Notre Dame defeats Indiana in the first round of the College Football Playoff

No. 7 Notre Dame shut down No. 10 Indiana’s potent offense and ended the Hoosiers’ dream season with a 27-17 victory in the debut of the 12-team College Football Playoff.

The win sends the Irish to the Sugar Bowl playoff quarterfinals against No. 2 Georgia. Notre Dame dominated for long stretches of the game. Indiana scored 14 points in the final 90 seconds after the Irish built a 24-point lead.

As higher-seeded hosts of the opening round of the playoffs in South Bend, the Fighting Irish outscored the Hoosiers by 193 rushing yards to take advantage of frigid temperatures that slowed both passing games.

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With a stunning start – a 98-yard touchdown by Jeremiyah Love in the first quarter that broke the previous playoff record for longest carry – the Irish proved they could beat the Indiana defense, which was the only team in the bowl to reach the postseason The subdivision is said to have allowed less than 1,000 yards on the ground.

Notre Dame finished the game with two points on 5.5 yards per carry. Love had 108 yards on 13.5 yards per carry, while Jadarian Price and Aneyas Williams combined for 56 yards on 15 carries.

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Indiana’s pass rush disrupted quarterback Riley Leonard, who struggled to push the ball downfield without creating a 44-yard gain to Jordan Faison that set up Notre Dame’s final score. Leonard finished 23 of 32 for 201 yards with two combined scores.

Indiana’s Kurtis Rourke went 20 of 33 for 215 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. The Hoosiers entered Friday night averaging 9.7 yards per attempt and an FBS-best quarterback efficiency rating of 179.1.

Overall, Indiana finished the game with 278 yards rushing on 61 plays, with a large portion of those yards already decided.

The Irish have now won 11 straight since their inexplicable loss to Northern Illinois in September. This year’s team is the fifth in program history to win 12 games, joining 2018, 2012, 1989 and 1988.

The loss ends a remarkable season for Indiana and new coach Curt Cignetti. After never winning more than nine games in a season in program history, the Hoosiers went 11-1 in the regular season and earned Cignetti National Coach of the Year honors.

But while Indiana scored at least 30 points ten times, the offense came up empty in games against Michigan, Ohio State and the Irish. The Hoosiers averaged 3.9 yards per play in those three games, compared to 7.2 yards per play against every other team on their schedule.

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Notre Dame defeats Indiana in the first round of the College Football Playoff

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