"It would be something special:" What Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said during first national title preview press conference

COLUMBUS — Ohio State will face Notre Dame in the national championship game on Jan. 20. The Buckeyes beat Texas in the semifinal to get to this game, while the Fighting Irish beat Penn State in their own semifinal game to make it to Atlanta.

Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman, a former Ohio State linebacker, met with the media for a press conference Sunday to give his first thoughts on the national title matchup.

Everything he said about his program and the Buckeyes can be found below.

Notre Dame offensive line injury update…

Freeman said star offensive tackle Anthonie Knapp will not play in the national championship game after hurting his ankle in the semifinal win over Penn State at the Orange Bowl. That’s a huge blow for the Fighting Irish, who are battling injuries along the offensive line — even worse than the Buckeyes were at one point this season.

“Knapp will miss this game,” Freeman said. “He had a high ankle sprain and won’t be able to make it back.”

Additionally, Freeman was asked about offensive guard Rocco Spindler, who is also dealing with an injury. The update was better than that of Knapp’s, but it still didn’t sound promising from the Notre Dame head coach.

“We expect Rocco to be able to — we’ll see how he progresses this week of practice. But I know he’ll give everything he has into making sure he’s prepared.

“As far as the starting lineup, we’ll do what’s best for our program. We’ve got to figure that out. We have a week of preparation to make sure we get the right guys to start this game, and we’ll see what that is here in the next couple days.”

On defending the Ohio State wide receivers…

“Yeah, as you watch film, not many teams are successful just sitting in man coverage versus these receivers. We’ll obviously have to mix some things up and come up with a great plan to try to limit what they do in the passing game. You’re not going to be able to stop their receivers totally. They’re a talented bunch. So we’ll come up with a plan and be able to adapt and adjust based off what’s going on in the game.”

On attacking the Buckeyes defense…

“I think each team can be different. For us, we have to be able to run the football, and we’ve got to find ways to do that. At the end of the day, you’re going to study teams that have had success against your opponent, but you still have to do what your team does well. Again, for us to have success, we’re going to have to be able to run the ball, and we’re going to have to be able to stop the run. Obviously you know me well enough, I’ve said that, for every game we play. But it won’t be any different for this game.”

On Freeman’s friendship with Buckeyes LB coach James Laurinaitis…

“I think there’s so many moments when you play together. But he was in my wedding and I was in his wedding. Those are special moments, obviously the days you get married. But we had some great moments when we worked together here at Notre Dame. It’s a unique situation where a guy you’re working with is one of your best friends.

“We’ve got a lot of great moments and probably some that I won’t share on this press conference, but he’s a great friend.”

On some of his players saying they wanted to play Ohio State after losing to the Buckeyes last year…

“If you need that to motivate you to get ready for this game, then you’re not the right person. That’s the reality of it. We don’t need motivation to be prepared for this game. We’ve got a chance to play in the National Championship game. This isn’t about the past. This is about this opportunity we have right in front of us, and we’ll continue to focus on this opportunity right in front of us.

“If there’s learning opportunities from other games or previous games, absolutely we’re going to use them. If that’s going to help us be more prepared for what could happen in this game, we’re definitely going to use it. But it isn’t for motivation at all.”

On what winning the national title would mean for Notre Dame…

“Oh, it would be something special. Obviously this place hasn’t won a National Championship since 1988, and every year the aspirations are to win a National Championship. That’s why all these players choose to come to Notre Dame, one of the reasons, is to be a part of a program that can win a National Championship.

“I think it’s something that they’ll be able to say for the rest of their lives is they were part of a National Championship football team. There’s a lot of work that goes into getting to that outcome, and that’s what we’ve got to focus on, but it would be special for this university and for these players that have poured so much work into getting the results that we have.”