Sounds Like Notre Dame Avoided Disaster With Howard Cross Injury

Any time you beat down an opponent 52-3 the way that Notre Dame dismantled Florida State last night, one of the biggest concerns is coming out of the game unscathed injury-wise. Notre Dame got a scare in that department when star defensive tackle Howard Cross had his leg twisted, leading to him limping off the field. For now, at least, it sounds like the Irish avoided disaster with Cross’s injury, with Marcus Freeman describing it as an ankle sprain in his post-game presser.

“It was an ankle sprain,” Freeman said of the injury. “I don’t know if he could have came back. Didn’t even tell me that. Just said he’s out right now with an ankle sprain. I think by the time there was a possibility maybe he could have came back, it was over,” he added.

Cross was seen on the sidelines with his ankle heavily taped and his helmet in his hand, suggesting that the possibility of his return was there, but luckily, the Irish did not need Cross in the second half. After Mike Norvell’s terrible end-of-half clock management essentially gifted Notre Dame an extra touchdown, the Irish opened the second half with an interception and a quick touchdown to put this one well out of the way early.

Notre Dame has been ravaged by injuries in 2024—specifically along the defensive line, where they lost Jordan Botelho and Boubacar Traore for the season. They have also been playing without Jason Onye as he deals with what has been described as a personal matter.

Gabriel Rubio’s recent return from a preseason injury was a momentary boost to the depth of the interior defensive line. This boost turned out to be vital with Cross going down. In Cross’s absence, Donovan Hinish saw a rise in playing time and responded with two sacks on the night. Meanwhile, Cross’s runnigmate, Rylie Mills, turned in a dominant performance with three sacks of his own. Most of Mill’s damage came after Cross left the game with his injury.

Ankle injuries, even minor ones, can be tricky for linemen given how much weight those ankles support, so it will be interesting to see what CrosCross’silability is for next week weekend’s matchup. Pay close attention to how Freeman describes him tomorrow, though, as it is somewhat easy to decode Freeman. If Cross is defined as day to day, he probably he has to play, but if Freeman were to say he’s week to week, don’t on Cross suiting up for the game.

Cross’s health is more important than his short-term availability against a Virginia team that Vegas has already installed as a 20+ underdog on Senior Day for the Irish.

Outside of Cross, Notre Dame did not appear to suffer any major injuries though they were playing wthout true freshman defensive end Lohgan Thomas who missed the game with a hamstring injury.