In a nail-biting victory over Penn State, Notre Dame secured its place in the College Football Playoff championship Thursday, winning 27–24.
With eight seconds remaining, fighting Irish kicker Mitch Jeter scored the game-winning field goal from 41 yards out. Notre Dame had the ball in Penn State territory after Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar was intercepted on the previous play, setting up the kick.
The semifinal, which took place in Miami’s Orange Bowl, got off to a slow start. After a scoreless first quarter, the teams only managed 13 points between them in the first half before scoring 31 points in the fourth quarter alone.
The game began with three punts, but the first quarter saw the Nittany Lions intercept Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard, which led to the game’s first score. After the pick, Penn State gained 55 yards on 14 plays, nearly reaching the 1-yard line before settling for a short field goal.
The Nittany Lions led 10-0 in the second quarter after another punt and a grueling, 15-play drive of 90 yards for a touchdown. Thanks to a drive primarily guided by backup quarterback Steve Angelli, Notre Dame would respond to the touchdown with a field goal, but Leonard had to leave to be evaluated for a potential concussion.
Leonard entered the game at the beginning of the second half and led an eight-play, 75-yard drive that culminated with him sprinting for a short score, tying the score.
The frenzied conclusion of the game started when the Fighting Irish moved 71 yards for another score early in the fourth quarter, three drives later. After tying the score with a 75-yard touchdown drive after falling behind 17–10, Penn State intercepted Riley and scored again to take a 24–17 lead.
However, Notre Dame responded swiftly, as Jaden Greathouse’s 54-yard touchdown catch less than four minutes later tied the score.
With two timeouts remaining and 47 seconds remaining, the Nittany Lions had the ball to attempt a game-winning drive after the teams traded punts, but Allar was intercepted on the second play of the possession. 26 seconds later, Jeter’s go-ahead kick resulted from it.
The Fighting Irish will face the winner of Texas and Ohio State on Friday in the national championship game on January 20.