After the Notre Dame football team beat Navy in the week prior, they absolutely dominated the Florida State football team Saturday, 52-3. It has been a string of great wins for the program even before the Navy game as they beat Georgia Tech, led by Notre Dame football quarterback Riley Leonard, who led the charge as head coach Marcus Freeman shares his gratitude for the group.
Notre Dame football's Marcus Freeman on how proud he is
Dominant might be understating how well the Fighting Irish played against the Seminoles on both sides of the ball, as the offense looked unstoppable while the defense only allowed a field goal in the first quarter. Freeman would say after the game how “proud” he is of his team and how well they were prepared before the game and in the season as a whole, according to ESPN.
“Man, (I'm) proud of those guys,” Freeman said. “Proud of the way they prepared. As you watch film, you know you’re going against a talented group, but it could have been easy to overlook those guys in terms of preparation because of the record.
“But we’ve got a mature group,” Freeman said. “We’ve got a bunch of seniors that are continuing to lead this group in the right way, and I truly believe in my heart, Saturday is a reflection of preparation, and they are preparing the right way. They have the right mentality, and they are really going out and playing well.”
Florida State continues with a disastrous season
On the contrary, as for their opponents, it has been a struggle to say the least for the Florida State football team as they only have one win on the season, and that was against the University of California on Sept. 21. Subsequently, head coach Mike Norvell would express his disappointment after the thrashing by the Fighting Irish.
“We’re all disappointed,” Norvell said. “This is not the result we expected. This is not any part of what we want our program to look like. Guys battled throughout. Credit to the opponent what they were able to do. It’s a season full of results that make us sick, but we still have a choice to make as far as how we will finish — and that’s work and be better.”
Notre Dame football's defense was overpowering the Seminoles
While the Notre Dame football team put up 52 points, the defense was impeccable, especially on the defensive line, who recorded eight sacks. Correspondingly, Fighting Irish defensive back Jordan Clark would talk about how their defensive line makes life easier for the secondary, according to Rivals.
“It was really the D-line,” Clark said. “Honestly, we’d like to take credit for it, but when you got guys pass rushing like Rylie Mills was pass rushing tonight and the rest of those guys, it makes it really easy for us.”
“I didn’t have to work too long or too hard tonight,” Clark said. “All credit to those guys. They work their tail off. [Defensive line] Coach [Al Washington] does such a great job just keeping them ready, keeping them dialed. You saw that tonight. You’ve really seen that all year.”
Consequently, the Notre Dame football team (8-1) looks to solidify its position as they carry a seven-game winning streak into next Saturday.