent on 3rd and 6 at running for 18 feet, 2 inches. Ohio St will be trying to hold him to 17 feet, 11 inches - and Caleb Downs will be the pivotal defender trying to stop that.

The other thing I will be looking at is ND is one of the worst teams in the country at converting 3rd and 7+. I will want to see what the OSU defense does on 1st and 2nd down. If they force a lot of 3rd and longs, ND will be in serious trouble. If the Irish are getting to 3rd and 3 or less, they will be right where they need to be.
 
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Notre Dame beat the team that provided Texas’ other 2 losses by 13 points, so, yes, it is fair to say they are better than Texas. Oregon may very well be the 2nd best team in the country, I will grant you that, but they did beat Ohio State!
Using a defeat of a team without their starting QB as a barometer is a bit off
 
Ohio State 45
ND 20

Each round the Buckeyes have won in more impressive fashion against better opponents
1st round- The Buckeyes whooping of Tennessee was more impressive than ND dominate victory over Indiana
2nd round- The Buckeyes whooping of Oregon was more impressive than ND solid victory over Georgia
3rd round- The Buckeyes victory over Texas was more impressive than ND come from behind win over a Penn State team that did nada offensively against OSU

During Ryan Days tenure when the starting QB plays in bowl/playoff games they have scored 23, 49, 24, 48, 41, 42, 41 and 28 points.

Also looking at last year's come from behind victory against ND the Buckeyes punted 3 times. Twice when penalties killed drives. Once when they ran 3 straight times ( this playcalling seems to be rectified this postseason)
Ohio States A game is better than Notre Dames A game. I cannot forsee a scenario where Leonard just goes off to match the production of a Chip Kelly called game with these weapons
 
Meh. I have a lot of experience with the Ohio St fanbase. Most of them are very fine and reasonable people. A fraction needs to find a little balance in their life. I'm used to them.

That said, the expectations are that you beat TTUN, win the B1G, and at least compete for a national championship. When those expectations are not met, people will not be happy. The overly emotional ones will say all kinds of crazy things.

The Ohio State fanbase cares a lot about that football program. With that comes some blessings and curses.

But as I'm typing this, I have an NFL analyst on breaking down this game and he is laying it out in the terms I have understood football games, that is, paths to victory.

He goes into all kinds of analytic minutia of the strengths and weaknesses of both team's units and then translates that into most likely ways for each team to win.

In short, he does not see ND scoring more than 17-20 points in this game and Ohio St scoring less than 24-27. So, to make that up, the Irish are going to have to have multiple turnovers, non-offensive scores, and some unexpected explosive plays to score enough and hold Ohio State's scoring down.

The good news for ND fans is that the Irish have been really good at doing those things. The bad news is that OSU has been pretty good at not allowing that.

In short, ND has a narrow path to win this game that involves a lot of things going right for them. It's narrow, but not impossible. Ohio St can win this game in a variety of ways. That is why they are pretty big favorites, but ND has a legit shot and if they play exceptionally well, we will call them national champions.
As far as fanbase goes, I openly admit that my hatred for Michigan is at a level that probably is too high. I also openly admit that I have been highly critical of the coaching staff. But, the staff is very deserving of praise for what they have done in the playoffs. Buckeyes 27-17.
 
After considering all the elements of this game, I don’t see it remaining close into the fourth quarter.

Notre Dame will be ahead handily by then. Here’s how:

You start with the Sam Darnold effect. Nice season, but pees down his leg when it matters most. That sounds a lot like Will Howard to me. Blew it at the end of the Oregon game. Was terrible against Michigan. He will be seeing ghosts in that secondary early in the game, much as Mr. Darnold famously did.

Once that happens, Howard holds onto the ball a little longer and gets turned into a human piñata by the Notre Dame pass rush. As the Buckeye stickers fly off his helmet like candy flying at an 8-year-old’s birthday party, Buckeye fans will wonder whether the holiday they’re experiencing is Martin Luther King Day because it’ll look like Cinco De Mayo!

View attachment 73308

Throw in a back-breaking pick-six and the Buckeye fanbase’s eyes will be watering like they just got their nose punched right back into their head.

Add in the fact that Jaden Greathouse and/or Jordan Faison will return Denzel Burke to his rightful home, the common kitchen toaster oven, and I see almost all the big plays going the Irish’s way.

Meanwhile, Third Base’s bulbous cheeks will turn bright red in embarrassment, matching the scarlet numbers that are routinely getting shoved into the Mercedes-Benz Stadium field turf.

Final score: Notre Dame 34, Ohio State 17 (Ohio State kicks in a late TD to make it look halfway respectable.)

In the aftermath, Jeremiah Smith transfers to Tennessee.

It’s true, it’s true. Trust me …
1000015443.jpg
 
As far as fanbase goes, I openly admit that my hatred for Michigan is at a level that probably is too high. I also openly admit that I have been highly critical of the coaching staff. But, the staff is very deserving of praise for what they have done in the playoffs. Buckeyes 27-17.
Hey, you care about Ohio St football.

As for the most extreme fans, every ridiculous thing that they say is because they care. They get so emotional when things don't go right and the reason side of their brains gets disengaged.

We have to consider whether we want a program that people really care about, with the range of fanatics that come with it, or would we want to be fans of some mediocre program with an apathetic fan base. I'll take the former for many reasons, but mainly because the latter don't compete for championships.

I've grown as a fan. I can remember when I was a newlywed, Ohio St would lose a game and I would throw a fit (and just generally throw things), say stupid stuff, and mope around for a week.

Finally, that gorgeous woman I married had seen and heard enough and asked me a simple question: "Why are you allowing the outcome of a game, played by guys you don't know, affect your mood?"

I, of course, replied, "Well, you see Hon, they, uh, we'll it's like this, uh, er..." I had no good explanation and it bothered me to no end that the science and reason guy was being emotional and irrational - and that she was pointing it out. Change began right there.

As I got older, I got a better perspective on my playing experiences. When I began leading things, I began to understand the difficulties of leadership and started to see my coaches' decisions in a fuller way. All of that helped me toward being more reasonable.

All of that said, cell phone video exists of me acting like an idiott - and recently. But it tends to be of a more positive variety like celebrating a big play. But I can still get negative at times.

All that said to say this: many fans grow in maturity, perspective, and balance their emotion with a decent amount of reason over time. Some never do. All the negativity and criticism becomes how they live out what their concept of being a fan is, so when everything isn't perfect or their expectations aren't met, they want everyone fired, the QB replaced, everybody sucks, etc. I just can't live like that and my challenge to those who choose to exist in that misery is to come over to the kind of Fandom where the game is fun and you can experience joy in it. FWIW
 
QB was not the reason why Georgia lost to Notre Dame, even Georgia fans will admit that. The backup played well, and he’s the same guy that led a comeback for Georgia to beat Texas in the SEC championship. Georgia also basically pushed Carson Beck out this offseason to make room for the guy to start next year. Notre Dame is definitely better than Texas.
lol wut?
 
Not necessarily. All of the Ohio State fans just assume that they will shutdown Notre Dame’s #1 ranked (in EPA/play) rushing attack. They might! But Notre Dame is 4th nationally in ypc despite only being 26th in rushing success rate, and it’s because they are actually pretty darn explosive. If Ohio State allows too many successful runs, the odds of a big play and Notre Dame having an explosive offense go way up.
How’s that rushing offense looked since Love and half the OL got hurt?

Surely they put up similar numbers against Georgia and Penn State as their season averages and had a lot of explosive runs, yes?

Surely, their average against Georgia didn’t drop to 4.1 ypc (good, nowhere near #1) with 1 explosive rush by the QB, yes?

Surely their average run against Penn State didn’t drop to less than 3 ypc with 0 explosive run plays, yes?
 
After considering all the elements of this game, I don’t see it remaining close into the fourth quarter.

Notre Dame will be ahead handily by then. Here’s how:

You start with the Sam Darnold effect. Nice season, but pees down his leg when it matters most. That sounds a lot like Will Howard to me. Blew it at the end of the Oregon game. Was terrible against Michigan. He will be seeing ghosts in that secondary early in the game, much as Mr. Darnold famously did.

Once that happens, Howard holds onto the ball a little longer and gets turned into a human piñata by the Notre Dame pass rush. As the Buckeye stickers fly off his helmet like candy flying at an 8-year-old’s birthday party, Buckeye fans will wonder whether the holiday they’re experiencing is Martin Luther King Day because it’ll look like Cinco De Mayo!

View attachment 73308

Throw in a back-breaking pick-six and the Buckeye fanbase’s eyes will be watering like they just got their nose punched right back into their head.

Add in the fact that Jaden Greathouse and/or Jordan Faison will return Denzel Burke to his rightful home, the common kitchen toaster oven, and I see almost all the big plays going the Irish’s way.

Meanwhile, Third Base’s bulbous cheeks will turn bright red in embarrassment, matching the scarlet numbers that are routinely getting shoved into the Mercedes-Benz Stadium field turf.

Final score: Notre Dame 34, Ohio State 17 (Ohio State kicks in a late TD to make it look halfway respectable.)

In the aftermath, Jeremiah Smith transfers to Tennessee.

It’s true, it’s true. Trust me …
1000015466.jpg
 
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