Forget Rudy, this Notre Dame Football Team is Rocky

This time around the underdog Fighting Irish aren't just happy to get to the biggest stage

Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard and running back Jeremiah Love celebrate a touchdown during the first half of a game against the Indiana Hoosiers in the first round of the College Football Playoff. | Christine Tannous/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

When you think of Notre Dame football in pop culture among the very first things to come to mind is the 1993 film, Rudy. It's been over 30-years now so I'm not concerened with any spoilers, but Rudy's story concludes with an underdog, try-hard young man working his butt off to get accepted into Notre Dame and eventually walk onto the football team before getting to play a single down.

As motivational as the film is, this specific Notre Dame team only somewhat fits the charcter description.

You see, Rudy worked his tail off simply just to get there. He may have been a champion at life but his story peaked with an otherwise meaningless sack of the Georgia Tech quarterback. That was memorable for him, but it wasn't exactly to clinch a game, let alone a championship.

Notre Dame Has Overcome the Odds Time and Time Again

Like Rudy, Notre Dame has defied the odds again and again this year. Injuries came in a hurry dating all the way back to last spring when transfer quarterback Riley Leonard had to have three procedures done to get right by fall.

Leonard wasn't the only one as starting left tackle Charles Jagusah tore his pectoral in fall camp and missed the entire regular season.

A dramatic win at Texas A&M spoke to Notre Dame's sky-high potential but a brutal home loss to Northern Illinois a week later seemed to put an end to any College Football Playoff hopes.

Northern Illinois Huskies kicker Kanon Woodill kicks the game winning field goal in the fourth quarter against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. | Matt Cashore / USA TODAY NETWORK

But Notre Dame got off the mat.

A week later the Fighting Irish obliterated Purdue 66-7 in West Lafayette to get back on track. The loss brought key injuries to three regulars for Notre Dame however as edge rusher Jordan Botelho and center Ashton Craig were lost for the season with significant injuries.

The games would go on, as would the winning, but the injuries piled up.

All-American cornerback Benjamin Morrison and edge rusher Boubacar Traore were lost to injuries by the middle of the season. And yet, Notre Dame kept winning, with preseason backups making huge plays along the way.

By the time the College Football Playoff came around, Notre Dame was playing with a slew of backups but wasn't meeting a beat. Graduate senior defensive tackle Rylie Mills was lost for the year in the Playoff win over Indiana and you would think that would have meant doom for a physical Georgia team in the the Second Round.

Notre Dame rose to the challenge and allowed just 62 rushing yards to the SEC Champions.

Jan 2, 2025; New Orleans, LA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs quarterback Gunner Stockton (14) runs with the ball during the second half as Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive lineman Donovan Hinish (41) goes for a tackle at Caesars Superdome. | Amber Searls-Imagn Images

The next round saw Notre Dame get pushed around for the better part of the first half against Penn State and starting quarterback Riley Leonard forced from the game just before halftime. All the Irish did was get behind backup quarterback Steve Angeli who led one of the most important field goal drives in the history of Notre Dame football.

An inspriational speech from Marcus Freeman came at halftime and Notre Dame came out looking like a different team in the second half. What looked like a bad loss coming in first half turned out to be Notre Dame's biggest football victory in over 30 years, even if more injuries to the offensive line were suffered during it.

Which gets us to Monday's national championship game against Ohio State.

2024 Notre Dame Football is Like Rocky Balboa

Rocky Balboa, the Italian Stallion himself is an underdog fighter but works his way up from the slums of Philadelphia to rise the boxing ranks and eventually lay claim to the world heavyweight championship.

When the underdog gets a chance at the heavyweight champion at the end of the original Rocky movie, the underdog southpaw shocks the world just by lasting all 15 rounds.

In the sequel, Rocky goes a step further and beats the mighty Apollo Creed and wins the championship, something he's retained for a number of fights by the time Rocky III comes around.

1️⃣ play
1️⃣ life

Here come the Irish ☘️#GoIrish | Game 16

🎧 @Jeezy
“I Luv It”@defjam #DefJam40th pic.twitter.com/y07nBxBR75

— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) January 19, 2025

It took Rocky a while to get to the top but when he got his chance, he showed he was more than deserving of the opportunity. He won the title himself and was a champion, regardless of how the press wanted to downplay his accomplishments.

Perhaps back in the 2012 season, Notre Dame football was our old friend Rudy. That team overcame some large odds and mounted some improbable comebacks in order to go 12-0 in the regular season and secure a spot in the national championship game. Although it earned that spot, it may as well have been a sightseeing trip to Miami because it would have taken every star in the universe to align in order for the Irish to beat Alabama that night.

Jan 9, 2025; Miami, FL, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish cornerback Christian Gray (29) celebrates play in the second half against the Penn State Nittany Lions in the Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Notre Dame team that clashes with Ohio State on Monday night in Atlanta isn't just happy to get there.

Although overlooked by most early on thanks to the loss to Northern Illinois, this Notre Dame team not only belongs in the national championship game, but despite being an 8.5-point underdog, has the program's best shot at a title in over 30-years.

And this time it will take one heck of a performance to win but certainly won't require the stars aligning for there to be a Hollywood ending.

To reference another sports movie, Herb Brooks in Miracle, if Notre Dame and Ohio State were to play 10 times, I'm betting the farm on Ohio State winning fewer than nine.

Jan 17, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman arrives at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport for the 2025 CFP National Championship game. | Matt Stamey/CFP Images via Imagn Images

Yo Adrian, indeed.

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