MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Notre Dame's most notable injury to watch ahead of its Orange Bowl matchup with Penn State in a College Football Playoff semifinal was never going to be addressed in the football program's official pregame availability report.
As Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman has stated repeatedly ahead of Thursday's game (7:30 p.m. EST on ESPN), running back Jeremiyah Love will officially be listed as available and is expected to play against the Nittany Lions (13-2).
Notre Dame (13-1) announced one hour prior to kickoff that all players listed on its two-deep depth chart this week will be available to play. That includes Love, who's been dealing with a right knee injury. He first missed time in the USC game on Nov. 30 because of the injury. He was unable to finish the 23-10 win over Georgia last Thursday because of his knee.
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Love was one of Notre Dame's first players to start warming up on the field in Miami Gardens, Fla. He went through some motions while wearing shorts and no knee brace with director of football performance Loren Landow. He took the normal amount of reps in padded warmups while wearing a brace on his knee.
Love is Notre Dame's leading rusher this season with 1,076 yards and 16 touchdowns on 148 carries. It seems unlikely he'll be close to 100% in the game, but he may still be able to make a positive impact for the Irish.
"Jeremiyah has had a great week of practice," Freeman said Wednesday. "We have to be smart in terms of how much we're asking him to do in practice. We've got to get him ready for the game.
"But he's confident ... Nobody feels 100%. But J-Love will be good to go.”
Notre Dame starting nose tackle Howard Cross III is also expected to play despite playing through a left ankle injury. Cross missed the final three games of ND's regular season with the injury. He played against Indiana in the playoff's first round without issue, but he missed some time against Georgia in the quarterfinals with a reaggravation of the ankle.
Cross went through warmups with a heavily taped left ankle, which may limit his effectiveness. He's totaled 24 tackles, four sacks and 5.5 tackles for loss in 11 games this season.
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Notre Dame listed two players as questionable for the game earlier in the week: sophomore wide receiver KK Smith (collarbone) and freshman linebacker Bodie Kahoun (right lower leg). Neither were listed on the depth chart for this week, so Notre Dame doesn't include them in the official pregame update. Both were dressed and went through warmups.
Notre Dame lost five starters to season-ending injuries this year: cornerback Benjamin Morrison (hip), vyper Jordan Botelho (knee), center Ashton Craig (knee), vyper Boubacar Traore (knee) and defensive tackle Rylie Mills (knee). Sophomore offensive lineman Charles Jagusah was expected to miss the entire season following a preseason pectoral injury, but he was available to play in the Sugar Bowl.
Notre Dame previously declared many other players out for the season: walk-on CB Marty Auer (knee), walk-on DL Quentin Autry (shoulder), S Taebron Bennie-Powell (shoulder), walk-on CB Charles Du (shoulder) TE Cooper Flanagan (Achilles), LB Kahanu Kia (knee), RB Gi'Bran Payne (knee), OL Styles Prescod (shoulder) and CB Chance Tucker (knee).
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