Notre Dame Tricked Georgia Into Making Costly Mistake Late in Sugar Bowl

A brutal error from the Bulldogs enabled Notre Dame to close out the Sugar Bowl.

Notre Dame draws Georgia offsides during the Sugar Bowl. / Screenshot via Jomboy Media

Georgia is going to want this one back.

Late into the fourth quarter of the Sugar Bowl, Notre Dame had a fourth-and-1 from deep within its own territory. Up 23–10, Fighting Irish coach Marcus Freeman reached into his bag of tricks to try to confuse the Bulldogs.

The Fighting Irish initially lined up as if they were going to punt, but quickly did a mass substitution, sending the punt team to the bench and bringing the offense back out onto the field. Georgia was given the opportunity to match the substitution, but there was plenty of confusion from the defense.

Riley Leonard and Notre Dame successfully drew the Bulldogs' defensive line offsides, enabling them to extend their drive and maintain possession of the ball. It was a costly mistake for Georgia, as the team was desperate to get off the field and get the ball back. Had they stayed onside, Notre Dame would've taken a delay of game penalty and punted the ball away. Instead, Freeman got the exact result he was after, as the Fighting Irish were handed a fresh set of downs.

Notre Dame might have just sealed the victory by confusing the Georgia defense pic.twitter.com/WJUEcy88zj

— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) January 3, 2025

The offsides penalty came with just under eight minutes left in the fourth quarter. Georgia could've had the ball back with around seven and a half minutes to work with, but its costly mistake prevented that. The Bulldogs did not retain possession until after the two-minute warning, making a comeback near impossible.

A truly creative call from Freeman and Notre Dame.

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