Notre Dame Finally Beats Ohio State at Something Regarding Football

Notre Dame beat Ohio State in a pair of gridiron classics in back-to-back years, back in 1935 and 1936.

But it's been until then that Notre Dame has beaten Ohio State on the actual playing field, losing each of the last seven meetings between the blueblood programs.

While the losing streak in terms of games played didn't end Tuesday, Notre Dame did have a rare one-up moment on the Buckeyes.

Ohio State Announces Jersey Patch Deal with Chase Bank

On Tuesday morning, Ohio State announced a deal with Chase Bank that will pay the football program an estimated $17 million per season.

NEWS: Ohio Stare is entering a new corporate partnership with JPMorganChase that includes jersey patches for all 36 OSU teams. Per industry sources, this is expected to yield OSU nearly $17 million per year, an eye-popping number that’s expected to be an industry leader. pic.twitter.com/rZkkeYAuTM
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) July 28, 2026

Not bad pay if you can get it.

However, only a few short hours later, Notre Dame announced a jersey patch deal worth even more.

Notre Dame Adds SoFi as Jersey Patch Sponsor

Shortly after Ohio State announced its jersey patch deal, Notre Dame announced a partnership with SoFi for the same.

Only it pays even more than the absurd payday Ohio State is getting from Chase.

Notre Dame has partnered with SoFi as its official jersey patch sponsor.

The six-year deal with SoFi is expected to be the most valuable jersey sponsorship deal in college athletics history at an average of $18-20 million annually, sources tell @YahooSports. pic.twitter.com/01R6I2XCBx
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) July 28, 2026

A million bucks each year over the next six years, and that's a decent financial win for Notre Dame over Ohio State, as the Buckeyes easily make more off their TV deal than the Fighting Irish do.

Nick Shepkowski's Quick Thoughts

This isn't about Notre Dame vs. Ohio State as much as it is about two blueblood programs doing something non-traditional in an attempt to remain powers.

There was a point in my life when yesterday's jersey patch news would have really bothered me.

You mean Notre Dame is putting corporate logos on their jerseys for a few extra bucks?

Is anything not sacred anymore?

But today I'll call it what it is: smart business.

It's really easy to sit atop an ivory tower these days and tell the Notre Dame football program how much of a sellout it is for selling a small part of the uniform for what adds up to be over $100 million the next six years.

It's very easy for me to sit and demand that Wealthy Notre Dame Grads X, Y and Z donate certain amounts of money, so that the football team can continue to recruit the top prospects in the nation.

However, those funds run out at some point. Maybe the donor doesn't run out of money, but instead of spening it on Notre Dame football, they decide to spend it, or at least more of it, on something else.

How do you go about making that extra money then?

OK, it breaks tradition in a way we never thought we'd be able to see. This isn't over a couple million dollars, though.

"What Notre Dame is doing right now with this patch with SoFi and getting $18 million…let Ohio State do it. Who cares about Ohio State?" – Chris Russo pic.twitter.com/9bvnYMV5tU
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) July 29, 2026

This is a deal worth over $100 million in full, and one the football program should have noticeable gains for the future because of.

That ultimately helps Notre Dame win, and when you ask me my favorite tradition regarding Notre Dame football over the years, plenty of them are awesome but nothing draws me in like the winning.

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