9/17/2023 football Edit

Notre Dame football enters latest Top 10 clash holding steady at No. 9

Marcus Freeman head's into Saturday matchup with No. 6 Ohio State with a 1-3 mark against Top 10 teams but 1-0 in Notre Dame Stadium. (Jeff Douglas, Inside ND Sports)

Eric Hansen • InsideNDSports

Publisher

Just 19 games into his Notre Dame football coaching era, second-year Irish head coach Marcus Freeman will already be facing his fifth Top 10 opponent.

And the second time it’s been his alma mater, Ohio State.

Both Freeman’s Irish (4-0) and his former team, the Buckeyes (3-0), held steady in both the AP and NFF-FWAA Super 16 polls released on Sunday, at Nos. 9 and 6, respectively. The two teams clash at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday night (7:30 EDT; NBC/Peacock).

ESPN’s College Gameday will be on campus earlier in the day.

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The coaches poll boosted ND up a couple of spots, from 11th to ninth, after the Irish pulled away from Central Michigan in the second half of a 41-17 home victory on Saturday. Ohio State remained at No. 4 in that poll after clobbering Western Kentucky at home, 63-10.

Freeman is 1-3 in his previous four games against top 10 teams, though all four have been competitive — except the victory, a 35-14 domination of No. 5 Clemson last November, which is the only one staged in Notre Dame Stadium.

As far as Freeman’s predecessors, Brian Kelly was 4-12 with eight of the Top 10 losses coming by 14 points or more. Charlie Weis was 1-7, Tyrone Willingham 3-5 and Bob Davie 1-7. Lou Holtz (1986-96) was the last Irish coach with a winning record against the Top 10 — 22-15-1.

Two of the three opponents that follow Ohio State on the Irish schedule are also ranked. Idle USC (3-0) remained fifth, while Duke (3-0) moved up three spots to No. 18 after thumping Northwestern, 38-14.

Louisville (3-0), also part of the four-game stretch in which ND’s opponents’ combined record is 12-0, is the only unranked team among that group.