Saturday Blitz
Fansided

Recapping the series history between Ohio State and Notre Dame football

By John Scimeca

GLENDALE, AZ - JANUARY 01: Wide receiver Chris Brown #2 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish runs with the football against safety Vonn Bell #11 of the Ohio State Buckeyes (back) and cornerback Eli Apple #13 (front) during the third quarter of the BattleFrog Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium on January 1, 2016 in Glendale, Arizona. The Buckeyes defeated the Fighting Irish 44-28. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
GLENDALE, AZ - JANUARY 01: Wide receiver Chris Brown #2 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish runs with the football against safety Vonn Bell #11 of the Ohio State Buckeyes (back) and cornerback Eli Apple #13 (front) during the third quarter of the BattleFrog Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium on January 1, 2016 in Glendale, Arizona. The Buckeyes defeated the Fighting Irish 44-28. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 3
Next

Ohio State and Notre Dame football have met only six times before the 2022 season opener, with the Buckeyes winning each of the four matchups since 1995.

Ohio State and Notre Dame football are set for a gargantuan clash in Week 1 to kick off the 2022 season. Both the Buckeyes and the Fighting Irish are coming off seasons in which they narrowly missed the College Football Playoff. Like last year, the two squads are presumptive picks to be Top 10 teams for what’s easily the best matchup of college football’s opening weekend.

The 2022 season opener for Notre Dame will pit college football’s third-most winningest program of all time against Ohio State, which has the best winning percentage out of any NCAA Division I FBS program (942-349-53).

Last year, the Buckeyes finished 11-2 after losing an early game to Oregon and the regular season against archrival Michigan, the first time Ohio State had lost to the Wolverines in a decade. Jim Harbaugh and Michigan would go on to win the Big Ten immediately afterward by defeating Iowa 42-3 in the conference title game.

While Michigan advanced to the CFP and lost to eventual national champion Georgia, Ohio State “settled” for a spot in the Rose Bowl. The Buckeyes emerged with a thrilling 48-45 victory against Pac-12 champ Utah.

The Irish dropped an early home date against Cincinnati before winning their last seven games of the regular season. After head coach Brian Kelly announced his somewhat abrupt departure to LSU, the 11-1 squad would go on to lose to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl under new boss Marcus Freeman.

This season’s Week 1 matchup between Ohio State and Notre Dame marks only the seventh meeting between the two schools. The two schools first met in 1935 but also tussled as recently as the 2016 Fiesta Bowl. It’s only the third home-and-away series in the regular season between the two teams.

Notre Dame hasn’t beaten the Buckeyes since 1936, with Ohio State winning the teams’ previous four straight meetings.

It’s pretty easy to say that the winner of this Week 1 matchup will have an inside track on a berth in the 2022 CFP. Both teams were close to last year’s playoff. The Irish will face Clemson at home and USC on the road later in the season, while Ohio State will face its usual Big Ten foes Penn State, Michigan, and Michigan State.

Here’s a look at each of the previous meetings between Notre Dame and Ohio State:

Home/College Football News