Notre Dame edges Penn State in wild Orange Bowl to reach first national championship game in 12 years

For the first time since 2012, Notre Dame will play for a national title. The (7) Fighting Irish advanced to the College Football Playoff National Championship with a 27-24 win against (6) Penn State in Thursday evening’s Orange Bowl. 

Fittingly, in a game that saw four lead changes, it came down to some last-second heroics. Penn State had a chance to win the game. The Nittany Lions took possession on their own 15-yard line with 52 seconds to play and two timeouts. 

Needing yardage to get into field goal range, they decided to lean on the arm of quarterback Drew Allar, who hopped around in the pocket and tried the middle of the field, where Notre Dame defensive back Christian Gray made a diving interception to give his team possession in Penn State territory. 

After a couple of runs and a 10-yard connection between quarterback Riley Leonard and wide receiver Jaden Greathouse, Notre Dame worked the ball into field goal range. Kicker Mitch Jeter — who is now 7 of 8 during Notre Dame’s College Football Playoff run —  nailed a 41-yard field goal to send his team to Atlanta. Penn State tried to lateral its way to a miraculous win on one final possession, but Notre Dame’s defense was up to the task. 

This loss especially stings for Penn State, given that it led 10-0 late into the first half. The Nittany Lions also scored 14 unanswered points early in the fourth quarter to take a 24-17 lead — stoning a 17-0 run from Notre Dame in the process — and, of course, possessed the ball with less than a minute to play. 

• Penn State coach James Franklin is now 1-18 vs. AP top-five teams (Notre Dame ranks No. 3 in the AP poll). 
• Of Allar’s 12 completions on the night, not a single one went to a Penn State wide receiver. 

CBS Sports was here throughout with updates, highlights and analysis. Read on below for takeaways from Notre Dame’s win over Penn State.