No. 9 Irish lose to No. 6 Buckeyes 17-14 on last-second TD
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WNDU/AP) - The hearts of the Irish faithful were broken Saturday night as they watched a victory over a top-10 team slip out of Notre Dame’s hands.
Chip Trayanum plunged across the goal line from a yard out with 1 second left to lift No. 6 Ohio State over the No. 9 Irish. Jayden Fielding’s ensuing extra point sealed the deal, allowing the Buckeyes to escape South Bend with a 17-14 win.
Trayanum’s score capped a gutty game-winning drive by Kyle McCord and the Buckeyes (4-0) that included a fourth-down conversion and a third-and-19 completion that got Ohio State to the Notre Dame 1 with time for two plays.
After an incomplete pass on first down, the Buckeyes went to a running play with 3 seconds left, taking advantage of an overloaded defense to one side and only 10 defenders on the field for the Fighting Irish (4-1).
Prior to Ohio State’s final drive, Notre Dame appeared to be in control after Sam Hartman threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Rico Flores Jr. with 8:22 to go for a 14-10 lead. But the Notre Dame defense couldn’t preserve it.
The Buckeyes have now won six straight over the Fighting Irish. Notre Dame hasn’t beaten Ohio State since 1936.
Ohio State only led by 3 at halftime and appeared to have taken control when the Buckeyes stopped Hartman on fourth-and-1, and on the next play, Marvin Harrison Jr.’s block sprung TreVeyon Henderson for a 61-yard sprint down the sideline to make it 10-0 early in the third quarter.
The Irish finally got on the board when running back Gi’Bran Payne took a direct snap and scored on a 1-yard run. Hartman then capped a 96-yard TD drive with the TD pass to Flores.
Notre Dame plays a second straight ranked opponent next Saturday when it visits No. 18 Duke. ESPN’s College GameDay has already announced on social media that it will be heading to Durham for the matchup after coming to South Bend this weekend.
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