‘Totally not being considered’ — Nick Saban reminds everyone on College GameDay of a forgotten aspect of the Miami vs. Notre Dame playoff debate
Nick Saban had a strong comment about the Miami vs. Notre Dame debate and pointed out something that not enough folks are talking about.
The debate has raged this week over the Miami Hurricanes vs. the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, and which of the two storied programs should be in the College Football Playoff if it comes down to one of them.
Fans have gone back and forth on social media. Talking heads have weighed in across various media formats. Who would win a hypothetical game has now been discussed, as has who would be favored. The head-to-head result — a 27-24 Miami win in the first weekend of the season — has been cited by Miami fans and a number of media figures who believe it is the ultimate tiebreaker and decider.
But one person who hadn’t weighed in yet is College GameDay host and legendary former Alabama coach Nick Saban. Saban finally spoke about the two teams on GameDay on Saturday morning, and he reminded the audience of something no one had been discussing: Miami was the more physically imposing team when they played.
Nick Saban says that Miami ‘kicked Notre Dame’s ass in the game’
“Yeah, but head-to-head, I mean, look at the game,” Saban said to his crewmates. “Miami was the more physical team in the game. Jeremiyah Love gained 33 yards in the game. They won on the line of scrimmage. They kicked Notre Dame’s ass in the game, alright? And that’s being totally not considered.”
Game control has been a recurring theme with Notre Dame, but Miami was in control throughout. It never trailed, leading 7-0 and 14-7 in the first half. They led 21-7 and 24-14 before going into a shell offensively and allowing the Irish to tie the game with under 2 minutes left. After working down the field and knocking through a field goal with under a minute left, the Hurricanes’ defensive front swarmed CJ Carr and the Irish offensive line to close the game out, forcing an intentional grounding flag and sacking Carr to run out the clock and end the game.
According to Pro Football Focus, Notre Dame had three players with pass blocking grades under 13.0 — tackles Anthony Knapp (12.9) and Styles Prescod (10.5), and guard Guerby Lambert (2.4).
Rueben Bain, Jr., Akheem Mesidor, and the rest of the Miami defensive front dominated Notre Dame’s front and held Jeremiyah Love (10 carries, 33 yards), keeping the Irish rushing attack (27 carries, 95 yards) under wraps.
Yet, these are things that, aside from Love’s futility against Miami, few have been talking about. Instead, an alarming number of people have assumed that Notre Dame would win.
The Hurricanes have proven that they match up well with the Irish, and that — if literal push came to literal shove — Miami is more than capable of doing it harder.
