Notre Dame star targets Ohio State for revenge in national title

Ohio State and Notre Dame have met twice in the last couple of seasons and are set to meet again in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game.

Both those two previous meetings were wins for the Buckeyes, and Fighting Irish star tailback Jeremiyah Love wants to get a little revenge in the sport’s most important game.

“We want to play Ohio State,” Love said, according to On3 Sports. “We lost to them last year in a game we should have won.”

Love got his wish after Ohio State held off Texas in the Cotton Bowl semifinal game and advanced to the national championship matchup.

A year ago, Notre Dame held a four-point lead on Ohio State in the fourth quarter in South Bend, but the Buckeyes went 65 yards in under 90 seconds and won the game when Chip Trayanum scored the go-ahead touchdown.

That drive included a 3rd and 17 conversion and another on 4th and 7 to set up the winning score.

Love was just a freshman.

“I want to play them again,” he said. “They were a great team.”

The national title game will find several of the same players on the field as those who played the 2023 matchup in the House that Rockne Built.

Ohio State star back TreVeyon Henderson had over 100 yards in that meeting, wide receiver Emeka Egbuka had 96 yards.

Irish tight end Mitchell Evans had over 100 yards receiving and Love himself ran for 57 yards in the loss.

Predictably, Irish head coach Marcus Freeman was more diplomatic.

“You know what? In these three years of being a head coach, I’ve learned sometimes it’s better to just be quiet and to not give your opinion,” he said.

“There’s nothing good about saying what I think... So I’m just going to keep that quiet and I’m looking forward to enjoying this game here.”

Freeman was on the sideline for both those losses to the Buckeyes, in the 2022 and 2023 seasons.

And he’s an Ohio State alumnus to boot, playing linebacker at the school in 51 games from 2004 to 2008.

Notre Dame has been getting payback on the field ever since that loss to Northern Illinois, and now it has a chance to get a little more, with everything on the line.

(On3)

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