Notre Dame Football

Notre Dame CB TaRiq Bracy Not Dwelling on Ohio State, Focused on Marshall

By Matt Freeman

September 9, 2022

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Notre Dame didn’t come up with the win at Ohio State on Saturday, but the Fighting Irish defense did continue to gain national respect as one of the best defenses in the country.

Cornerback TaRiq Bracy felt Notre Dame’s defense did send a message and the performance is something the Irish can build on over the next three months.

"The message sent was we're here to play ball,” stated Bracy. “It doesn't matter the team we play. We want to compete at the highest level. We're ready. We just want to play and compete."

Marshall will come to South Bend this Saturday as the Irish open the home slate at 2:30pm. The Thundering Herd might not be Ohio State, but the Marshall offense did explode for 55 points and 612 yards last week against Norfolk State, which has the attention of the Irish defense.

"It's football,” Bracy said. “You win and you lose. We came up short, but next week we have Marshall and that's who we're focused on right now.

"Compete. Go hard. Nothing is really different. We just have to execute when it matters the most."

Notre Dame’s secondary spoke about having the dog mentality heading into Ohio State and that’s carried over to this week as it’s the standard they have set.

"That's what we carry with each other,” stated Bracy. “We want to display a dog mentality every week. They're going to catch the ball. That's part of football. We want to limit explosive plays and make sure they don't get YAC (yards after catch)."

Notre Dame’s freshmen cornerbacks Jaden Mickey and Benjamin Morrison got their first college experience last weekend and Bracy wasn’t surprised both players showed they could play at this level.

"They came out and they were ready to go,” said Bracy. “The lights weren't too bright for them. They did a great job for us."

Morrison looked like a veteran on the field and had a key pass breakup on Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison. The play was something Bracy and the rest of the defense expected from Morrison despite his youth.

"We knew what he could do coming in,” Bracy explained. “We saw him ball out during fall camp. We were 100 percent confident in his play and he showed the whole world what he can do."

Mickey did give up the go-ahead touchdown in the third quarter and Bracy has been in those shoes. Bracy was able to give Mickey some veteran advice as he knows the freshman will be a key contributor moving forward.

"Just shake it off,” Bracy said. “You're going to give up touchdowns. You play defensive back. It's one of the hardest positions on the field. It happens. He knows that. He's a confident kid. He's going to come back stronger than ever and learn from that mistake. We're going to need him to play the rest of the season."

Bracy, who tallied four tackles last week, has clearly moved on from Ohio State and is looking forward to playing inside Notre Dame Stadium.

"It feels good to be back home and have the fans support us,” said Bracy. “We're ready to move on and play the next game."