NCAA - The inaugural 12-team playoff, the biggest in the sport’s history, is now down to two. No. 7 Notre Dame will take on No. 8 Ohio State in Atlanta for the national championship.

These two programs are all about resiliency. Many left the Fighting Irish for dead after their Week 2 loss to Northern Illinois, as another defeat would all but kill Notre Dame’s hopes of even making the 12-team field. Marcus Freeman’s squad responded with 13 straight victories to clinch a spot in a national championship game for the first time since 2012. If they win, it would mark the Fighting Irish’s first title in 36 years, when Freeman was two years old.

The Buckeyes entered the season with arguably the most talented roster in college football but endured some bumps along the road to Atlanta, losing to Oregon in Eugene before suffering a shocking defeat at the hands of arch-rival Michigan at home in Columbus in the regular season finale. With Ryan Day seemingly coaching for his job, his team discarded Tennessee, Oregon and Texas with an average margin of victory of 20 points. Ohio State is back in the national championship game for the first time since the COVID 2020 season and is searching for its first national title since the College Football Playoff’s inception in 2014, exactly 10 years ago.

Ohio State earned its place in the national title game with a 28-14 victory over a Texas team that spent multiple weeks as the No. 1 team. Despite suffering two tough losses earlier in the season to Oregon and Michigan, the Buckeyes have been nearly unstoppable since. Their performance in the CFP has been nothing short of dominant.

On the other hand, Notre Dame rallied late to defeat Penn State 27-24 in a thrilling Orange Bowl CFP semifinal. After trailing 10-3 at halftime, the Fighting Irish came alive in the second half, thanks to quarterback Riley Leonard’s clutch performance. This season, Notre Dame’s only loss was an early, down-tothe-wire upset by Northern Illinois. Since then, the Irish have been on a relentless winning streak.

Ohio State claims the top spot for the best defensive leader in college football. The Buckeyes lead the nation in points allowed, with just 12.2 per game, and in yards allowed, with only 251.1 per game. Additionally, the team has recorded 51 total sacks, ranking third in the country.

Notre Dame is not far behind, boasting an impressive defense. The Fighting Irish rank No. 2 in points allowed with 14.3 points per game and No. 9 in yards allowed with 298.3 yards per game. While their 38 total sacks rank 17th nationally, their disciplined and aggressive play has made them a tough opponent for opposing offenses.

Despite their defensive prowess, both teams possess dynamic offenses. Ohio State quarterback Will Howard has thrown for 3,779 yards, with star freshman receiver Jeremiah Smith his favorite target. Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard has also been a standout, tallying 2,606 passing yards and 866 rushing yards. Running back Jeremiyah Love leads the team with 1,121 rushing yards.

The matchup to watch in particular is the Buckeye edge defenders (Jack Sawyer and JT Tuimoloau) against the Fighting Irish offensive tackles (Anthonie Knapp and Aamil Wagner). Sawyer and Tuimoloau combined have the sixthbest pass-rushing grade among FBS edge pairings while Knapp and Wagner are just 92nd in pass-blocking grade.

While protecting Leonard is priority No. 1 for Notre Dame’s aerial attack, the second order of business should be trying to attack the Buckeyes down the sidelines. If there’s one weakness in Ohio State’s defense, it’s cornerbacks Denzel Burke and Davison Igbinosun. The Buckeyes are second in team defense grade on throws inside the numbers but just 61st outside the numbers. Of Leonard’s 16 big-time throws this season, 11 have come outside the numbers. An emerging star like sophomore wide receiver Jaden Greathouse could be critical in this game for Notre Dame to have a second dimension offensively.

Ohio State is playing with a makeshift offensive line with a couple of stars done for the season in left tackle Josh Simmons and center Seth McLaughlin. A gap scheme is a little simpler

for both the offensive line and the running back since it’s all about picking a specific hole in a defense and exploiting it, which can help a unit that doesn’t have the chemistry of playing together for an entire season. A zone scheme threatens multiple gaps in a defense and offensive linemen must be able to know which defenders to pass off and which to attack after the ball is snapped, which often requires significant time to nail down, something the Buckeyes don’t have right now.

Notre Dame has had some issues against gap runs this season, tying for 75th in the FBS with five yards per attempt allowed. The Fighting Irish are also 91st in America with 3.4 yards after contact per attempt allowed on such plays. Their defensive line in particular has had issues in run-defense all year, placing 71st in run-defense grade as a unit. Notre Dame is far better at the second and third levels, as its linebackers/ defensive backs combined for the eighthbest run-defense grade in America.

If the Fighting Irish can slow down Ohio State’s gap-heavy scheme, it could allow Notre Dame to drop more defenders back in coverage. If not, then Notre Dame may have to commit more defenders to the box which is always dangerous considering the Buckeyes have the best receiving corps in America that can take the top off on any play.

With everything on the line, the title game will test every aspect of these two elite teams. Will Ohio State secure their second CFP title? Or will Notre Dame get their first championship in the CFP era?

The answer will be decided on college football’s biggest stage. Notre Dame and Ohio State will battle to be crowned the College Football Playoff national champion. Here’s all the information needed to watch CFP title game: Date: Monday, Jan. 20 Time: 7:30 p.m. ET TV/Stream ing: ESPN | WatchESPN Location: Mercedes- Benz Stadium | Atlanta, GA

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