Football fans are teeing off on Barstool Sports owner Dave Portnoy after his take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the Orange Bowl aged terribly.
Notre Dame defeated the Penn State Nittany Lions 27-24 in the Orange Bowl and College Football Playoff semifinals to earn a trip to the National Championship Game in 10 days, and they’ll face the winner of Ohio State vs. Texas.
During Notre Dame’s sluggish start in the game, Dave Portnoy took to X/Twitter and made a bold claim about Marcus Freeman’s group. Portnoy wrote, “This is why ND won’t join the Big 10,” and, “They’d get physically dominated virtually every single week.
This is why ND won’t join the Big 10. They’d get physically dominated virtually every single week.
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) January 10, 2025
Unfortunately for Portnoy, the popular @OldTakesExposed X account and plenty of other fans did not forget the post after the Fighting Irish emerged victorious:
“Too soon buddy too soon,” one fan wrote.
“Hey genius maybe we should just wait and see how the rest of the game goes,” quipped another.
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“They won…,” a fan stated.
“That didn’t age well,” remarked another.
That didn’t age well.
— Wade Beavers (@wadebeavers) January 10, 2025
“Baaaaaaaaaaaaahaaaaaaaaaahhaaaaaa,” another fan chirped.
“Not only don’t your sports takes not age well…they don’t even age well by the end of the game,” a fan wrote.
“Update???,” asked another.
“Hmmmmmm,” one fan asked.
Hmmmmmm
— the Hoppster (@realHoppster) January 10, 2025
It certainly looked bad for No. 7 ranked Notre Dame for the first 30 minutes. They trailed 10-0 in the second quarter and only mustered three first-half points that came from a 41-yard Mitch Jeter field goal.
But as Dave Portnoy and other critics would learn, the Fighting Irish saved their best for when it mattered most. The Riley Leonard-led offense was unstoppable over the final 30 minutes by racking up 24 points, with Jeter’s late 41-yarder sealing the victory.
Notre Dame last won the national championship in 1988, led by legendary head coach Lou Holtz. Now, Freeman’s group finds themself just one win away from achieving their ultimate dream.
Dave Portnoy Reversed Course After Game
To Portnoy’s credit, he wasn’t afraid to admit that he was wrong. In a series of X posts, he called the Nittany Lions “frauds”, offered a congratulations to the Fighting Irish and called it a “Great Game.”
It’s all too common for sports fans and pundits to jump to conclusions early (look at the Seattle Seahawks fans who left the 2014 NFC Championship Game early and missed the epic comeback). But Freeman and the Fighting Irish showed everyone that it’s not over until it’s over.
