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Game Thread | Fiesta Bowl: Notre Dame vs. Oklahoma State

December 31, 2021
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No. 5 Notre Dame (11-1) vs. No. 9 Oklahoma State (11-2)

State Farm Stadium | 1:00 p.m. ET | ESPN | Notre Dame -1.0 | O/U: 45.0

Game Week Articles | Roster| Depth Chart Schedule 


FIESTA 

Notre Dame is back at the Fiesta Bowl and the Irish will look to get back on track in New Year’s Six games as Marcus Freeman makes his debut as head coach. 

The Irish will be without Kyren Williams and Kyle Hamilton as both are off to the NFL and starting right tackle Josh Lugg will miss the game to injury. All three are key losses, but it's something this team has fought through all season, so I wouldn’t expect Notre Dame to miss a beat. 

That said, Notre Dame will need to protect the quarterback and the Cowboys lead the country in sacks and the Irish will be starting two true freshmen at the tackle position. 

Physicality will be the name of the game in this one as both teams want to win in the trenches, which plays to Notre Dame as they've been one of the more physical teams in the country over the last five years. 


Five Players To Watch

Notre Dame OT Blake Fisher
He's suddenly thrust back into the spotlight after Josh Lugg's injury, which means Fisher will be back in the starting lineup going against several quality pass rushers. I'm sure he'll have some down moments in the game, but by the end of the Fiesta Bowl we may be talking about him a lot as a run blocker.

Oklahoma State RB Jaylen Warren
One of the toughest running backs in the country to tackle, OSU will need him to go off to not let the game rest too much on the shoulders of quarterback Spencer Sanders. If the Irish defense takes Warren away, points will be tough to come by for the Cowboys.

Notre Dame DT Kurt Hinish
In his last game in a Notre Dame uniform, expect the emotional leader of the defense to shine. OSU will be forced to play their backup center due to injury and Hinish should win the one on one matchup with their backup frequently.

Oklahoma State LB Malcolm Rodriguez
A missile as a blitzer, Rodriguez is the best player on a defense that thrives on bringing pressure. Expect to hear his name called a lot whenever the Irish are running the football.

Notre Dame RB Chris Tyree
Now with turf toe in the rearview mirror, a healthy Tyree is going to get more touches with Kyren Williams opting out. He shouldn't have a ton of room to gain yards against this defense, but if they can get him in the right matchup, he'll be someone who provides explosive plays for the Irish offense.


Quotes of the Week

Notre Dame QB Jack Coan:
“I certainly definitely want to go out with a win. You're at a place like Notre Dame, a lot of guys are used to being in the playoffs and things like that. So you might take a breath or a step back and saying you're not in the playoff; you're just in a bowl game. But for him to say that we're going to do this and this is a business trip, we're going to go out and win, it means a ton to me. It would mean everything to end my career with a win.”

Notre Dame C Jarrett Patterson:
“Really just the variety of looks they provide. It's three down, three-three, three-down joker, four-down. They do a lot. They can do all the looks. So the biggest thing is our preparation, this week especially, has to be on point. We have to be ready for all of these third-down looks and really just win those obvious situations -- third and short, third and long, red zone. All of those situations we have to win so we can help secure the Fiesta Bowl.”

Notre Dame WR Kevin Austin Jr.:
”​​​​​​​I feel like Tyler has a lot of opportunities to throw. When he does, he shows his throwing arm. I would say, obviously, I get that sometimes it seems like he's very run-heavy when he goes into the game. But at the end of the day, when he throws in the game, he has confidence and he can make throws. He makes throws in practice that I'm shocked about. So I know that he can do it in the game.”

Notre Dame DE Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa:
“I think the culture is what really puts Notre Dame on top. You come in here and you just have got to leave your own principles at the door. What you have got to understand is Notre Dame has tradition and culture that's built, that you have to take in and understand that's what makes Notre Dame successful, is there's a culture here built upon trust, upon love, and above all, about the brotherhood. You will hear us talk about the brotherhood day in and day out because that's truly what it's about. It's about playing the sport that we love for your brothers, and it's all about the team. That's really what it is.” 

Notre Dame DE Isaiah Foskey:
“​​​​​​​This is a game with just new beginnings, beginning the Coach [Marcus] Freeman era. As everyone knows, our new head coach is Coach Freeman. It just brings more of a hype to this game. This is one of Coach Freeman's first game, New Year's Six bowl game. It's just a great atmosphere. We're coming into this game to win the game.”

Notre Dame HC Marcus Freeman:
“​​​​​​​My challenge to our group is we have to match the intensity and the physicality this group (Oklahoma State) plays with. And that's something I always prided myself on as a defensive coordinator. We're going to be tough, we're going to be physical, and we're going to play hard. Then you turn on the film and you watch this offense and their defense especially play extremely hard and extremely physical, and it's a challenge. The ability to match that intensity and physicality and how hard we play will be a huge challenge. But I think our group is up to it. And that's what we're going to have to do if we want to have success tomorrow.”


For Your Nerves 

TEAM STATS Oklahoma State Notre Dame
Points Per Game 30.6 35.3
Points Allowed Per Game 16.8 18.3
Total Yards 402.9 415.8
Yards Passing 221.2 263.6
Yards Rushing 181.8 152.3
Yards Allowed 273.6 339.8
Pass Yards Allowed 184.4 212.0
Rush Yards Allowed  89.2 127.8

Game Thread | Fiesta Bowl: Notre Dame vs. Oklahoma State

135,199 Views | 1316 Replies | Last: 2 yr ago by hunt4g
irishfan32489
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This defense currently lacks elite players in some spots. Freeman is changing that. Elite players do not miss that tackle.
BigIrishEnergy69
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Whelp...Time for Coan and the rest of the Offense to step up!
REMND
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Dang. Now we have a game. Coan has been good answering opponents scoring though.
mike51875
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Ugh, really poor offensive series set up this TD to let them back in the game.
Blueclaw
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Bertrand playing flag football out there
Joe1976
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we complete that sack on the first play of that series its another 3-out...
Joe
MAS
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smatthew77 said:

Terrible tacking. Looked tired.


They shouldn't be.
Sgt Hulka
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Probably didn't help that they picked up the PI flag
Dillon1986
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But first play of their series where we had the quarterback was a killer
NDTom88
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Just throw all over them. They can't stop it and then we can open up the run
wjc14435
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Anybody see Tyler Buchner on the sideline? Usually see him out there...but not today
ohiondfan
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Announcers reviewing storylines that anyone on this site has know for months or years lol.
mattfreeman
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Staff
Irish offense on the struggle bus.
mavscoach
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amazing how Bertrand missing the tackle on the 1st play of that drive seemed to set up the whole drive
ndsean44
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Lenzy needs to complete that catch
Joe1976
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gotta catch that..lenzy...
Joe
Rwolf101
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Those slow developing plays aren't going to work often vs this defense.
mattfreeman
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Staff
Notre Dame's run game feels like the first 4 games of the year: 6 carries for -3 yards
BigIrishEnergy69
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Coan is a great statue
ndsean44
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Man....

Man, man, man.

Bad offensive series, followed by a bad defensive series, followed by another bad offensive series.

Bad. Bad. Bad. Can't have that. Nope.
Joe1976
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D better get their heads in the game.
Joe
ohiondfan
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mattfreeman said:

Irish offense on the struggle bus.


It's time.
MAS
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Terrible series by Coan. Walked into sack and had Mayer wide open on prevoos play
mattfreeman
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Staff
Sgt Hulka
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3 man rush and they get a sack.

not good
irishfan32489
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Lol this offense… can't wait until we have a dual threat guy back there.
Blueclaw
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Coan with the Statue of Liberty play
MAS
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Sgt Hulka said:

3 man rush and they get a sack.

not good


I mean easily avoidable if Coan moves at all
Brucealeg
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How's does a grown man fall down from being touched?
CelticIrish
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This field is in awful shape. Guys slipping right and left on both teams
mattfreeman
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Staff
Notre Dame 14
Oklahoma State 7

End of 1.

Total Yards
ND: 160
OSU: 95

Passing
ND: 163
OSU: 46

Rushing
ND: -3
OSU: 49

Yards per Play
ND: 8.9
OSU: 4.8

Drew White: 3 tackles
Coan: 9/12, 163 yards, 2 TDs
TheGroove91
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So the guard blocks no one
Although knocks dude didn't
Dude gets a sack
Kong
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irishfan32489 said:

Lol this offense… can't wait until we have a dual threat guy back there.


Kind of makes zone read plays pointless
usma95
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If want to run against this team, I feel Tyler at QB is the only way we will do it. They are crashing hard from the ends.
Sgt Hulka
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Is it me, or was that the longest quarter you've ever saw?
 
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