SOUTH BEND — Leonard Moore, freshman cornerback for Notre Dame football, didn’t flinch when asked Wednesday evening if the Irish could play their customary man-to-man defense against the dangerous receiving corps of Ohio State.
“A lot of teams have gone to a zone mindset when playing them,” Moore said. “I think Penn State played a decent amount of man because that’s their identity. Going into this game, we’re not going to change who we are. We’re going to play man coverage like we do every week.”
Moore, who will be making his 10th career start in the College Football Playoff championship game on Jan. 20, was named earlier Wednesday as the national freshman defensive player of the year by the Football Writers Association of America.
“We’re going to go out there and challenge the receivers,” Moore said.
Turnover machine:With Notre Dame football and takeaways, players know it’s only ‘a matter of time’
That public stance might surprise some of the pundits who have seen freshman Jeremiah Smith, senior Emeka Egbuka and co. torch opposing secondaries most of the year. Even Irish coach Marcus Freeman was highly complimentary of the Buckeyes’ latest crop of future first-round NFL draft picks.
“Not many teams are successful just sitting in man coverage versus these receivers,” Freeman said Sunday. “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.”
Notre Dame’s top-ranked pass efficiency defense held Penn State’s lightly regarded wideouts without a single reception in the 27-24 Orange Bowl semifinal win of the College Football Playoff.
Former Ohio State star Marvin Harrison Jr., the highest-drafted wideout in nine years after going fourth overall to Arizona, was limited to three catches for 32 yards in last year’s 17-14 Irish loss at home.
Egbuka had seven catches for 96 yards to lead the Buckeyes’ wideouts, who totaled 13 catches for 176 yards against an Irish secondary featuring future NFL defensive backs Cam Hart and Thomas Harper.
Preseason All-American Benjamin Morrison, who covered Harrison primarily, gave way to Moore this year after requiring season-ending hip surgery in mid-October.
This year’s trio of Egbuka, Smith and sophomore Carnell Tate has combined for 196 catches for 2,872 yards and 28 touchdowns.
Added Freeman on Sunday: “We’ll come up with a plan and be able to adapt and adjust based off what’s going on in the game.”
Mike Berardino covers Notre Dame football for the South Bend Tribune and NDInsider.com. Follow him on social media @MikeBerardino.
