Ohio State, Notre Dame coaches get the last word ahead of national championship
ATLANTA (WCMH) -- For Ohio State to capture its first national title in a decade, the team will have to go through a former Buckeye: Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman.
Both Freeman and Ryan Day addressed the media Sunday for one final time ahead of Monday's historic national championship, the first in the 12-team playoff era. OSU and Notre Dame will be the first two teams in college football history to play 16 games. And for both programs, the last three contests are at neutral sites.
For both coaches, what stands out are what these programs have in common.
"The fact that these are both, you know, Midwest programs, large, you know, fan base, alumni base, you know, have an opportunity to recruit nationally. I think there's a lot in common there," Day said. "And certainly everybody on our our program has a lot of respect for Notre Dame.
Freeman's ties to Ohio and the Buckeyes adds a layer of intrigue into Monday night's matchup at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The Huber Heights native played linebacker for OSU from 2004-08, appearing in two BCS title games.
"Every season you go into the season one and be national champions. And, you know, obviously Ohio State has achieved that goal in more recent years," Freeman said. "But those are the expectations to be at the mountaintop. And I think there's not a tremendous amount of programs that can truly say that every year."
Kickoff for Monday's national championship is set for 7:30 p.m.