The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have secured a spot in Atlanta after their narrow defeat of the Penn State Nittany Lions by a score of 27-24. The Orange Bowl became an instant classic and the best game of the new playoff format so far. Notre Dame feels like a team of destiny at this point in the season. Nothing about this team has felt 100% right in the playoffs. They are banged up. The Irish are missing key starters all over the place and have dealt with their stars battling injuries left and right. Xavier Watts and Jeremiyah Love have entered and exited the game frequently. Yet, they went to New Orleans and beat the Georgia Bulldogs. They went to Miami and beat the Nittany Lions. In fact, the team had the flu during the Orange Bowl.

Notre Dame is not physically healthy in any sense of the word. But they are healthy mentally. Football requires so much of a man physically. Scientists have stated that playing a football game at this level is equivalent of getting into not one, but two significant car wrecks in the matter of 3 hours. The sport of football however requires even more of a person mentally. The Irish are a mentally sound team this year and that was tested in Miami. The person responsible for keeping this group of wounded gladiators tough and ready for another battle is Marcus Freeman, the toughest of them all. Not everyone on this team was present for the Marshall loss in 2022. But they all were for NIU this year. The commonality between the losses is Marcus Freeman. That sounds damning, but it in fact tells the story of the man in the arena who gets knocked down and doubted and chooses yet again to get back up and fights on. Freeman is the ultimate example of why Notre Dame is not simply the “Irish” but the “Fighting Irish.”

I had my concerns with Notre Dame coming into the Penn State game regarding the season. They had not had to play from behind since the NIU game. Playing football while down is tough and not for the feint of heart. The last time ND did so, they suffered the worst loss in program history. Though I picked the Irish to win and was confident in that, I had my worries about what would occur for them should they fall behind. That is in fact what happened. Penn State jumped out to a 10-0 lead. The Irish then got the ball back with just over 2 minutes in the half and then Riley Leonard took a shot and left the game. Steve Angeli entered as the Irish QB and led a remarkable drive to go into half 10-3. That drive may just have changed everything. The will to win that game started in that moment that Angeli and the Irish faced a reality of what could happen if they do not score. They willed their way to a field goal and reset themselves at the half.

Marcus Freeman's halftime speech has been shared everywhere after the game. It was no different than any speech he has given at Notre Dame. Freeman is a steady leader. He does not stray or vary from what has gotten him to the throne in South Bend. The motivation he offers the team helped them in spring in the same way it helped them in the Orange Bowl. One play at a time. Stay calm. Do not be afraid. All the same quips you hear from coaches. The difference is that Notre Dame trusts Freeman and believes in his message in a different way than everyone else. The Irish returned to the field and scored their first TD of the night, tying the game. They then jumped ahead 17-10 at the start of the 4th. Penn State takes advantage of mistakes and leads 24-17. Notre Dame immediately responds to tie it once more. Finally, the Irish force and interception and Mitch Jeter kicks a game winning field goal with 7 seconds left. Notre Dame punches a ticket to Atlanta.

The Irish lost the turnover battle. They were drastically out rushed by Penn State. They lost Riley Leonard for a drive in a crucial moment. They were down 10 and then 7 at half. They had the flu. They were forced to throw 31 times. Love was their leading rusher with only 46 yards. They gave up 5 sacks and only forced 1. All these things tell you that Notre Dame's season ended in Miami. Overwhelmingly, in fact. If I read that before the game, I would have assumed there was a blowout and Penn State would be booking hotels in the ATL.

The Irish found a way to win. They forced Nittany Lion mistakes and capitalized on them. Mike Denbrock squeezed a couple of explosive plays through the air out of Leonard. But most importantly, Marcus Freeman put together a motivational masterclass and held his team steady. There are not many coaches who have graced the gridiron with such a performance. He will deflect the attention and praise that he is so deserving of.

Notre Dame will have one more mountain to climb. It will be the most challenging of all. Ohio State has flipped a switch and found ways to win games on many different fronts. The Irish are the David to the Buckeyes' Goliath. However, Notre Dame feels like a team of destiny. Marcus Freeman has his work cut out for him but he has overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles before. If you can suffer a historic program's worst loss and in the same season pull the locker room together to still believe in themselves, you can beat the Buckeyes. Will they do it? We shall see.