Game Preview: Ohio State Aims To Write History Against Notre Dame

Two of college football's most storied programs will meet for just the seventh time on Saturday evening.

Author:
Andrew Lind
Sep 2, 2022 11:22 AM EDT

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Ohio State Buckeyes

When No. 2 Ohio State welcomes No. 5 Notre Dame to Columbus on Saturday night (7:30 p.m. ET on ABC), it will be the first season opener in program history in which both teams are ranked in the top five.

But if that wasn’t enough to get you excited, consider the shared history between the Buckeyes and Fighting Irish, who rank No. 1 and No. 3, respectively, in all-time winning percentage and have combined for a whopping 1,001 NFL Draft picks – including 157 first-rounders – 195 consensus All-Americans, 91 bowl appearances, 19 national championships and 14 Heisman Trophy winners.

“It’s hard to probably appreciate right now because there’s just so much going on, but when you think about what an opportunity this is on Saturday night, just getting Ohio State and Notre Dame together, the first game of the year, the 100th anniversary of the ‘Shoe, all of those things combined, what a great opportunity,” head coach Ryan Day said this week. “That’s what college football is all about.

“I talked to our players the other day about when you grow up and you’re 7, 8, 9, 10 years old and you watch a game on TV on Saturday night, then you wake up the next morning on Sunday and you’re playing in the back yard. All of a sudden, you’re taking on the personality of the guys who you watch the night before. You could see a couple of them nod, and I said, ‘Well, that’s going to be you.’”

Ohio State and Notre Dame have met six times previously, including home-and-home series in 1935-36 and 1995-96, as well as matchups in the 2006 and 2016 Fiesta Bowl. And while the Buckeyes have won four straight of the Fighting Irish, none of that matters when the ball is kicked on Saturday night.

“(The players) realize every year is a different opportunity,” Day said. “This is the 100th anniversary of the ‘Shoe, the 2022 Ohio State football team and they have the pen to write the story of what it is.

"Sometimes you just kind of go along with life and don’t realize the opportunity that you have, so we’re really trying to help these guys realize the opportunity is here, the urgency’s got to be here and we’ve got to seize it and run because we’re in control.”

General Info

Date: Sept. 3, 2022
Where: Ohio Stadium (Columbus, OH)
Expected Weather: 79 degrees, scattered thunderstorms
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. ET

Current Betting Numbers

Spread: Ohio State (-17)
O/U Total: 59
Betting: Check out the new SISportsbook!

How to Watch/Listen

Television: ABC
Streaming: fuboTV (get a 7-day free trial)
Announcers: Chris Fowler (play-by-play), Kirk Herbstreit (analyst) and Holly Rowe (sideline reporter)

Local Radio: Ohio State Sports Network from Learfield IMG College
Flagship: WBNS 97.1 The Fan
Announcers: Paul Keels (play-by-play), Jim Lachey (analyst), Matt Andrews (sideline reporter), Skip Mosic (pregame/halftime/postgame host and producer)

Series History

Ohio State leads Notre Dame, 4-2
* OSU record at home: 1-1

LAST TIME THEY MET
2016: Ohio State 44, Notre Dame 28

Coaching Matchup

* Ryan Day
* At Ohio State: Fourth Season, Record: 34-4
* Overall: Same

* Marcus Freeman
* At Notre Dame: 1st Season, Record: 0-1
* Overall: Same

Ohio State Capsule

Everyone knows what Ohio State has on offense, with a trio of returning Heisman Trophy candidates in redshirt sophomore quarterback C.J. Stroud, sophomore running back TreVeyon Henderson and junior wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

But for all the talent the Buckeyes had on that side of the ball last year, as well, the team was ultimately let down by its defense. That’s why Day wiped the slate clean (with the exception of defensive line coach Larry Johnson) and hired coordinator Jim Knowles, secondary/cornerbacks coach Tim Walton and safeties coach Perry Eliano.

The focus in the eight months since has been installing Knowles’ complex defensive scheme, which involves two linebackers and three safeties and is built to confuse opposing offensive coordinators. And now that it’s game week, he believes his unit is finally up to the challenge

“We’re 100 percent ready to go,” Knowles said this week. “We’ve put them through the crucible. We go against the nation’s best offense every day, and we’ve pushed and prodded and poked and tried to stretch them as far as they can go.

“We're building a mindset of excellence. This is how we do it and this is how we’re going to it every day. We’re going to do it on the grass in practice and that’s how the game’s going to go. It’s really about expectations. Once the players know that you care, they’ll go through the wall for you, and I believe we’re at that point.”

Notre Dame Capsule

It will be quite the first start for Notre Dame sophomore quarterback Tyler Buchner, but Ohio State shouldn’t expect him to be wide-eyed given his experiences last year, when he threw for 298 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 336 yards and three more scores in 10 appearances as a backup.

“(He’s) very athletic, very talented, highly recruited,” Day said. “Seeing his ability to throw, his ability to run, we know we’ve got to do a good job because we’re expecting a high level of play.”

The Fighting Irish’s top returning wide receiver is actually junior tight end Michael Mayer, who was a finalist for the Mackey Award last season after he caught 71 passes for 850 yards and seven touchdowns. The 6-foot-5 and 265-pounder will undoubtedly present challenge for Ohio State’s revamped defense.

“He’s an excellent player. He’s an NFL player,” Knowles said. “He has that ability to lean into the coverage and find the open spot, so it is about knowing where he is at all times and making sure that we’re changing it up enough with him to keep him off balance ... These guys have an excellent tight end, so we need to make sure we have a game plan for it."

That said, Notre Dame could be without one of the best offensive linemen in college football on Saturday, as starting left guard Jarrett Patterson is questionable with a foot injury. If he’s unable to go, that will be a significant hit to Fighting Irish’s run game.

Major Storylines

Ohio State will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its 2002 national championship on Saturday, with former head coach Jim Tressel, quarterback Craig Krenzel, running back Maurice Clarett and team captain Mike Doss among those set to be in attendance.
The Buckeyes have won 22 consecutive season openers dating back to a 23-12 loss to No. 12 Miami (Fla.) in the 1999 Kickoff Classic at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman played linebacker for the Buckeyes from 2004-08 and was part of four Big Ten championship teams. He also appeared in two BCS National Championships Games (2006 season vs. Florida and 2007 season vs. LSU).
Freeman, who is a native of Huber Heights, Ohio, began his coaching career as a graduate assistant under Tressel in 2010 after one season in the NFL with the Chicago Bears, Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans.
Freeman will become the fifth former Ohio State player to coach against his alma mater, joining Luke Fickell (0-1 at Cincinnati), Glen Mason (1-7 at Minnesota), Gary Moeller (3-4-1 at Illinois and Michigan) and Bo Pelini (1-3 at Nebraska).
Former Ohio State linebacker James Laurinaitis is entering his first season as a graduate assistant at Notre Dame. He was a three-time All-American, two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and recipient of the Lott, Nagurski and Butkus awards during his career with the Buckeyes from 2005-08.
Notre Dame defensive line coach Al Washington spent the last three seasons as Ohio State’s linebackers coach, while Buckeyes running backs coach Tony Alford spent six seasons with the Fighting Irish (2009-16) before coming to Columbus.
Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith graduated from Notre Dame and played defensive end on the 1973 national championship team. He also won a national title as an assistant coach in 1977.
Ohio State assistant athletic director for sports performance Mickey Marotti spent seven seasons (1998-2005) as the strength and conditioning coach at Notre Dame, while senior advisor to the head coach Keenan Bailey spent two seasons (2015-16) in the Fighting Irish’s recruiting department while earning his undergraduate degree.
Redshirt junior linebacker Tommy Eichenberg’s brother, Liam Eichenberg, was a three-year starter at left tackle for Notre Dame from 2018-20, while freshman safety Sonny Styles is the younger brother of Fighting Irish sophomore wide receiver Lorenzo Styles Jr.
Ohio State will make its 54th appearance on ESPN’s College GameDay, the most of any program in the country. The Buckeyes are 37-16 all time with the pregame show on hand.