Some members of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish may have to do their best Michael Jordan impression on Thursday.
The flu is reportedly taking a toll on the team, just hours before the College Football Playoff semifinal against Penn State.
On3 Sports reported that “those who have it have a hard time, but it appears to be mainly backups and special teams players.”
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A detailed view of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish logo is seen on the field’s 50-yard line in action during a football game between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Ohio State Buckeyes on September 23, 2023 at Notre Dame Stadium in the south. Bend, Indiana. (Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Other reports since then indicate that the illness has subsided in recent days, but the players are not out of the woods yet.
The Fighting Irish are on a high heading into Thursday’s Orange Bowl after defeating the second-ranked Georgia Bulldogs in the quarterfinals last week.
Notre Dame earned the seventh seed in the rankings, which led to them hosting a home game against No. 10 Indiana. It was a pretty easy win, but Thursday may be his toughest test yet.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish cheerleaders run down the field with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish logo in action during a game between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Stanford Cardinals on October 12, 2024 at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana . (Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
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Penn State limited Boise State star running back Ashton Jeanty to just 104 rushing yards last week, his lowest of the season. That’s not necessarily good news for the Irish, considering Riley Leonard only passed for 90 yards against the Bulldogs.
The Nittany Lions are the sixth seed of the group.
The Fighting Irish’s season appeared to be dead after losing at home to Northern Illinois in the second week of the season, but they have since reeled off a dozen consecutive wins to find themselves just one win away from their second national title game in the last 15 years.
However, if they can overcome what appeared to be a program-altering loss at the time, a mistake appears to be only a minor obstacle.
This is the Fighting Irish’s third time in the playoffs, having lost in the semifinals in both 2018 and 2020.
