The champion of college football will soon be decided.
The College Football Playoff national championship game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Notre Dame Fighting Irish will be played on Monday, Jan. 20, at 7:30 p.m. ET at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
The game marks the conclusion of the first College Football Playoff tournament to use the new 12-team playoff format installed for the 2024 season.
It’s been over three decades since Notre Dame captured the national championship, beating West Virginia in 1989. It last competed for a title in 2013, losing to the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Ohio State last won the national championship in 2015, dominating Oregon 42-20.
Ohio State is undefeated against Notre Dame in their six all-time matchups. The Buckeyes’ last victory against Notre Dame was on Sept. 23, 2023.
Keep reading to learn more about the CFP national championship game.
Which teams are playing in the College Football Playoff national championship game?
The No. 8 Ohio State Buckeyes are up against the No. 7 Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the College Football Playoff national championship game.
Ohio State, which boasted the nation’s top-ranked defense and allowed the least amount of yards per game among FBS teams, is led by head coach Ryan Day. In his sixth year as the Buckeyes’ head coach, Day suffered his program’s fourth consecutive loss to archrival Michigan, falling 13-10. The Buckeyes, who are 13-2, bounced back from the Michigan loss and outscored their playoff opponents 111-52 en route to the national championship game.
The Fighting Irish are 14-1 on the season, with their only loss coming in early September to the Northern Illinois Huskies.
Marcus Freeman leads the Fighting Irish in his third year as head coach of the program. Freeman is a former Ohio State linebacker and began his coaching career with the Buckeyes as a graduate assistant.
Freeman becomes the first Black and first Asian American coach to compete in the national championship game.
Notre Dame under Freeman is 0-2 against Day’s Buckeyes.
When is the College Football Playoff national championship game?
The College Football Playoff national championship game is Monday, Jan. 20, at 7:30 p.m. ET. The game will be played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
How to watch the College Football Playoff national championship game
The College Football Playoff national championship game broadcast begins at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. The game is also available to stream on any service that carries ESPN, and on the ESPN app.
Chris Fowler is the play-by-play announcer for the game, alongside color analyst Kirk Herbstreit, a former Ohio State football player. They will be joined by sideline reporters Holly Rowe and Molly McGrath.
How did Notre Dame and Ohio State get to the College Football Playoff national championship game?
Failing to receive first-round byes due to the new 12-team playoff format installed in the College Football Playoff this season, Ohio State and Notre Dame were placed in the first round of the CFP as the No. 8 and No. 7 seeds, respectively.
Ohio State cruised to the national championship game. They blew by Tennessee 42-17 in the first round, followed by a takedown of conference rival and Big Ten champion Oregon 41-21 in the Rose Bowl. They most recently toppled Texas 28-14 in the Cotton Bowl Classic on Jan. 10.
Notre Dame handled in-state rival Indiana 27-17 in the first round of the playoff. In a Sugar Bowl that had been delayed due to the deadly truck attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Day, Notre Dame took down SEC champion Georgia on Jan. 2.
