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It was hard to escape the hype surrounding the Indiana-Notre Dame game last week.
Everywhere you went, people were talking about the in-state bragging rights that were on the line between the Hoosiers and Fighting Irish in the first ever home College Football Playoff game. Classes were extended a week at Notre Dame so students could stay for the Friday night contest. It wasn’t just the talk of the town, but the whole state.
The game happened. Notre Dame won, 27-17. The students all returned home for the holiday break. All that was left on campus were the winter sport athletes and the football team.
This has been a benefit, says Riley Leonard, as the No. 7-ranked Irish get ready for a CFP quarterfinal showdown with No. 2 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl Wednesday (8:45 p.m. ET, ESPN).
“Because we’re away and nobody’s on campus, it feels like any other game for us, which I think is a good thing for us,” the Irish graduate senior quarterback explained. “You just go to practice, you prepare like you’ve always prepared, there’s no distractions, you’re not going to class. It doesn’t feel like it’s some blown-up ‘Sugar Bowl.’ It just feels like nobody’s on campus, and we have a game.”
More: Nothing ‘Georgia Tech-ish’ about Notre Dame football game plan vs. Georgia defense
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If Leonard is nervous ahead of the showdown with the Bulldogs, he didn’t show it during media availability Saturday. Leonard was his natural self, laid back and having fun as various questions were lobbed his way.
When it was brought up how close his hometown of Fairhope, Alabama, is to the Sugar Bowl’s location of New Orleans ― 160 miles, to be exact ― his face lit up.
“Oh, dude, this is by far the closest game to my house,” Leonard noted. “I…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/riley-leonard-knows-lies-ahead-090205275.html
Author : South Bend Tribune
Publish date : 2024-12-29 09:02:00
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