The schematic matchup of Ohio State's coordinators against Notre Dame's is a storyline in and of itself entering the College Football Playoff national championship.
Buckeye offensive coordinator Chip Kelly will match wits with Fighting Irish defensive coordinator Al Golden, and on the flip side, it will be Jim Knowles vs. Mike Denbrock. Kelly is eager to get Ohio State schemed up against Golden's secondary, which is No. 3 nationally in opposing yards per pass attempt.
The Fighting Irish run a heavy dose of man coverage but Kelly said it's “because they can,” with elite defenders across their secondary headlined by consensus All-American safety Xavier Watts. Knowles wants his defense to outplay Notre Dame's in another battle of elite ball-stopping units and said nickel Jordan Hancock was “exceptional” vs. Texas.
Kelly added that offensive guard Austin Siereveld has been banged up and that's part of the reason Luke Montgomery played every snap at left guard in Ohio State's 28-14 CFP semifinal win over the Longhorns while Siereveld only rotated with right guard Tegra Tshabola.
Chip Kelly
- On what Texas' secondary did to slow Jeremiah Smith: "Will did a great job of diagnosing what they were doing. ... Carnell had a great game. ... The beauty of what we have here is that we have more than one weapon."
- On whether he gave Will Howard a hard time after he fell down in the open field: "I could have. ... He can't respond, I can say whatever I want."
- Kelly said "I told him a long time ago he was built for this. ... The consistency of how he shows up every day."
- Kelly said Ohio State's use of 12 personnel is game plan and matchup based, and gets adjusted in-game.
- On Luke Montgomery playing left guard: "I think Luke did a great job. ... Austin was banged up a little bit. ... Those reps and how we use those guys will be based on health."
- On Notre Dame's defense: "They've got depth up front and second level, third level. ... That's a challenge for us going up against a defense that's really good and has played a lot of football."
- On Howard's interception against Texas: "He just didn't see the linebacker underneath in the coverage. So we discuss just like we do in between each series. ... The one thing about Will is, he owns it. ... It's something he'll learn from and something I love about Will, he usually doesn't make the same mistake twice."
- Kelly said the talent of Notre Dame's secondary across the board enables the Fighting Irish to play so much man. "The reason they do that is because they can. ... It's not just stay away from him and throw against this guy, I think they're all really skilled."
- The screen pass was a safe play to run that could pop for a bigger game, Kelly said, and credited TreVeyon Henderson for the explosive play.
- On Smith's approach in practice since the Cotton Bowl: "He was flying around excited about the opportunity to go play in a national championship. ... That does speak to his maturity because he's on to the next challenge."
- Kelly said Notre Dame has had success defending the pass against every opponent. "They've played some great receivers ... they've still done a great job in coverage. We've gotta be prepared for all coverages. And that's the thing, it's not just one coverage. ... Their players do a great job of adjusting on the fly."
- On whether the Michigan loss woke the team up: "I learned a long time ago as a coach is that I'm not into narratives. We live in a week-to-week world. ... You got about 20 hours to adjust to what happened whether it's a win or a loss then you move on."
- Kelly is thankful for the opportunity to be Ohio State's offensive coordinator. "Excited that we get an opportunity to be together one more week because this is a really close-knit group."
- On wide receivers coach Brian Hartline: "Whatever the word that's better than really, really good, that's what Brian is. ... He can recruit, he cand develop players, he can put together a game plan. ... I think Brian is an outstanding football coach."
- On Donovan Jackson at left tackle: "I think Donnie's been an unsung hero for what he's done. ... It speaks to his whole mission of why he came back here and how unselfish he is, and we all look at Donnie as a leader on the offensive side of the ball."
- Kelly said that running back Quinshon Judkins "sets a tone" with his physicality at running back.
- On what was done to get the offensive line together and weather the storm of multiple injuries: "I think Just in deserves a ton of credit for what he did and how he worked with all those guys. ... Our job is to put them in position to make plays and then let them play. ... The fact that we could weather that speaks to how that whole line and the cohesiveness of the entire group."
Jim Knowles
- On each play of the goal-line stand: "First play we got into big people, boom, stopped them. Second play ... Caleb Downs pulled his trigger exceptionally, everyone rallied. ... Third play we were in a zone coverage that we used and Jack (Sawyer) actually got pressure there. Then we made the same call."
- Ohio State's methodical offensive pace can be a benefit to its defense, Knowles said. "I've been in situations where the offense is hurry-up and try to get as many plays as possible and that can take its toll on the defense."
- On whether he buys into the matchup of two elite defenses: "We have to outplay their defense. They're obviously very good in all aspects and in that area. ... We embrace it."
- On the success of Texas' screen game: "They're really good at it. ... Screens are good, that's why people run them ... we do our best to get better at them and recognize them. ... Recognition is key."
- Knowles said his defensive line has been magnified now that Ohio State's secondary has done a better job getting quarterbacks to hold the football. "I think we've disguised our coverages better and put them in better situations to execute the pass rush. ... I think they've always done their job, the numbers don't always show that."
- On Jordan Hancock: "Jordan Hancock had a great game last game. ... He was really exceptional. I do believe it's played more into his skills to be able to do some different things with (safety). ... He's just getting better every week."
- Knowles said Downs' trigger on the Texas goal-line toss sweep is emblematic of him as a player. "That's just who he is. He's exceptional. ... It's because he's very talented but he also studies. ... You see things, but then you can react even faster. Very skilled, but a great student of the game too."
- On the increase in pass breakups along the defensive line: "Huge emphasis. Tips and overthrows, we've gotta have those. ... I think you're seeing those hard work and habits of matching the (quarterback's) hand, those kinds of things."
- On the challenge of Notre Dame's 12 personnel: "If they're gonna line up big and just try to run the ball in certain sets, that's when you've gotta get the nickel off the field. ... But you've also gotta adapt during the game."
- On Notre Dame's run game: "Back is really good, line, they challenge you in a lot of different ways."
- Knowles was elated to see Sawyer cement himself in team history. "He's the kind of guy you want to coach because that's the guy you can count on."
- Knowles said that it's great to see Lathan Ransom have a great season after his injury history. "That's just a guy that you always pull for because he's experienced both ends of it, and just love to see him do well."
- On Jermaine Mathews Jr.: "I'm from Philly, so I like that confidence. But it's challenging. ... He's competitive. He's a competitor and he is fun to be around. He's got personality."
- On the Styles brothers: "Both he and his brother, what a great family. They just show up for work. They want to be coached. ... They're just really coachable guys."
- Knowles says he hasn't reflected on this being his first national championship opportunity. "Just staying in the process."
- On Day: "He really is a great head coach. He's involved in all aspects, he's in touch with the players. ... There's not a person in this building, no matter what your job is, we all know that he would do anything for the team or the players and he works extremely hard. ... He's very protective of our job and the players. ... He deserves all the recognition and support if you're a fan of this program."
- Knowles expects Denzel Burke to be available vs. Notre Dame "as far as I know."
- On his defense's experience with the scheme being in year three: "I don't think you can really quantify. It's amazing. It's hard to put into actual words. ... It's a veteran group that I trust completely."
- On the lessons learned from Texas' success on wheel routes: "Coach better, that's the lesson learned. Need to coach the wheel route better. That's my fault, not the kids' fault."
- On Notre Dame's offense: "Great running back. Great quarterback who is an incredible competitor. ... He'll scrape himself off the ground and keep playing. He's just going to keep coming at you. ... Then you have that quarterback run game."
