Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore breaks up a pass intended for Georgia receiver Dillon Bell at the Sugar Bowl at the Caesars Superdome Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in New Orleans. Credit: Jason Getz via TNS
Physical, one-on-one defense — that’s the Notre Dame way.
Man coverage, whether that press coverage or a single-high safety, has been the calling card of head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish defense this entire season.
This aggressive defensive scheme has helped Notre Dame achieve a 14-1 record, as the Fighting Irish had just a single blemish in the regular season with a 16-14 loss to Northern Illinois Sept. 7.
Though many wrote Notre Dame off after its loss to the Huskies, the Fighting Irish stayed true to their defense, battling their way to the College Football Playoffs and now a National Championship matchup with Ohio State.
On average, Notre Dame’s defense has allowed just 17 points per game in the playoffs, troubling offenses in the passing and running games based on opposing personnel.
When the Fighting Irish faced Indiana in the first round of the playoffs, Notre Dame opted to key in on the Hoosiers’ run game, while putting its cornerbacks and safeties on islands in man coverage.
The plan to force Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke to beat the Irish with his arm was executed to a tee. The Hoosiers struggled to move the ball downfield without a run game, and the Notre Dame defense held the Hoosiers to 63 total rushing yards in their 27-17 victory.
When the Fighting Irish faced Georgia, who started backup quarterback Gunner Stockton, it was more of the same. Even though Stockton was mistake-free when throwing the ball in the Sugar Bowl Jan. 2, it didn’t matter.
Notre Dame held the Bulldogs to just 62 rushing yards on 29 attempts for an average of 2.1 yards per carry, forcing two crucial Georgia fumbles on their way to a 23-10 victory.
But in the Irish’s next matchup against Penn State Jan. 9, the Nittany Lions flipped the script, outgaining Notre Dame on the ground 204-116.
Penn State’s receiving corps, however, could never beat Notre Dame’s press coverage. Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar was just 12-for-23, and the Notre Dame defense came up huge with a game-sealing interception from cornerback Christian Gray.
Regardless of the opponent at hand, the Fighting Irish continue to run man coverage with great success. And despite the fact many teams have opted to play a soft-zone coverage against the Buckeyes, Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore says that trend will continue.
“We’re not going to change who we are,” Moore said. “We’re going to play man coverage like we do every week.”
Though the Irish have found success with a heavy-man coverage scheme, the Buckeyes are a different beast.
Unlike the first three teams Notre Dame has faced, Ohio State has elite talent outside and features not one, not two, but three highly dangerous receivers.
An offense that features wideouts Jeremiah Smith, Emeka Egbuka and Carnell Tate — not to mention tight end Gee Scott Jr. as a safety blanket — gives quarterback Will Howard seemingly unlimited options.
Smith said he believes trying to defend the Buckeyes’ receivers with a one-on-one scheme is nothing short of outlandish.
“Somebody going out there and playing man-on-man against Ohio State receivers is something crazy,” Smith said.
And Smith might be right. Even if Notre Dame’s secondary is strong, no team is a true match for Ohio State’s receiving corps, especially the 6-foot-3 freshman phenom himself.
To put it plainly, if the Fighting Irish run as much man coverage as they have in the past three weeks, the Buckeyes will eventually break big plays in the passing game.
But, if Notre Dame elects to switch to zone coverage, keeping Ohio State in front on offense, the Irish have a much better chance at securing a victory.
