Notre Dame will look to nail their playoff ride against Indiana Hoosiers this Friday. The game is destined to catch fans off guard as Indiana Hoosiers made some serious noise under the ‘Google me’ Curt Cignetti. On the other hand, Marcus Freeman also had a remarkable 11-1 season to bet a dime for. The prediction will be tricky. But the weather factor will be trickier. December hits hard with a snowy greeting in the Notre Dame home stadium. As frost ripped through the south bend, will it be a challenge for both teams to find their grip on the game? While there has been severe frigid weather affright for a long, a detailed prediction only made it solidified.

Three of the four host states, Penn State, Notre Dame, and Ohio State, will be under the cold weather threat in the first round of their home playoff. Snow may be the villain on the campuses of Ohio State, Penn State, and Notre Dame all on Dec. 20. However, it will reportedly affect the Fighting Irish and Hoosiers the most. As per the latest weather forecast by Ross Daalenger, snow chances will be Fahrenheit around 30 per cent in the south bend with a 30-degree average temperature. The only lucky pair of teams projected to have a snow-free show is Texas-Clemson, which will be played in Austin, Texas. Austin only averages 0.3 inches of snow per year, so they are in the safe zone.

We can only hope that the snow proportion won’t be too scary for the unaccustomed Hoosiers to bear with. But if the snow doesn’t hinder their momentum that much, there is a good chance that the Cignetti squad can excel in stopping the run. But even if they do, the adverse weather conditions will make them fight for every single score for sure.

Apart from the weather, there have been some common negatives in both teams. They both only made it through the inferior opponents in the season so far. Facing some similar-ranked opponent will be new for both schools. Marcus Freeman chose to give the flower to the opponent in a raw, professional manner.

Marcus Freeman praises Indiana’s historic season

Nobody can deny what Indiana football did in their breakout season. Fans still can’t determine whether it is a waking dream that the Hoosiers ran through a historic 11-win season. The former James Madison coach produced an ultimate feel-good story as a head coach. His shrewd attention and prudence in the transfer portal made it even easier.

Marcus Freeman sees it all and can’t help praising the rag-to-riches journey. He wholeheartedly appreciated how Cignetti went from 3-9 to an unprecedented 11-1 in one short season.

”They play, as I often say, with the clarity that you look for,” Freeman said. ”It’s a team that plays fast, a team that understands what they’re doing, why they’re doing it, how they’re doing it. You can tell they understand what’s expected of them. They make quick and fast decisions.”

So, can he stand out in Notre Dame’s 10th-ranked run offense vs. Indiana’s top-ranked run defense? Well, Freeman takes that grain of salt as a motivator. ”A lot of people are motivated by fear or greed. There are times when I have to remind myself of what’s the result of not preparing the right way. I think that’s the mindset I have, I still believe in preparation, and I choose to believe that is the number one indicator that gives your program the chance to have success. I won’t stray from that.”

Stay tuned for a nail-biter in the frozen Notre Dame Stadium.