(Editor’s Note: Sports Capital Journalism Program graduate students Cort Street and Chris Schumerth are covering the College Football Playoff Quarterfinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl after covering Notre Dame’s first-round victory over Indiana. Here are their predictions.)
When watching the film on Georgia and Notre Dame over the course of the 2024 season, one word comes to mind: physicality. These two teams have built winning cultures through having success where it matters most – on the line of scrimmage.
The Fighting Irish under head coach Marcus Freeman have been a top-10 defense in the country in nearly every facet, allowing 13.9 points per game and 295.3 yards per game. With inexperienced Georgia quarterback Gunnar Stockton stepping in for the Bulldogs after a season-ending elbow injury to Carson Beck, the Irish should have plenty of opportunity to get in the backfield and affect the Bulldogs’ offensive attack.
For the Irish to win, they will have to be able to run the ball with consistency. Notre Dame averages 222.4 rushing yards per game, while Georgia has struggled to defend the run in recent contests, allowing 226 rushing yards against UMass and 260 rushing yards against Georgia Tech to close out the regular season. Notre Dame’s rushing offense against Georgia’s rushing defense could be the matchup that ultimately decides the game.
While many of the statistics favor the Irish in this matchup, I believe Georgia will win because of their more immeasurable qualities – their experience under the national spotlight and the winning culture that head coach Kirby Smart has instilled in his players. Georgia has looked slightly weaker than their usual championship standard in 2024, but that can easily be attributed to their brutal strength of schedule, which ranked as the sixth toughest in the country. While Notre Dame took care of business in often-dominating fashion throughout the regular season, the Fighting Irish admittedly did not endure nearly the same level of competition as Georgia, facing the 78th toughest strength of schedule. Notre Dame has not been tested in the same way Georgia has in 2024, and Georgia’s experience on this stage will prove to be the difference.
Georgia 23, Notre Dame 17
By Cort Street | @cort_street
Notre Dame won a bunch of games against their non-SEC schedule and now they get to play Georgia in a game that actually matters. We’ve seen this script before, yeah? These programs played head-to-head in 2017 and 2019, and the Bulldogs won in both South Bend and Athens. When Alabama was the national powerhouse program, the Crimson Tide made quick work of Notre Dame in the postseason after the 2012 season and then again after 2020. The Irish just never quite have the athletes to keep up, do they?
Not so fast, my friends! This one feels different. Marcus Freeman has shown a commitment to recruiting and adding depth through the portal, and it’s paying off. They’re “built like an SEC team,” as Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. While Georgia has certainly looked great in spots—the second half against Alabama, twice against Texas—it’s Notre Dame that has been the more consistent team (winners of 10 in a row) and the more dominant team (7 of their last 8 have been blowouts, or close to it).
The Irish should have what it takes to compete, if not impose their will, on both lines of scrimmage. They’ll have the more experienced quarterback, running backs who can break a game open, and defensive backs that can match up 1-on-1 with Georgia’s receivers and force turnovers. They have a coach who’s willing to go for it on fourth down when it matters and who will sprinkle in a little special-teams creativity if needed. They get better in the second half of games, breaking their opponents’ wills. Oh, and remember how bad the Notre Dame defense made USC quarterback and former Heisman winner Caleb Williams look last year? Georgia’s breaking in a new quarterback in the Sugar Bowl.
Prediction: Notre Dame 27, Georgia 13
By Chris Schumerth | @ChrisSchumerth
