Why Notre Dame did not “Deserve” to Beat FSU

Interrogating the claim that the Irish somehow “deserved” to beat FSU. 

It’s been less than 48 hours since the No. 2 Florida State Seminoles topped the fifth-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish 31-27 on the national stage on Saturday night, and if you frequent social media, or have watched any analysis on television, or, for that matter, have gone outside, you’ve probably encountered someone spewing rhetoric about how Notre Dame deserved to emerge victorious in the hard-fought battle of undefeated big-name teams.

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Some cite the (absolutely correct) pass interference call that negated a probable winning-score for the Irish. Furthermore, some who concede that the call was accurate have argued that the flag shouldn’t have been thrown at that point in the game, completely ignoring the dangerous precedent that would be set by altering the manner of officiating given the score and situation.

But it goes beyond that. Even those acknowledging the validity of the call, and admitting that it had to be made, have continued to nevertheless assert that Notre Dame “deserved” to win the contest. After all, you’ve heard, the Irish played better. For the first time in Jameis Winston’s career, his counterpart threw for more yards than him, as Everett Golson bested the Heisman winner by 40 yards, 313-273. The Irish dominated the ‘Noles on the ground as well, posting 157 yards to FSU’s mere 50. And Notre Dame led for a good portion of the game.

Do the statistics reflect a strong showing by the Irish? Absolutely. Have they established ND as a one-loss team worthy of consideration for the college football playoff, at the moment? Without question. Do they mean that Notre Dame should have come out on top? Perhaps. Did they deserve to?

Absolutely not.

Because the word “deserve” has no place in sports. And it’s part of why we love them.

Sports are the wonderful blend of human drama (phenomenal performances, personal story lines, players overcoming adversity) and sheer, heartless, indifferent objectivity. I know– sounds rough.

But football players wear helmets.

The thing is, as coarse as that may seem, it’s really quite beautiful in its equity. Because the rest of life is far from fair. Nepotism. Favoritism. Racism. Sexism. It’s not fair, but most everybody has been passed over, at some point, due to the biases that cloud human judgement.

Sports are our escape.

Think about it: in golf, the ball either goes in or it doesn’t. It matters not how poorly you’ve hit your nine iron your entire life, or if you skulled your tee shot at the par three, or if you received a favorable bounce off a sprinkler head– if it drops, it’s a hole-in-one, no questions asked. Mark it one.

In basketball, the ball going through the hoop from behind the arc means three points– it doesn’t matter how many times it rattles around the rim or the form of the shooter, or if said shooter has ever sunk a long ball in her entire career. That’s three.

And in football, no matter how ugly the play may look or how many blocks were blown or if three defenders collided to open a hole or if the runner barely staggered into the end zone , the pigskin crossing the goal line is a touchdown. Every time. No politics– just objective scoring. And six.

Sports are not pro wrestling. There’s no script playing to what certain people think should happen. Nobody has earned anything until the final bell or whistle, until that last second has ticked off the clock.

That’s why Alabama didn’t deserve to beat Auburn last year, and Auburn didn’t deserve to beat FSU. Each were close, yes, and it stings when you’re that close, sure, but it’s a 60-minute game. Play the full 60. And when you don’t, take it like an adult and own your shortcoming (your Brian Kelly comment here).

Jimbo Fisher has a popular refrain: “play don’t care who makes it.” You know what else? The game doesn’t care who wins it, either. That’s why we keep score. It’s utterly uncaring and definitely disinterested. But it’s inherently fair, which is why sports are such a welcomed refuge.