ATLANTA – At Notre Dame, the bar to achieve legendary status is high. After all, this is the school that gave us Rudy, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Knute Rockne, and “Win One For The Gipper.” You have to work hard to etch your name alongside those legends.
That being said… leading your team to an impressive touchdown, showing your faith on national television, and then throwing up on the sideline, all in the space of about 30 seconds, might qualify.
Riley Leonard and Notre Dame fell short of winning the national championship on Monday night, losing to Ohio State, 34-23. Truth be told, they weren’t even in the game for long. Ohio State scored on its first five possessions, took a 31-7 lead and never worried too much about Notre Dame after that opening drive.
Oh, but what an inaugural drive it was. Notre Dame, an 8½-point underdog coming into the game, which most analysts gave little to no chance, took the opening kickoff and, under Leonard’s direction, created an 18-play, 75-yard drive that devoured the first 9:45. of the clock.
The series included not one, but two fourth-and-1 all-in bets as Leonard dived into the teeth of Ohio State’s defensive line. He converted both and then carried the ball into the end zone himself. Leonard’s last line on that possession: 31 yards through the air, 34 yards on the ground and a touchdown.
On that touchdown, Leonard crossed the line, again, and stomped on the “R” in “NOTRE DAME.” He found a television camera in the back of the end zone and raised his right arm to show the Bible verse on his wrist: Matthew 23:12, “He who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” ”.
After the match, he was characteristically humble, praising both his teammates and his opponents. He leaned heavily on his faith, showing grace in defeat and acknowledging the faith of Ohio State players and his own.
“I am happy to see godly men come out victorious no matter the circumstances,” he said. “I am very happy to praise Jesus also in the lowest moments.”
As for that initial attack, well, for Leonard it was the purest distillation of what he and the Irish offense could do.
“We just went out and played Notre Dame football, took advantage of our matchups when we needed to,” Leonard said after the game. “We just drove the ball down the field. We had to run the ball a little bit. “Everything was clicking.”
It was, in short, a perfect trip. But it was an unsustainable pace and everyone on the Notre Dame bench knew it.
“We couldn’t run Riley on every play,” Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman later said. “It’s not the right thing for Riley and it’s not going to sustain the success we needed offensively.”
“If coach wants to call my number and make me run the ball every play,” Leonard said, “I don’t have a problem.”
However, as soon as Leonard left the field, it was clear that something was up; He started vomiting on the sidelines. He attributed it to falling on the ball a couple of times, which is certainly a possibility. But whether the internal anguish got to him or not, Leonard admitted he wasn’t the same quarterback for the rest of the half.
“The next two trips I maybe relaxed a little bit and I can’t let that happen,” he said. “And I apologize to everyone for the way I played after that attack in the second quarter because it’s unacceptable.”
Leonard found his rhythm again in the second half, hitting Jaden Greathouse for touchdowns of 34 and 30 yards.
“That was the message at halftime,” Leonard said. “We have nothing more to lose. It’s the last game no matter what. You might as well go out there, throw the rock and trust your guys.”
But by then the damage had been done and the deficit was too great to overcome. Ohio State could run out of time for the game and Leonard’s college career. The final line: 22 of 31, 255 yards, two touchdowns in the air and one on the ground, no interceptions. The clean sheet one could expect against the national champions and which could help Leonard’s prospects in the future. A trip to Mobile for the Senior Bowl awaits him and a wait, perhaps a long wait, for a phone call on NFL Draft weekend. But he’s etched his name into Notre Dame lore, and he’s fine with that.
“It’s hard to describe the character of this place,” he said Monday night. “I think I’ve grown a lot thanks to the people around me.”
Just before leaving for the final trip of the season to Atlanta, Leonard visited the Grotto on Notre Dame’s campus. The Grotto, a small cave set aside for prayer and contemplation, gave Leonard the opportunity to reflect on his life and career as a footballer. He had spent three years at Duke, playing through ups and downs, injuries and triumphs, and he had spent this magical season at Notre Dame, leading the team from that season-opening loss to Northern Illinois to a lead in the national championship.
“If you told me this like five years ago I’d be sitting here today, I’d say you’re absolutely right,” he said earlier this week, “but at the same time, I’d be like, ‘How did we get there, man? Yeah, it’s been “a crazy trip.”
The trip came to an end on Monday night. But what a journey it was, for Leonard and for Notre Dame. “I don’t even recognize the person I was before I came to Notre Dame,” he said after the game, pointing to Freeman and linebacker Jack Kiser, “and all the credit goes to these guys next to me and everyone else in the locker room.” “. .”
About that locker room. On his hand before the game, Leonard wrote another Bible verse: Proverbs 27:17, “As iron sharpens iron, so one sharpens another.” Leonard perfected the entire Irish team this year. He may not have ascended to Gipper territory, but it will be a long time before the Irish forget what Riley Leonard did for them, this year and tonight.