What's next for Notre Dame after a devastating loss against Ohio State? Here's our game recap and more.

 

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - It was a top ten matchup that did not disappoint.

On Saturday, September 23, Notre Dame hosted Ohio State in what may have been the biggest game of the season--but ultimately falling to the Buckeyes in the final seconds. 17-14.

Unfortunately for Notre Dame, history has repeated itself.

Head Coach Marcus Freeman talks about the sting from yesterday's loss.

"You know, to be on the losing side, it's it hurts, stinks, but we got to own it," he said. "We got to learn from it. And we got to get back to work on as coaches tomorrow, and as a team on Monday, and use the pain of a loss to really help us find a way to get better."

Let's recap the game.

The Irish got off to a slow start, the defense giving up 10 points, but Notre Dame went on to score at 14, thanks to Sam Hartman's 175 passing yards, one touchdown, to Rico Flores Jr. and Gi'Bran Payne.

Although the Irish defense managed to give up 366 total yards in this matchup, they did make things tough for quarterback Kyle McCord on the last drive.

But, it in was the last two plays of the game, when Notre Dame only had 10 players on the field and eventually giving up that gut punch and rushing touchdown against the buckeyes.

That's the biggest question, isn't it? Why were there only 10 Notre Dame players on the field in the most deciding seconds of the game?

For Marcus Freeman, he couldn't afford the penalty. He needed to come up with a different strategy.

"We were trying to get a fourth D lineman on the field and I told him to stay off because we can't we can't afford a penalty," explained Freeman. "I didn't have any timeouts. Right? So, we couldn't afford a penalty there. You know? It's on us. It's got to be better. But to me, it was like hey, don't give them another opportunity to get settled in to try to make a different call. Right? Hey guys, stay off the field. Let's not give them a freebie from a half yard line. And let's try to stop them. You know, and I thought maybe they would do the same thing. They did the snap before, they didn't end up running the ball. So, I gotta watch the play and see where the ball hit. But um, yeah, that's why I've made that decision."

With Duke, Louisville and USC looming over the horizon, Notre Dame can’t afford to wallow.

"Next week is about bouncing back," said Quarterback Sam Hartman, so that's what you can count on next.