Notre Dame's road to CFP glory just got easier due to Hoosiers' glaring kryptonite
Notre Dame football is set to host the Indiana Hoosiers in the 2024 College Football Playoffs at Notre Dame Stadium. The in-state rivalry will be renewed and the two Indiana schools will play for the first time since 1991 and the last time the Hoosiers won at Notre Dame Stadium was 1898.
The Indiana Hoosiers have been a College Football Cinderella story this year, with an impressive 11-1 record. However, they played just two teams with at least seven wins, and one of those teams was the Hoosiers' main test, Ohio State, which they lost in the Shoe by a score of 38-15.
Curt Cignetti Talks Impact of Notre Dame Football Crowd Noise
“We didn’t do a good job with the crowd noise,” Indiana Head Coach, Curt Cignetti, stated on ESPN after Selection Sunday on what they learned from their Ohio State loss. “It was really loud that day and we went to silent cadence the third play of the game.”
The Indiana Hoosiers had three penalties that game against the Buckeyes and it was the fewest yards under a Cignetti coached team in his coaching career. The Hoosiers were held to 151 total yards, fumbled the ball and gave up a punt return for a touchdown. They averaged just two yards per rush and under four yards per pass against the Buckeyes. Hoosiers' star quarterback, Kurtis Rourke, was only able to get 68 passing yards on 8/18.
The Irish currently are tied for the second best turnover ratio at 16 and have forced 13 turnovers at home. Notre Dame faithful will have to show out and keep the Hoosiers guessing all game long as the Irish 12th man is supported by 77,622 fans. The first-round matchup between the Irish and Hoosiers is the most expensive first-round game, as the cheapest ticket on SeetGeek is currenly $1059.
“Back to the noise only. The noise in particular. We had some communication breakdowns and pass protections and some missed assignments that were very uncharacteristic for us." Cignetti stated on what was most glaring in their road loss to Ohio State. "Primarily, crowd noise would be the number one thing, and we’ve been working on that since the game.”
Notre Dame has an impressive 14-4 record at Notre Dame Stadium under Marcus Freeman and a 3-2 record when they play under the lights at Notre Dame Stadium since 2022. The Hoosiers record on the road since 2022 is a depressing 4-10. Indiana's record against the top 15 is 0-7, with three of those losses coming on the road.
Notre Dame football fans will have to make a strong showing and cause chaos for the Hoosiers and put them in uncomfortable positions as the Hoosiers past shows they are inexperience under pressure and not nearly as good on the road in a hostile environment. Irish open as 8.5 point favorites against the Hoosiers and will go head-to-head on Dec. 20 at 7:00 on ESPN. This will be the first Notre Dame home game broadcasted on a platform other than NBC and Peacock since 1990 and the NBC deal.