SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Jeremiyah Love tied the Notre Dame record with a 98-yard touchdown run, Riley Leonard added two more points and the Fighting Irish defeated the highest-scoring team in college Football Playoffs and overwhelmed Indiana 27-5 p.m. on Friday night.
The seventh-seeded Fighting Irish (12-1) won their 11th straight – and their first playoff win.
They face second-place Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1. Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman scored the biggest win of his three-year career by extending his Irish record to 12 wins over ranked teams in three seasons.
“There’s no place like Notre Dame,” Leonard said. “That’s why you come here, that’s why I came here – to play for a championship.”
Tenth-seeded Indiana (11-2) capped a magical season by scoring its second-fewest points of the season on a cold, brisk night in the first CFP game ever played on campus.
Both of the Hoosiers’ losses came to top-five opponents. Indiana set a school record for wins in a season, but still hasn’t won at Notre Dame since 1898.
Notre Dame took control on its third offensive play when Love rounded the right side of the Indiana defense, evaded a tackle and sprinted down the sideline to make the game 7-0.
He matched Josh Adams’ longest run in school history, which came against Wake Forest in 2015.
It was also the longest run in CFP history.
“It’s about finding a way to get another week,” Freeman said. “It wasn’t easy. But we’ll like this one and we’ll get another one.”
Love finished the game with eight carries for 108 yards, although he appeared to re-injure his left knee later in the first half.
Indiana never recovered after Notre Dame made the score 14-0 early in the second quarter.
Leonard’s 1-yard TD run late in the fourth quarter gave him 15 points on the season, breaking Notre Dame’s single-season record by a quarterback.
Indiana scored both touchdowns in the final 1:27.
Notre Dame made it 14-0 early in the second quarter on Leonard’s 5-yard TD pass to Jayden Thomas. The Irish settled for three more field goals, and the defense took care of the rest, allowing only one field goal.
Leonard was 23 of 32 for 201 yards and one interception.
Notre Dame receiver Jordan Faison caught seven passes for 89 yards.
Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke had another poor game against a top defense, finishing 20 of 33 for 215 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception, and the Hoosiers rushed for just 63 yards.
“They brought it to us,” Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said. “They won, they deserved to win. We didn’t play our best game, but they played a big part in it tonight.”
