The Notre Dame Fighting Irish saw their comeback hopes vanish on a crucial third-down play, as Ohio State Buckeyes star Jeremiah Smith delivered a cold, sharp dagger straight to the heart of the Blue and Gold. Following the heartbreaking loss in the National Championship Game, Marcus Freeman revealed the playcall behind the biggest moment of the night.
It’s one of those plays where, if successful, coaches are hailed as geniuses—but when it backfires, it raises eyebrows across the country. The latter scenario played out for the Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman, but the mastermind didn’t back down from standing by his decision.
There’s no proven formula to stop the Ohio State Buckeyes’ offense. This season, only Michigan managed to succeed, and even then, it felt like if the game had been played ten more times, the Buckeyes would have come out on top in at least nine of them.
However, playing man coverage against the best wide receiver duo in college football, Emeka Egbuka and Jeremiah Smith, always seemed like the riskiest of choice. Though the Irish found some success here and there in man assignments, the move came back to bite them during the biggest play of the night.
Live by the sword, die by the sword
Third and eleven from the Buckeyes 34-yard line. Under three minutes left and in a one score game. If Notre Dame get a stop, they are right back in the game. The Fighting Irish dial up a full-out blitz, leaving one-on-one coverages down the field with no safety over the top. Desperate situations require desperate measures.
It’s one of those situations where everybody knows who is getting the football, but nothing can be done about it. Jeremiah Smith gets away from his defender and secures the game-sealing 56-yard catch. Everybody is asking the same question: what was Marcus Freeman thinking?
“It was do or die,” Marcus Freeman said, via On3. “It was that type of down. If they run it, and they get a first down — we’ve got to get them stopped. We thought at that moment the best way to get them stopped was to run zero-pressure. You know what, like, we have to have faith at some point that we can make a play.”
Smith: the 19-year-old superstar
Jeremiah Smith has well earned the motto of best freshman in the NCAA, and arguably the best wide receiver in the country, as well. His first year in Columbus has solidified him as a top pick for the 2027 draft class, with years to spare and only continue to build onto his legacy. Freeman knew what they’d be going up against, but greatness cannot be stopped.
“There were times in the second half that we did in man coverage,” Freeman stated. “But he’s a heck of a player. He’s difficult to cover. You want to play zone, and they’ll find ways to pick you apart. You want to play man, they’ll find ways to get him the ball. So, it’s a talented offense with that situation right there.”
Ryan Day’s bold message to Freeman
The sensational catch from Smith on the critical third-down will probably the most remembered play of the National Championship, though it wasn’t for a touchdown.
After the game, Ryan Day revealed what the Buckeyes called during that play, and how Freeman’s decision to go man coverage handed them an easy conversion on a silver platter.
“If they play one on one on the outside, we are gonna take our shot,” Day told ESPN postgame. “They made a great job of gameplanning us, Will [Howard] made a huge throw, and Jeremiah [Smith] made a huge catch to seal the game.”