How Notre Dame football busted its major bowl curse with 23-10 Sugar Bowl win vs. Georgia

Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard did something that's usually considered ill-advised for a quarterback.

In the fourth quarter of the Sugar Bowl, he took a third-down snap and sprinted left. He wanted – no, he needed – the first down as the No. 7 Irish tried to salt away a win over No. 2 Georgia.

Leonard needed that first down so bad, he leap, going airborne, and got popped by two Georgia defenders before landing on the ground. He got he first down.

"Everybody keeps telling me to stop doing that," Leonard said after the game. "I did it and it worked."

Those were one of the handful of plays that Notre Dame used in its 23-10 win over Georgia. That win snapped a 31-year streak of seasons without a major bowl win.

Curse, lifted.

The Irish finally expelled the major bowl shadow that had been following them since the 1993 Mobil Cotton Bowl Classic, when Notre Dame beat up the Texas A&M Aggies 28-3. 

They did it playing the way they wanted, which is with a grinding run game, an elite defense and play making when they need it most.

That's way plenty said the Irish couldn't win.

That curse spanned six Notre Dame head coaches. The sixth, Marcus Freeman, was the one who finally got over the hump.

He joined Lou Holtz and Ara Parseghian as Irish coaches to win a Sugar Bowl. Charlie Weis and Dan Devine lost in their Sugar Bowl appearances.

"This isn't about me. I try to make sure that's clear," Freeman said. "I'm blessed to be in a position to be a leader of this program, but I'm blessed to be around some of the best individuals that you can ask for."

The program that Freeman built proved its potential in just three seasons. It rewarded him with a contract extension that pays him like one of the best coaches in college football.

Lifting Notre Dame over the major bowl drought was something that Brian Kelly, Freeman's predecessor, came close to completing, but could never do.

Kelly departed Notre Dame to coach Louisiana State in search of that elusive major bowl win. He has yet to make a major bowl in his three seasons at LSU.

Freeman celebrated the Irish's Sugar Bowl win into the New Orleans night, doing what Notre Dame has done all season: let its players play their way.

Leonard heard plenty of qualms about his passing ability all season. Leonard's running ability was crucial in taming the dogs but still threw a touchdown. The Notre Dame rushing attack averaged over four yards per carry against the SEC champs and their stout defensive front. 

The Irish defense forced two turnovers, with the marquee play being RJ Oben's forced fumble at the end of the half that led to Leonard's touchdown pass.

Special teams came up key. Transfer receiver Jayden Harrison returned the opening kick of the second half 98 yards for a touchdown while transfer kicker Mitch Jeter proved his clean bill of health with field goals of 44, 47 and 48 yards.

"The turnovers are the difference in the game, guys," Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. "I mean, you should know when you turn it over twice and they return a kickoff for a touchdown, you’re not going to have a lot of success."

The Irish were also aggressive, going for it on fourth down near mid-field in the second half and executing a fire-drill scramble on special teams. With 7:17 left in the game, the punt unit lined up but raced off as the first-team offense came back on.

The offense got Georgia to jump offsides. The drive continued, and Notre Dame wasted five more minutes off the clock before punting the ball with two minutes left in the game.

"That’s the aggressiveness in terms of our preparation that I want our program to have," Freeman said. "That’s got to be one of our edges, that we are going to be an aggressive group and not fear making mistakes."

Freeman has come a long way since his first year, when he had losses to Marshall and Stanford. You could say he's come a long way since his loss to Northern Illinois this season.

What he's learned is how to trust his players as well as the coaches calling the plays. He's learned how to lead and marry the talent on each phase of the ball on this Notre Dame team.

"If we expect to move forward in the college football playoff, it's going to take all three phases," Freeman said. "It's was a great performance today."

It's how he snapped the major bowl losing skid, which was something all Notre Dame fans have heard about from fans of nearly every fan base.

For thirty years, the Irish have heard those words.

"They're a blue blood fraud."

"They're always overrated. 

"They can never win the big game."

No more. They've finally gotten that monkey off their backs.

Freeman's Notre Dame program has arrived. They're one win away from a national championship game appearance.

And the Irish are doing it their way unapologetically, regardless of what anyone else says.

"You want to spend time with family, and that’s what we are," Freeman said.

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