Notre Dame needs Riley Leonard to succeed in the College Football Playoff

On By Littum

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The second time has been the charm for Notre Dame and a transfer quarterback out of the ACC.

Last season, the Fighting Irish and coach Marcus Freeman signed Wake Forest transfer Sam Hartman, one of the most prolific passers in ACC conference history. The results were mixed: Hartman threw for 2,689 yards and 24 touchdowns, but the Irish lost three times and never made the College Football Playoff mix.

Notre Dame went back to the ACC for Duke transfer Riley Leonard, who after a slow start — for the seniors and the Irish — has become the face of this year’s march to the national semifinals. Leonard and the Irish face Penn State in the Orange Bowl on Thursday night.

“I think what he was able to learn is that you can’t get your joy from what outsiders say about you. You get your joy from playing this game with your teammates,” Freeman said . “You play this game with confidence. And that’s where I’ve seen him grow the most is the confidence he plays with.”

In the four months since a stunning loss to Northern Illinois, the Irish have developed into a defense-focused intimidator capable of hammering Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.

Reflecting this growth has been the development of an offense that has adopted a more predictable, meat-and-potatoes style. Driven by Leonard, this rebounding approach has Notre Dame nearing the finish line for the program’s first national championship since 1988.

He also won at Duke, going 14-7 as a starter in his final two seasons and leading last year’s team as high as the No. 16 in the US LBM Coaches Poll to match the Blue Devils’ highest ranking since the 1994 season.

After going through some early growing pains, the marriage between Leonard and Notre Dame has become one of the biggest success stories of last year’s transfer cycle. Only one game during the current 12-game winning streak has been decided by a single possession, while Leonard has accounted for at least 200 yards of total offense in all but two games.

“Man, he’s so competitive,” Freeman said. “He finds a way to get his job done. And we’re so grateful to have him here.”

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ORANGE BAN: Breakdown of the game between Notre Dame and Penn State

Far from explosive in the passing game — the Irish are one of nine Bowl Subdivision teams with fewer than two completions of 50 or more yards — Notre Dame has become a wrecking ball by leaning on the three-headed running game of Leonard and running backs Jeremiah Love and Jadarian Prince.

Combined, those three have rushed for 2,627 yards, more than all but 17 other teams in the Bowl Subdivision, with 38 touchdowns. Leonard has accounted for 831 yards and 15 touchdowns on 5.6 yards per carry. carry.

The senior has got an even bigger role in the playoffs. Leonard has 25 carries in two playoff games, including a season-high 14 carries in the win against the Bulldogs. The Sugar Bowl also showed how Leonard has become a fixture for Notre Dame’s offense, delivering crucial turnovers and helping the Irish pull away in the second half.

On the year, Leonard is averaging 6.2 yards per carry. carry in the second half and 6.1 yards per carry when Notre Dame leads by more than a touchdown. He had two third-down conversions in a seven-minute-plus drive in the fourth quarter that helped seal the win against Georgia.

“It would be a physical matchup,” Leonard said. “Our number one key to winning was the streak on both sides of the ball, and that’s exactly what we did. We knew if we could establish ourselves up front, we’d have a chance at this.”

The offense has ranked among the most productive in program history despite the lack of anything resembling an explosive passing game: Notre Dame is fourth nationally at 37.7 points per game. match. But this approach makes the Irish stand out among the rest of the playoff field.

The closest analog would be Penn State painting the Orange Bowl as a low-scoring matchup decided by turnovers and defense. But the Nittany Lions are dynamic compared to the Irish, averaging nearly two more yards per carry. pass attempts with one of the best quarterback efficiency ratings in the FBS.

Being a little different has worked for Notre Dame. The Irish are averaging 30.3 points per game. game when they attempt 30 or more passes, an average inflated by a 52-point outburst against Florida State, and 39.9 points per game. match when they make fewer than 30 attempts.

The formula still delivered one of the hottest stretches in recent program history. Since the loss to Northern Illinois, the Irish have averaged 6.7 yards per carry. game and 40.9 points per match. Leonard accounted for at least one score in every game during that span and had just four interceptions in 287 attempts, or one for about every 72 throws.

Once again, Leonard and his ability to protect the football while playing a leading role in the run game will be key in the matchup with Penn State.

“As you look at the course of our season, it’s been a big indication of the outcome of the game, our ability to play the football and our ability to stop the run,” Freeman said. “It’s a mentality. It’s a mindset.”