Notre Dame football: Irish squander early lead, lose Fiesta Bowl
By Brad Weiss
The Notre Dame football team was rolling against Oklahoma State early on, but in the end, it was the Cowboys who won the Playstation Fiesta Bowl.
Towards the end of the first half, it looked like the Notre Dame football team would steamroll the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the Playstation Fiesta Bowl. Led by the right arm of Jack Coan, the Irish held a huge lead with under two minutes left in the first half, but that was until Cowboys quarterback Spencer Sanders started to get going.
Oklahoma State was able to find the end zone right before the close of the first half, pulling within 14 at 28-14 in favor of the Irish. After scoring with their first drive in the second half, it was suddenly a game, and Oklahoma State would go on to dominate the second half against this Notre Dame football team.
In the end, the Irish lost the head coaching debut of Marcus Freeman and closed the season with an 11-2 record. It was their first loss since losing vs Cincinnati in a game that feels years ago, and it was one the Irish should have never lost.
Notre Dame football got a record-breaking game from Coan
The Irish made it a point to attack through the air early and often, as Coan finished the game with a Fiesta Bowl-record 509 passing yards. Coan finished his Notre Dame career with five touchdown passes, but it was his lone interception that took the air out of the sails for the Irish late in their loss on Saturday.
Oklahoma State dominated Notre Dame in the third quarter, scoring 17 unanswered points to grab a lead heading into the final frame. A late Notre Dame touchdown on a Coan pass to Kevin Austin Jr. put the Irish in position for an onside kick, which was recovered by the Cowboys for the victory.
The game was not without questionable calls by the first-time head coach, as some may feel the Irish should have punted late in the fourth quarter, instead of giving the ball back to Oklahoma State inside their own 20, field position that guaranteed them a nine-point lead late.
Had the Irish punted, they would have had three timeouts and a chance to only need one stop and one touchdown to win the game.
All told, the Fiesta Bowl was an exciting matchup, but in the end, the Irish continued their big-time bowl game losing streak. Freeman’s head coaching career starts with a loss, and despite a lot of bright spots, including Lorenzo Styles Jr., this was one of the more disappointing losses we have seen in a long time.