Notre Dame heads to Ohio State an underdog, but near full-health and with an emphasis on the run game

If losing to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl will stick with Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman as long as he expects — “It’s always going to be there.” — then the stakes of facing his alma mater in the first game of his first season as the Irish head coach may be higher than anyone has realized.

When informed No. 5 Notre Dame is a 17.5-point underdog heading to No. 2 Ohio State on Saturday (7:30 ET; ABC), Freeman jokingly made note of it. That line obviously suggests the Irish have their work cut out for them in what should be genuinely considered Freeman’s debut, simply acknowledging the abbreviated and unexpected nature of taking over a program before a bowl game.

Freeman said that work will start with stopping the Buckeyes’ run game, even though Ohio State boasts a Heisman frontrunner at quarterback in CJ Stroud and arguably the best receiver in the country in Jaxson Smith-Njigba.

“If you don’t stop the run, they’re running all day,” he said Monday. “The ability to stop the run is most important.

“We know they’re very talented throwing the ball, but it’s the mindset. If you can’t stop the run, they can throw it, they can run it, they can do whatever they want to do. You have to be able to stop the run.”

It will be CRUCIAL for #NotreDame's defense to be at its tackling best when it comes to #OhioState RB TreyVeyon Henderson.

788 of his 1,248 rushing yards last season came after contact.

Irish can't afford to be missing tackles throughout Saturday's game.

— Justin Frommer (@JustinbFrommer) August 28, 2022

The same logic will apply to the Irish offense, not just against the national championship contender Buckeyes, but also all season.

“We have to have a mindset that we want to be able to establish the run game