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Tom VanHaaren
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Dave Wilson
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ESPN Staff Writer- Dave Wilson is an editor for ESPN.com since 2010. He previously worked at The Dallas Morning News, San Diego Union-Tribune and Las Vegas Sun.
Oklahoma State and Notre Dame were both on the cusp of making the College Football Playoff. For Oklahoma State, a loss to Baylor in the Big 12 championship game knocked the Cowboys out of contention. The Irish, without a conference championship game, needed a little bit of chaos ahead of them to get in. A Michigan or Cincinnati loss would’ve been a big help, but it didn’t happen.
Motivation for a game like this, after narrowly missing out on a playoff spot, can often be concerning. Oklahoma State may be disappointed in coming up just inches short against Baylor when it had a chance to win the game in the final seconds, but Mike Gundy says no team he has ever had has improved as much as this one through the season.
Notre Dame, on the other hand, has a new head coach in Marcus Freeman after Brian Kelly left for the LSU job. The Irish have motivation to play for Freeman and show onlookers that Freeman is the right guy to lead this team. In a matchup between two teams meeting for the first time, these are truly two teams that have no reason to be disappointed in this matchup. Motivation won’t be a problem.
No. 5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. No. 9 Oklahoma State Cowboys
PlayStation Fiesta Bowl
When: Saturday, Jan. 1, 2022, 1 p.m. ET
Where: State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
How to watch: ESPN and ESPN App
Opening line from Caesars Sportsbook: Notre Dame -2.5
Key player for Notre Dame: DE Isaiah Foskey. Notre Dame’s defense needs to contain Oklahoma State quarterback Spencer Sanders and disrupt the passing game. Foskey is the guy that will do it for the Irish. He leads the team with 10 sacks and has 11.5 tackles for loss, six quarterback hurries and five forced fumbles. Foskey has been a key…
Source : espn
