How Ohio State and Notre Dame got here | Key moves that pushed Buckeyes and Irish to the title game

[@JackycClark]

My vote for MVP of the 2024 Buckeyes would be Donovan Jackson . I think the topper is his unselfishness . Most of this team are positioning themselves for the NFL . They fully get what he's done for them and it's had to have had an impact .

[@TE_2013.]

"I just don't like Clemson" -Bill Amen, brother. SAME!

[@JackycClark]

I'm pretty sure I just don't like Dabo but he has been Clemson for a while now .

[@JackycClark]

Dom Tiberi interviewed Coach Tress . He's close to Freeman and has a good relationship with Coach Day . He says he wants both coaches & teams to play their best so no one carries regrets going forward .

[@SPTO]

Some things regarding Freeman: I remember the transition from Kelly to Freeman pretty well. A lot of people in ND world were thinking that Luke Fickell should be the guy while others were looking at other high profile guys and wishing for that. There was a sizable contingent (myself included) that wanted Freeman to get the job. One of the things that helped Freeman tremendously was the fact that Jack Swarbrick was 100% behind him as he saw Freeman was doing such a great job with recruiting and how popular he was with the players. I believe ND might've gone in a different direction if Swarbrick wasn't such a big fan of Freeman. Another thing, Freeman has CLEARLY developed as a HC. The Freeman that took over against Oklahoma State in that Fiesta Bowl is COMPLETELY different than the uber confident, calm and resilient coach that he is today. One of the big knocks on Freeman was that he couldn't win the big game and after the NIU game LOTS of people were saying the job is too big for him and that he's on a leash. Now look where we are, Freeman has remained cool, calm and collected with the injury situation where a lot of coaches would be freaking the crap out (moreso in private and having it reported but still) Freeman at this point is about 60% vibes and 40% X's and O's right now. I think it'll balance out but he'll always be a vibes guy IMO. Lastly, if Doug does his media stuff with the players wearing the cape and crown it'll be SOOOO much like those times when David Letterman had people associated with him doing their thing at Super Bowl Media Day.

[@WhatWhat-lf3bd]

You can just tell that Doug lets his relationship with Freeman give him Gold colored glasses. It’s human nature, but it’s very obvious with his coverage. It starts with literally crying as a grown man covering the game when they beat Georgia. Everything is all Marcus. Marcus is so great. The loss to NI is actually a good thing. The backup LT is actually better. It’s fine, but he would absolutely rip a southern reporter for doing exactly what he’s doing.

[@SPTO]

He does seem to let some of his history with Freeman color some of his commentary however, a lot of what he's saying has been said over the last week or so especially from ND media circles so it's not THAT outlandish. It's probably moreso the degree to which Doug gets excited. He can't win though as i've seen plenty on here say he and Landis are pro-OSU and can't be objective about them either.

[@WhatWhat-lf3bd]

@ I don’t think there is any chance an objective viewer can say Doug is biased towards OSU. He has notoriously been one of the most critical on the beat his entire time covering the Buckeyes. I also don’t think Doug’s excitement has anything to do with his ND takes. He is excited about everything, all teams. It is a main reason I enjoy his work, his enthusiasm. The Freeman specific stuff is just over the top IMO. It’s not a ND thing, it’s a Freeman thing. Which actually makes more sense to me. He personally watched the guy grow up, did work with him while he played at OSU etc. It just clearly clouds his coverage of ND. Everything has a positive twist with ND unlike any other team he covers. There are a ton of examples but the best is literally crying when they beat Georgia. That wasn’t a “the north won, so I’m excited” cry. There’s no world where Penn State, or Oregon, hell or especially even Ohio State beats Georgia and Doug breaks down in tears on the post game show. The guy has a personal relationship/affinity for Marcus Freeman and it absolutely impacts his coverage of ND. I’m not sure there is even anything wrong with it, I don’t mind getting coverage from a fans point of view. Some of my favorite beat reporters are openly fans of the teams they cover. It’s more just acknowledging that is what’s going on instead of pretending it’s objective analysis.