Game Diary: Indiana-Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff
After weeks of waiting, the time has finally come. Today will likely be Indiana’s biggest game since the Johnson administration. It’s the biggest game of my life and to mark this most wonderful occasion I will be keeping this game diary (á la Bill Simmons and his draft diaries) during this game.
7:30 p.m. ET – We are T-minus 30 minutes to gametime. Am I nervous? Meh, I suppose. Frankly, I’m just happy to see Indiana play a meaningful game after Thanksgiving.
Aiden Fisher looks into the crowd during Notre Dame's win over Indiana on Dec. 20, 2024. (HN photo/Jaren Himelick)
7:35 – IT’S PREDICTION TIME! My heart says Indiana, my head says Notre Dame. If I had to decide, Notre Dame wins 27-21. It sounds reductive, but the game comes down to the trenches (as it so often does). In my mind, Indiana had a real shot against Ohio State, but the pass protection was so bad that it completely tanked the whole team. IF (and there’s a reason that it’s in all caps) Indiana can hold up against Notre Dame’s robust front, there’s a chance. On the other side of the ball Indiana has to stop Notre Dame’s running game. Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price are demons in the backfield and Riley Leonard isn’t exactly a scrub either. If Notre Dame controls the football and the line of scrimmage, it won’t matter how effective Kurtis Rourke is on offense.
7:52 – I’ve been watching almost all four hours of College Football Gameday today; I think I’ve heard that Indiana has the most losses in college football history more times than I can count.
7:58 – PICKS FROM THE CREW! Desmond Howard says, “There’s no way Notre Dame loses.” Nick Saban picks the Irish, Kirk Herbstreit concurs, but predicts a closer game, Pat McAfee goes with the Hoosiers, and Shane Gillis picks Notre Dame (as expected). A quick aside: Shane Gillis is a funny guy and has great chemistry with this crew.
8:00 – A warm welcome to Sean McDonough and Greg McElroy. A truly underrated duo that doesn’t get enough respect. I wouldn’t put them in the top three college football commentator booths conversation, but they are more than serviceable. Because of the new media deals with the conferences, this is the first time that ESPN will be broadcasting an Indiana game this season and I’m all here for it. Allow me, if you will, to quickly rank the networks that broadcast college football: ESPN, CBS, FOX (and Big Ten Network), and NBC in that order (I don’t recognize the CW).
8:02 – I am getting chills. ESPN is knocking it out of the park with its presentation of this game. (It helps that the TV volume is cranked up and the surround sound is blaring).
8:03 – Seeing that Fortnite is the sponsor of this segment is a fever dream. This is undoubtedly a good omen for Indiana.
8:04 – “You’re watching the Fortnite OG Kickoff!” (We live in the best possible timeline)
8:06 – Because I have time during the commercial break, I would like to just have it on the record that I admire Marcus Freeman. To pull your team together after such a disastrous loss to Northern Illinois is remarkable.
8:09 – I wouldn’t say that I’m someone who is often bothered by the cold, but I am happy that I am inside with a blanket wrapped around me; a whole lot of rosy cheeks and noses.
8:11 – THE KICK IS AWAY AND WE ARE OFF. INDIANA IS OFFICIALLY A COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF TEAM.
Kurtis Rourke exits the field after Notre Dame's win over Indiana on Dec. 20, 2024. (HN photo/Jaren Himelick)
8:12 – Perhaps not a great sign of things to come as Justice Ellison is swarmed immediately.
8:13 – Third and 13 off the rip... yikes. (The bigger yikes: the fact that nothing was working, but it’s early).
8:14 – James Evans continues to be in a slump, as that punt had nothing behind it.
8:15 – QUITE THE MOOD CHANGE! Oh boy, James Carpenter, heck of a play, and D'Angelo Ponds great awareness with the interception.
8:18 – Indiana back in another third and long... it’s going to be a long day if this becomes the norm... BUT what a catch by Elijah Sarratt!
8:19 – AND THEN RIGHT BACK TO NOTRE DAME... YOU’VE GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!
8:21 – Now that the dust has settled, it is hard to ask for a more exciting start to the game if you’re a neutral viewer. However, if you’re an Indiana like myself I would rather lay on a bed of nails.
8:23 – Well, much like the Ohio State game, the hope within me is slowly dwindling. A bad angle by Ponds and a great block on the outside means that the Irish strike first.
8:25 – We are not even five minutes into this game and decades have been taken off my life.
8:29 – Like the Ohio State game, the Hoosiers are finding some success on the ground. Ty Son Lawton and Ellison are like energizer bunnies thumping their way around the field.
8:30 – On cue, two Indiana runs go nowhere, and another long third down.
8:30 – McElroy with some excellent analysis: Rourke has to settle in — 1-for-6 with multiple uncatchable passes won’t win games.
8:31 – As another James Evans’ punt tumbles off his foot and I wish I could bury my head in some sand.
8:36 – Notre Dame converts on third down, and we get to see peak human performance with a cut to a shirtless (and elated) Irish fan.
8:38 – The Irish are so dangerous on third and short. On that last conversion Leonard drew so many eyes on the read option which allowed the back to pick up and eye first down.
8:41 – Again, I am being reminded of the Ohio State game. Indiana is struggling to tackle outside the numbers.
8:42 – Love and Price are like big brothers playing football against their little brothers. They are shedding the tacklers the way a dog sheds fur.
8:44 – One quarter down and this game feels like it is already over. Notre Dame hasn’t “dominated” the game but the fact that they keep winning the battle upfront gives me little hope that Indiana can rebound.
8:46 – Curt Cignetti appears that he would rather be drinking cobra spit than taking part in that sideline interview.
8:47 – Jordan Faison, your favorite lacrosse player’s favorite lacrosse player.
8:49 – The Fighting Irish score again due to what I assume was a coverage breakdown. While I am no genius, typically when two teammates both throw their hands up in confusion as an opposing player gracefully pulls in a touchdown, it’s often a coverage breakdown.
8:53 – A graphic was just shown that Indiana has not won at Notre Dame since 1898... I believe that in 1898 we were at war with Spain... in Cuba.
8:55 – Well, well, well, a bit of pep in our step now, eh? Mike Katic dishing out some nice blocks.
8:57 – A familiar spot, third and long. What will Indiana do? Hand it off and get rocked at the line of scrimmage. Notre Dame’s defensive line might as well all be Greek Gods.
9:00 – It's been two minutes since Evans, a punter who I have always considered to be very reliable, shanked his third kick of the night and kicked it out of bounds for the second time tonight.
9:02 – We have entered the zone of, “Oh, Riley Leonard is dropping back to pass? Is he completing it for 15 or 20 yards?”
9:03 – GOOD HEAVENS! Love just left earth (I bet he could throw down a vicious windmill dunk despite his size) and was rocketed into the ground by a defender.
9:04 – In what I can only describe as an act of mercy, Indiana will be gifted the ball back after stopping Notre Dame. If you can’t tell, this 14-point deficit feels more like 50.
9:09 – The Hoosiers FINALLY convert a third and long which, at this point, should just be renamed to third and Indiana.
9:11 – After the first quarter took a lifetime, the second is flying past which makes Indiana’s success on this drive that much more important. They need points on the board before halftime.
9:12 – A new feeling... third and manageable.
9:13 – I would call this gutsy to say the least, Indiana needs points. (My father agrees with me)
9:16 – Coming back from commercial, I’m happy to see that Cignetti agrees with us. I’m sure Cignetti, Rourke, and the rest of the Hoosiers feel at least a bit better after being on the board.
9:20 – Notre Dame now has the chance to go up 28-3 if they score before halftime and when they get the ball to start the third quarter, this would be the equivalent of getting coal for Christmas for me.
9:25 – Not sure if I can express how big this third down is.
9:26 – Faison with a truly remarkable catch to stab Indiana in the heart.
9:28 – On the last two plays Leonard has turned into Josh Allen as he escaped the pressure. Just bobbing and weaving through guys, almost like Neo.
9:31 – Indiana is 3-for-7 on third down and Notre Dame is now 5-for-6. I would argue that it is difficult to win a game when your defense can’t get off the field.
9:33 – The Hoosiers get a third down stop and now the worst field goal kicking team in the FBS must take a 49-yard field goal.
9:35 – On what seemed to be wide right, the ball curved aaaaaaallllllll the way back into and through the uprights to put Notre Dame up 14. Aside from Leonard’s opening pick, Indiana can’t catch a break, but that’s to be expected I suppose. We are Indiana after all.
10:00 – After (a much needed) halftime I am fresh and ready for another half of football... aaaaaaand just like that Notre Dame successfully utilizes a reverse on the kickoff return for a big gain. Unsurprisingly, a missed tackle aided the return.
10:03 – Indiana’s defense holds firm and now the offense will get a chance to redeem itself after a first half that I would describe as sub-par.
An Indiana fan dressed like a cigar, cheers on the Hoosiers during Notre Dame's win over Indiana on Dec. 20, 2024. (HN photo/Jaren Himelick)
10:08 – Rourke is immediately sacked... I feel like Matthew McConaughey in Interstellar: “NO, NO, NO, NO!”
10:11 – This is about as bad as a place an offense can be in; why do I expect it to get worse?
10:13 – See entry above.
10:15 – Leonard is like an eel; all he does is slip and slide around the pocket, always finding a way to wriggle free.
10:18 – Considering how bad this game has been thus far for Indiana; Carpenter has been a bright spot as he picks up a sack there.
10:19 – On cue, as I was praising Carpenter, he hits Leonard late giving Notre Dame a first down. It’s a killer, no other way to put it, just not a winning play.
10:23 – For all the flowers we give Cignetti for being a great coach he was thoroughly duped by Freeman on that fake field goal shenanigan. Speaking of Freeman, he has coached admirably in this game. The Irish seem thoroughly prepared, whereas Indiana still looks flat.
10:26 – We are dangerously close to blowout territory which means a few things: we will learn useless information about players as commentators try to fill time, commercials will become progressively more annoying, and my desire to turn off the TV will only grow.
Justice Ellison stiff arms a Notre Dame player during Notre Dame's win over Indiana on Dec. 20, 2024. (HN photo/Jaren Himelick)
10:28 – No commentator has cared more about a team returning kickoffs than Sean McDonough.
10:30 – It's hard to describe how futile Indiana has been on offense. It’s like watching a toddler in a fistfight against a T-1000.
10:33 – I fear that Rourke has acquired a case of the yips. He doesn’t look comfortable and his touch, which has been his biggest strength, has eluded him all game.
10:36 – Love stiff-armed a Hoosier to the core of the earth. I would like to apply what I said about the Notre Dame defense and a T-1000 to the Notre Dame offense as well.
10:38 – As the third quarter ends, I can only hope that the fourth closes rather quickly. I have neither the willpower nor the strength to bear through this.
10:43 – In many ways, it is poetic that Indiana is going to lose in this fashion. A season that was defined by how much it broke Indiana’s football standards ends in the most Indiana way possible: getting killed by a talented and superior team.
10:46 – I will not complain about a field goal block. I still have very little hope that this actually translates into anything substantial with the way that the offense is playing.
10:50 – If Indiana has any desire to win this game, it has to start on this drive.
10:53 – A screen on a third and long is an admission of defeat for that given drive. I’ve always lived by that rule and that’s exactly what Indiana just did.
10:56 – Indiana then decides to punt (see above). They didn’t just give up on that drive, but also the game.
11:02 – Excellent throw by Leonard; evades the pressure and fires a dart to Faison right at the goal line.
11:07 – Leonard scampers into the endzone untouched and unbothered. Irish not only put the nail in the coffin but they bury it 30 feet underground.
11:08 – As the clock closes in on triple zeros, I believe that it’s time to start writing Indiana’s obituary.
Zach Horton embraces a coach during Notre Dame's win over Indiana on Dec. 20, 2024. (HN photo/Jaren Himelick)
11:12 – We have officially hit the “this game is a blowout, time to talk about these players’ families in great detail”.
11:15 – As Indiana drives down the field in garbage time, I would like to quickly eulogize this Indiana team. I love Indiana athletics, but when you cheer for Indiana, you accept that your fandom has limitations. You enter an agreement that your football team will never be good (or even competent). Yet, this year, Indiana was beyond competent. The result is disappointing but that shouldn’t take away from this season. They won 11 games (DOUBLE DIGITS!!), and many were in spectacular fashion. I will never forget this team because for once in my life I had hope as an Indiana football fan.
11:20 – Myles Price gets into the endzone and breaks the seal for Indiana, but this is just putting lipstick on a pig.
11:23 – Here's a fun moral victory: maybe the best executed onside kick I've ever seen.
11:29 – I love spending time reviewing plays when the game is already decided, especially when my team is the one that is losing.
11:33 – Omar Cooper Jr. hauls in the catch for a touchdown, and there might be a chance...
11:34 – The two-point conversion fails and that officially does it.
11:36 – With the kneel, the Irish move on to face Georgia in the Sugar Bowl and the Hoosiers go home. (I can finally turn the TV off)
11:40 – I've said throughout that I’m just happy to be here, and I am, but that doesn’t make me not disappointed. Did I ever really think that Indiana had a chance to win? No, not really, but there was always that sliver of hope that Indiana might pull off the upset. Much like the movie that shares their name, I thought the ragtag team could fight through adversity and win one for the little guys. Sadly, reality and fairy tales don’t often mix, and we are left with this crushing, yet expected defeat. As the saying goes, “It’s the hope that kills you.”
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