2024–25 College Football Playoff
12 Boise State from the Mountain West Conference (MWC) was the highest-ranked Group of Five leader, and the rest of the projected field was filled in by No.On the first play of Notre Dame's second drive, running back Jeremiyah Love rushed for a 98-yard touchdown, the game's first score.After an Indiana punt, their third in three drives, Notre Dame drove 78 yards in nine plays and finished with a 1-yard Leonard touchdown rush to push their lead to 24 points.[27] Penn State, who began the game with the ball, punted on both of their first two drives, but took the lead when Dominic DeLuca intercepted a Kevin Jennings pass and returned it for a touchdown.Later in the first quarter, Penn State turned the ball over on downs but regained possession with another interception returned for a touchdown, this time by Tony Rojas.After an SMU punt and another Penn State turnover on downs, Jennings threw a third interception—the second to DeLuca—which led to a 25-yard touchdown rush by Kaytron Allen.Another SMU turnover on downs followed, and Penn State scored the final points of the first half on a Nicholas Singleton rush, giving the hosts a 28–0 halftime lead.[31][32] Both teams scored on their first possessions of the game, Clemson on a 22-yard pass from Cade Klubnik to Antonio Williams and Texas on a 3-yard Quintrevion Wisner rush.Texas pushed their lead to 18 points with 28 seconds remaining in the half with a 19-yard passing touchdown from Ewers to Gunnar Helm, making the halftime score 28–10.An interception by Tennessee's Will Brooks led to the Volunteers' first score, a 36-yard Max Gilbert field goal, with six and a half minutes remaining in the second quarter.The Buckeyes scored again on their second and third drives of the half, on runs of 1 and 24 yards by Judkins and Henderson, respectively, while the Volunteers were held to another punt and a turnover on downs.The teams traded punts before an Arizona State turnover on downs led to a 22-yard Bert Auburn field goal for the Longhorns.The Longhorns fumbled on their next play, leading to a safety; Arizona State shrunk the deficit to nine points with a field goal on their ensuing drive.Both teams traded touchdowns on their first possessions of the fourth quarter—Texas on a 5-yard Ewers rush and Arizona State on a 42-yard pass from running back Cam Skattebo to Malik McClain.The Sun Devils got the ball back quickly following an interception by Javan Robinson; Skattebo scored on a 2-yard rush three plays later and converted the two-point try to tie the game at 24 points apiece.Andrew Mukuba then intercepted Leavitt with the Sun Devils facing third down on their subsequent possession to seal a 39–31 double-overtime victory.From there, Oregon continued with a turnover on downs and two further three-and-outs, while Ohio State scored two additional touchdowns and added another field goal to take a 34–0 lead.Oregon concluded the quarter with a 5-yard touchdown pass from Dillon Gabriel to Traeshon Holden; the two-point try was successful, making the halftime score 34–8.The Bulldogs, making their fourth CFP appearance, entered the game 3–0 against the Fighting Irish including a win in the 1981 Sugar Bowl.Entering the game, the series between the Nittany Lions and the Fighting Irish was split 9–9–1, with Notre Dame winning the only prior postseason encounter in the 1976 Gator Bowl 20–9.After two punts by Penn State and one by Notre Dame, the Irish took their first lead on the second play of the fourth quarter when Jeremiyah Love rushed for a 2-yard touchdown.This gave Notre Dame a 17–10 lead, though this did not last for long, as Penn State's ensuing seven-play drive resulted in a 7-yard Singleton touchdown rush with ten minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.Penn State capitalized with another 7-yard Singleton touchdown rush five plays later, putting them back in the lead, but a 54-yard pass from Leonard to Jaden Greathouse tied the game again at 24.After a punt by each team, Allar was hit as he was throwing a cross-field pass and Christian Gray intercepted it at the Penn State 42-yard line to give the Fighting Irish possession with 33 seconds left.Jeter made a 41-yard field goal with seven seconds left, ultimately giving Notre Dame a 27–24 victory and a national championship berth.The ensuing kickoff resulted in a touchback, and Ohio State retook the lead on their next play, a 75-yard touchdown pass from Will Howard to TreVeyon Henderson, with thirteen seconds left.After resuming possession at their own 12-yard line with 14:40 left in the game, Ohio State drove 88 yards in 12 plays to retake the lead on a 1-yard rush by Judkins.[52] at Mercedes-Benz Stadium • Atlanta, Georgia The national championship marked the ninth meeting between Ohio State and Notre Dame; the Buckeyes won the previous six games between the two, including a three-point win in their last matchup in September 2023.[53][54] Notre Dame began the game with the ball and capped their 18-play drive with a Riley Leonard touchdown run after nearly ten minutes of possession.
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