Behind Enemy Lines: Discussing Notre Dame vs. Ohio State with Fighting Irish Wire
There’s been a lot of buzz surrounding the massive clash Saturday night between Ohio State and Notre Dame. It’s two of the historical behemoths in college football, two of the main powers in the Midwest, and two programs hoping to make a loud, early statement in the race for the College Football Playoff.
If you’ve followed us for at least a little while, then you more than likely know that we have sister sites that cover other college football programs and one of those just happens to do a fantastic job following Notre Dame Football.
Whenever we can, we like to get some perspective from the opposite sideline, and it’s easy to do that when we can reach across the virtual team to get the pulse of what’s going on. So, we reached out to Fighting Irish Wire and publisher Nick Shepkowski to get his take on how fans and media are viewing the Ohio State program and the game on Saturday in general.
Here’s the complete Q&A between us and Shepkowski that touches on on what Notre Dame fans think about the OSU program in general, how optimistic they are about the game Saturday, thoughts on Ryan Day, and more.
And while your at it, if you’d like to consume more Ohio State vs. Notre Dame content, we answered some questions from Fighting Irish Wire that appears over on that site as well.
Buckeyes Wire (BW): How are Notre Dame fans feeling about this matchup? There was pretty good optimism last year, but I would imagine there's more this time.
Nick Shepkowski, Fighting Irish Wire (FIW): Last year there was hope and excitement seeing as it was Marcus Freeman’s first game, but barring a pick-6 and special teams touchdown, there wasn’t a route to winning because of the obvious offensive issues. Enter Sam Hartman and offensive coordinator Gerad Parker, exit Tommy Rees and Tyler Buchner, and Notre Dame fans rightfully feel like the Irish actually have the cavalry to compete with a top-team and not need miracles on special teams and freak plays on defense to do so.
BW: How important has Sam Hartman been for this Notre Dame team?
(FIW): He’s been everything. His numbers are impressive, but simply having someone who can push the ball down the field is a new feel for Notre Dame compared to recent years. Hartman just being a threat to be able to do that has not allowed teams to stack the box like they did all of last season when Tyler Buchner and Drew Pyne couldn’t throw downfield. That’s made it easier for Audric Estime and the stable of running backs to have great success as well. It’s been pleasant to see a quarterback go through a progression and not simply tuck and run – been a while since that’s been the case in these parts.
BW: What do Irish fans think of the Ohio State program?
(FIW): Despite Michigan winning the Big Ten the last two years most Notre Dame fans still view Ohio State as the standard for Midwest football. They have been really since the start of the new millenium and despite recent struggles against their biggest rival, they seemingly have as much talent as anyone in the country year after year. They’re in a place Notre Dame is trying to get to – the highest of college football tiers.
BW: What do Irish fans think of the job Ryan Day is doing at Ohio State?
(FIW): Notre Dame fans wish they had the problems Ohio State fans have had recently. Man, 2022 must have been awful in Columbus. All these issues people want to make about Ryan Day and all he did was have the Buckeyes within a last-second field goal attempt of beating Georgia and almost certainly winning a national championship. Ryan Day might not be Urban Meyer but there are about 97% of programs that would kill to have him and his staff.
BW: How is former Ohio State player Marcus Freeman doing in the eyes of Notre Dame fans?
(FIW): He’s fully embraced being a part of Notre Dame and not just being the football coach at Notre Dame like the previous guy. No matter which college job a coach has there are unique things that come with each, and that is one that Notre Dame fans very much value. To a man you don’t hear anything about Freeman having issues away from the field, not being reachable to his players, and he doesn’t make excuses.
BW: Name the one thing that scares you the most about Ohio State offense.
(FIW): It’s the kind of offense that has so much talent that you can play a great game defensively for 25 minutes of a half, and they can do things so quickly that you give up 14-points right before halftime and the entire complexion of a game is changed. I know Kyle McCord doesn’t have the most experience, but he’s still talented and has a world of NFL caliber talent around him. You never get a break against this offense because they can score from anywhere at any time, even if they haven’t done so for the most part yet in 2023.
BW: What are Notre Dame fans worried about the most with playing this Ohio State team?
(FIW): I think casual fans will look and say Marvin Harrison, Jr. and the talented targets, but what scares me the most is the Ohio State running game. Notre Dame doesn’t need to just contain it but entirely stop it. If they don’t, then it’ll be the fourth quarter of last year’s meeting all over again.
BW: Do Irish fans miss Brian Kelly?
(FIW): They want him back about as much as they’d like to wake up with water in their lungs.
BW: If both Ohio State and Michigan were on the schedule in the same year, and you could only win one of those, which one would Notre Dame fans choose?
(FIW): As long as Notre Dame remains independent the answer to that question will be Michigan. A win over Ohio State any year would be welcomed with open arms but the history and hatred between Notre Dame and Ohio State is spitballs on a battleship compared to the animosity with Michigan. I’m sure Buckeyes fans can understand.
BW: Do you get a sense that Notre Dame fans would like to eventually join the Big Ten? If not, what's the ideal scenario? Is it another conference or a strong desire to remain independent?
(FIW): If Notre Dame isn’t able to compete with the major conference teams in terms of TV revenue (don’t have to be at the top, just get somewhat close) or if the Irish lose their ability to compete for a College Football Playoff spot, then they’d join a conference, but not until then. If that were to ever happen the Big Ten would make a ton more sense in terms of rivalries for Notre Dame than the ACC. However, the ACC has been great in understanding Notre Dame doesn’t want anything exclusive for football, but are instead looking strictly for a friends with benefits deal for the foreseeable future.
BW: Finally, give us your final call on what will happen Saturday night? What is your level of confidence?
(FIW): Notre Dame has competed against many of the big dogs despite not having anything near elite level quarterback play. Nothing against Kyle McCord, I think he and Ohio State will be more than fine this year, but Notre Dame actually goes into one of those games with a seeming advantage at quarterback. Mix in that it’s at home and under the lights and that Ohio State’s offense hasn’t hit its groove despite seeming to improve week-by-week and the making is there. I think Notre Dame takes advantage of those things it has going for it but I’m almost certain this thing is going to come down to the final possession, regardless of who wins.
We’d like to thank Nick Shepkowski of Fighting Irish Wire for taking his time to entertain us with his thoughts and yes — hatred for Michigan. If you know of a Notre Dame fan, we say spread the word and have them head on over there often to get some great content Shepkowski and his team are pumping out.
