No. 7 Notre Dame uses late score to down No. 20 Texas A&M: What it means for the Irish
COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS - AUGUST 31: Howard Cross III #56 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish celebrates his sack with Rylie Mills #99 against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field on August 31, 2024 in College Station, Texas. (Photo by Jack Gorman/
Notre Dame went on the road and finally got that signature win.
In the biggest win of Marcus Freeman's career, the No. 7-ranked Fighting Irish went into Kyle Field in College Station, Texas, and spoiled Mike Elko's debut as ND stymied No. 20 Texas A&M 23-13 Saturday night.
Sophomore running back Jeremiyah Love scored the go-ahead touchdown with 1:54 left in the game. After defensive coordinator Al Golden's defense forced a tunrover on downs, kicker Mitch Jeter put the nail in the coffin with a 45-yard field goal.
It was the first ranked road win for Notre Dame since 2004 when it upset No. 9 Tennessee in Knoxville.
"Execution fuels emotion," Freeman said after the win. "When you have a win like that you're emotional."
The Irish and Aggies were deadlocked at 6-6 apiece at halftime. Notre Dame had more of the highlights in defensive stalemate with two interceptions. The offense waited until the second half.
Jadarian Price and Love rushed for touchdowns, with Love's score coming in the final two minutes to put the Irish on top.
Notre Dame's offensive line, starting a true freshman at left tackle, shook off its struggles to deliver in the fourth quarter.
"I think someone told me before the game, six career starts," Leonard said. "They're Notre Dame offensive linemen. They got the job done."
From there, the game was in the hands of the Irish' defense. Christian Gray, in his first career start at cornerback, broke up a fourth-down pass to turn the ball over on downs and all but seal the win.
Here's what it means for the Irish:
Notre Dame gets that win
No one needed this game more than Marcus Freeman. Well, perhaps transfer quarterback Riley Leonard. Wait, maybe defensive coordiantor Al Golden, or defensive All-Americans Xavier Watts and Howard Cross III. What about the offensive line?
Whomever you choose on the Irish's roster, they needed this game.
They got it.
Starting Year 3 of the Freeman Era in South Bend, Notre Dame got the best win of Freeman's young career as a head coach.
After questions all offseasons that gave way to a first half of jeers in a 6-6 tie, Notre Dame put up its dukes. Those dukes were on the heels of a former Duke quarterback, literally.
Leonard, who transferred to ND from the Blue Devils' program in hopes of getting Notre Dame to new heights, had 63 rushing yards against a stout Aggies' defensive line. He also made gutsy throws when he needed a first down, much like his 20-yard strike to Beaux Collins that moved the chains in the fourth quarter.
"I got a lot of confidence in Riley Leonard at the end of the game to put the ball in his hands and make a play," Freeman said.
That transferred to the offensive line, which was struggling to gain its footing in the first half. In the fourth quarter, the offensive line stood strong and opened up the biggest pathway of the night for Love and his game-winning 21-yard score.
The Irish defense bent, only got broken once on an Aggie touchdown drive that tied the game in the fourth, but rallied to seal the game.
It's hard to put the right words on this kind of win for Notre Dame.
The team needed this win to start 2024, especially as it puts Notre Dame at the front of the line alongside Georgia for the 12-team College Football Playoff. The UGA Bulldogs handled Clemson in a top-25 match up earlier Saturday.
But this was the sign of a different time.
In the first two years of the Freeman era, he lost heartbreaking ranked showdowns to Ohio State, freefalling upsets Standford and Marshall, and couldn't pull off a ranked win on the road against Clemson.
Against Texas A&M, the team with the NIL fund to go after any athlete they want and the boosters that could afford a $77.6 million for former head coach Jimbo Fisher, the Irish had a game where it had the better athletes than its SEC opponent.
That's a rare moment. It happened Saturday, and the Irish's schedule gets more favorable from here on out.
With the help of a team that had plenty to prove, Freeman earned more believers in South Bend Saturday night by way of his actions hundreds of miles away in College Station.
"This is right where we want to be," Freeman said. "This is what we talked about."