The Buckeyes and Fighting Irish meet Jan. 20 in the College Football Playoff National Championship
Ohio State coach Ryan Day vs. former Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz is the real rivalry fans should be paying attention to ahead of the College Football Playoff National Championship between the Buckeyes and Fighting Irish. The unexpected brouhaha dates back more than a year, when Holtz criticized Ohio State’s physicality under Day. That spawned a heated post-game statement from Day, directed at Holtz, following a 17-14 win over the Fighting Irish in September 2023.
There appears to be have been no resolution. Asked during a CFP media conference if he had spoken to Holtz or patched things up, Day responded, “No. No.”
Ahead of that regular-season showdown in 2023 between Ohio State and Notre Dame, Holtz predicted an Irish victory on ESPN while questioning the Buckeyes’ toughness.
“He [Day] has lost to Alabama, Georgia, Clemson, Michigan twice and everybody beats him, does so because they’re more physical than Ohio State and I know Notre Dame will take that same approach,” Holtz said. “I think Notre Dame will take that same approach.”
Ohio State RB Chip Trayanum plowed through the middle of Notre Dame’s defensive line for a 1-yard touchdown on third-and-goal with one second left on the clock to seal the win. During a postgame interview with the NBC broadcast, Day, unprompted, went off on Holtz in a clip that went instantly viral.
“I’d like to know where Lou Holtz is right now,” Day said. “What he said about our team — what he said about our team, I cannot believe. This is a tough team right here. We’re proud to be from Ohio. It’s always been Ohio against the world.”
An impassioned Day doubled down during his press conference following the win.
“I don’t know where he gets off saying those type of things,” Day said. “I don’t. I have some other things I’d like to say, too, but I’m not going to say them because I’m more respectful than he is.”
For what it’s worth, Holtz picked Notre Dame to win its first national title since 1988 — when he was patrolling the sidelines in South Bend — in a recent interview with The Columbus Dispatch.
“Notre Dame has great team chemistry and their offensive and defensive line dominated everybody they played, including Georgia,” Holtz said.
