Under Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame has lost at home against the likes of Marshall, Northern Illinois and Stanford. He’s only been a head coach for three years and, largely due to Notre Dame’s status as an independent, has yet to win a championship of any sort. In the grand scheme, none of that matters.
At just 39 years old, Freeman is already one of the top three coaches in college football. He has steadily improved at the helm of one of college football’s most storied institutions. He is 5-0 in his last five postseason games with the Fighting Irish. Now, he has Notre Dame on the precipice of its first national title in almost 40 years.
Freeman has put together a coaching masterclass to get the Irish this far. Many wrote them off after that early season loss to Northern Illinois. It certainly added a tremendous amount of pressure and eliminated any margin of error for Notre Dame. But Freeman took that pressure and made a diamond.
Notre Dame is riding a 13-game winning streak into its College Football Playoff National Championship showdown against his alma mater, Ohio State. Eleven of those wins, including two playoff games, have come by at least two possessions.
That’s not all. Notre Dame outlasted a majority of the FBS while missing several key players due to injury. Cornerback Benjamin Morrison — a potential first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft — has been out since October. Notre Dame lost sack leader Rylie Mills for the season against Indiana. He was the third starting defensive lineman to suffer a season-ending ailment.
Top offensive lineman Charles Jagusah tore his pectoral muscle less than a month before the season began. He was pressed into action in the College Football Playoff semifinal against Penn State when Notre Dame lost two offensive linemen to injury.
Freeman didn’t just overcome those losses, his Irish have thrived amid a chaotic college football landscape. The scary part — for other teams, at least — is that, given Freeman’s youth, he hasn’t even come close to hitting his ceiling yet. He’s got the potential to reach rarified air.
Penn State will not break through under Franklin
This was the year to do it. It should have been a last hurrah for a legendary 2022 recruiting class that included the likes of Nicholas Singleton, Kaytron Allen and Abdul Carter. The Nittany Lions were gifted arguably the easiest College Football Playoff path in the entire field, with games against smaller-brand schools like SMU and Boise State.
The Nittany Lions acquitted themselves well in those first two games, winning by an average margin of 22.5 points. Then came a comparable opponent in Notre Dame.
Penn State got off to a stifling start, carrying a 10-0 advantage late into the first quarter. Even after Notre Dame roared back with 17 unanswered points, the Nittany Lions rode their own 14-0 run early in the fourth quarter to recapture momentum. Fans are acutely aware of how things went from there. Drew Allar — a member of that 2022 class — threw an ill-advised interception and Notre Dame kicked a field goal that brought Penn State’s year of destiny to a screeching halt.
Even with its two playoff wins, Penn State went 0-3 in its three games that mattered most: against Ohio State in the regular season, Oregon in the Big Ten Championship Game and Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinal.
With the roster, and the circumstances, this was Penn State’s best chance under Franklin for a long while. The championship window is closed. Even with Allar coming back, it will be without superstars like Abdul Carter and tight end Tyler Warren — the heart and soul of Penn State’s offense.
Franklin’s ability to recruit — often his calling card — is falling off. Penn State inked the nation’s No. 20 class in the 2025 cycle, per the 247Sports Team Composite Rankings, during December’s early signing period. It’s the first time since 2021 that Penn State’s recruiting efforts have fallen short of the top 15.
There is a stark talent deficit on offense, particularly at wide receiver, that will only get worse in the wake of Warren’s departure. Singleton and Allen are both mulling over their futures, as well.
The Big Ten is only getting more difficult to navigate. Ohio State is knocking on the door of a national championship. Oregon is recruiting as well as any school in the country. While an expanded playoff affords Penn State the opportunity to at least make the bracket every year, Franklin’s opportunity to claim a title — at either the conference or national level — has passed.
Steve Sarkisian is his own worst enemy
The only thing that stood between Texas and an appearance in the College Football Playoff National Championship was Steve Sarkisian. Sarkisian is an excellent offensive play caller. He’s one of the brightest minds in the sport. He’s also his own worst enemy.
After falling behind 21-14 midway through the fourth quarter in its semifinal game against Ohio State, Texas had an opportunity to tie things up just ahead of the two-minute timeout. The Longhorns had first-and-goal from Ohio State’s 1-yard line. Three feet to go for a touchdown. Conventional wisdom dictates that you run between the tackles and force your way in from such a short distance.
To Sarkisian’s credit, Texas did try that on its first play. Running back Jerrick Gibson was stoned at the line of scrimmage. On second down, the Longhorns tried to pitch it to Tre Wisner that didn’t work against Ohio State’s uber-athletic defense. Safety Caleb Downs knifed into the backfield and Lathan Ransom finished the play for a loss of eight.
In one misguided play, Texas fumbled its scoring opportunity. The Longhorns went from an easy scoring situation, where a player basically just had to fall forward to break the plane, to a moment of sheer desperation. Quarterback Quinn Ewers‘ pass on third-and-8 was batted down and, on fourth-and-goal, Ewers barely got a chance to drop back before he was strip-sacked by Ohio State defensive end Jack Sawyer.
Sawyer recovered the ensuing fumble and ran it back for a touchdown that sealed the game for the Buckeyes. Sarkisian’s play sequencing was frustrating — and it wasn’t an isolated event.
There were multiple times this year where Sarkisian over-complicated things for Texas’ offense,. He often inserted quarterback Arch Manning at odd times. He insisted on passing the ball against Clemson when the Longhorns were getting whatever they wanted with their ground game. In most instances, Texas’ sheer talent advantage was enough to overcome Sarkisian’s mistakes.
Not against teams like Ohio State, though. Sarkisian’s a great coach, but his tendency to get “cute” will keep him from reaching that next level.
Egbuka is the key for Ohio State
Calling Emeka Egbuka a “secret weapon” for Ohio State is a stretch. He’s a likely first-round pick in April’s NFL Draft and he’s long been a top option in OSU’s offense. But this year he’s been overshadowed by the likes of freshman phenom Jeremiah Smith and star running backs TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins.
That makes him Ohio State’s most important player in the national title game. Notre Dame is going to have to pick its poison when defending the Buckeyes. Texas provided a decent blueprint to stop Smith — either double him with a cornerback and safety or try to disrupt the passing lanes towards Smith’s side with a defensive lineman. Either way, it takes a lot of effort.
Notre Dame will also focus heavily on Ohio State’s backfield, given that Judkins and Henderson combined to score three touchdowns against the Longhorns. That means Egbuka should be able to operate in a lot of isolated situations.
That’s great for him, given his route-running ability. He’s also got great hands and can often win on contested catches. He’ll be crucial for Ohio State’s offense against the Fighting Irish.
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