Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Notre Dame came up short in its quest for a national championship this season, but it was still one of the best campaigns the Fighting Irish have had in a long time. Defensive coordinator Al Golden was named the best assistant coach in the country based on what he was able to do in South Bend, and he couldn’t stop himself from throwing a little bit of shade at Desmond Howard while accepting the award.
It seemed like Notre Dame’s national championship hopes may have been dashed when NIU pulled off a stunning upset against the No. 5 team in the country two weeks into the season, but they were able to put that loss behind them while earning a spot in the College Football Playoff in fairly convincing fashion.
The Fighting Irish sent Georgia and Penn State packing before punching their ticket to the national championship game for the first time since they faced off against Alabama in 2013, but they ultimately came up short against Ohio State to extend a title drought that now stretches back close to 40 years.
Notre Dame got there with a dominant running game and a defense overseen by Al Golden that allowed the fourth fewest passing yards in the country while also tying Navy for fourth place when it came to the least points allowed per game with an average of 15.5.
Golden was subsequently hired by the Bengals to replace Lou Anarumo as their offensive coordinator after a three-year stint with Notre Dame, and on Thursday night, he accepted the Broyles Award that’s reserved for the best assistant coach in college football.
During his speech, Golden decided to pull out some receipts at the expense of College GameDay panelist Desmond Howard while taking a shot at his track record in games involving Notre Dame, saying, “Des, thank you for picking against us six times this year. We won 14 games and he picked against us six times. It’s unbelievable.”
Al Golden keeps receipts
“And Des, thank you for picking against us six times this year. We won 14 games and he picked against us six times. It’s unbelievable.” pic.twitter.com/2t4iLDzRvE
— Matt Freeman (@mattfreeman05_) February 14, 2025
I’m not entirely sure where Golden got those numbers, as the only College GameDay database I can find asserts the former Michigan standout only picked against the Fighting Irish twice on the program (he incorrectly predicted they’d lose to Texas A&M and Georgia and actually gave them the edge over Ohio State in the title game).
With that said, I can’t help but respect that kind of light-hearted pettiness.