Jeremiyah Love leads the No. 7 Notre Dame Fighting Irish into battle against the No. 6 Penn State Nittany Lions at the Capital One Orange Bowl in a College Football Playoff national semifinal. This game is available on multiple streaming services for free. (AP Photo/Michael Caterina)AP
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – The College Football Playoff semifinals begin today with the No. 7 Notre Dame Fighting Irish battling the No. 6 Penn State Nittany Lions at the Capital One Orange Bowl – Thursday, Jan. 9 – at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. This game is available to watch on multiple streaming services for free.
The Orange Bowl will broadcast live at 7:30 p.m. Eastern on ESPN. Fans without cable can catch the game at no cost via FuboTV or DirecTV Stream, which both offer free trials.
Another option is Sling, which has promotional offers for new customers.
Riding a 12-game winning streak, the Fighting Irish (13-1) are two wins away from a national championship. Notre Dame took down SEC goliath Georgia, 23-10, in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals at the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2.
The Fighting Irish tout a plus-24.1 margin of victory, which is second in the nation behind only Ohio State. They own the fourth-highest scoring offense, averaging 37.7 points per game.
Senior quarterback Riley Leonard continues to guide a run-heavy offense. Leonard has rushed for 831 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground, while also adding 2,383 yards with 16 touchdowns and six interceptions through the air.
Leonard threw for a season-low 90 yards in the Sugar Bowl.
He is part of a brutal rushing attack that features sophomore running back Jeremiyah love and junior back Jadarian Price.
Love has compiled 148 carries for 1,076 yards with 16 touchdowns, averaging 7.3 yards per carry. Price has tallied 110 carries for 720 yards with seven touchdowns, averaging 6.5 yards per carry.
Notre Dame is proven to be more potent when they hammer the ground game. They are averaging 39.9 points when attempting fewer than 30 passes per game. That number drops to 30.3 when Leonard hits the aerial threshold.
The rushing attack has gashed for 11 plays with 40 or more yards, which is fourth in the nation. Leonard, Love and Price account for 38 of the Fighting Irish’s 42 rushing scores.
Their strengths are well defined. But Notre Dame can find their find their way downfield through the air. Senior receiver Beaux Collins snagged a score against Georgia. He leads the receivers with 37 receptions for 458 yards and three touchdowns, averaging 12.4 yards per reception.
Sophomore receiver Jordan Faison has been a strong second option in the postseason. He has 11 receptions for 135 yards in the last two games. For the season, Faison has tallied 27 receptions for 325 yards and one touchdown.
Senior kicker Mitch Jeter missed three straight field goals heading into the College Football Playoff. He has connected on 5 of 6, including 3 of 3 from 40-49 yards in the Sugar Bowl.
Notre Dame’s defense held the Bulldogs to 62 rushing yards in the Sugar Bowl and virtually shut down the Indiana Hoosiers in the first round before a couple of garbage time touchdowns.
Only two teams have scored 20 or more points against Notre Dame’s defense this season. They are second in the nation in scoring defense (13.6), fifth in passing yards allowed (167.4) and eighth in total yards allowed (295.4).
Senior All-American safety Xavier Watts guides the core with six interceptions, eight pass deflections, one forced fumble and 42 solo tackles. Seventeen of those tackles have come in the College Football Playoff.
Senior linebacker Jack Kiser has two sacks, two forced fumbles and 47 solo tackles. Sophomore linebacker Drayk Bowen has nabbed 30 solo tackles, two forced fumbles and one sack.
Notre Dame remains without senior defensive lineman Rylie Mills (7.5 sacks), who suffered a season-ending knee injury in the first round against Indiana.
Watch Notre Dame vs. Penn State on FuboTV for free
The Nittany Lions (13-2) are on the cusp of a national championship berth. They downed the Boise State Broncos, 31-14, in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals at the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31.
Penn State’s only losses this season were to Ohio State and the top-ranked Oregon Ducks in the Big Ten Championship game.
Junior quarterback Drew Allar has thrown for 3,192 yards with 24 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He was 13 of 25 for 171 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions against Boise State.
The Nittany Lions are 2-2 when Allar throws at least one interception. Those two wins were close calls against Bowling Green and USC.
Senior tight end Tyler Warren, the John Mackey Award (best tight end) winner, delivered with two touchdowns on six receptions for 63 yards against Boise State. He has amassed 98 receptions for 1,158 yards and eight touchdowns, averaging 11.8 yards per reception.
Warren is the clear go-to guy for Allar, but junior receiver Harrison Wallace III can also cause havoc. He has 46 receptions for 723 yards with four touchdowns, averaging 15.7 yards per reception.
Penn State touts a twin-headed sword in the backfield.
Junior running back Nicholas Singleton has notched 157 carries for 1,015 yards and nine touchdowns, averaging 6.5 yards per carry. He also adds 39 receptions for 342 yards and five touchdowns through the air.
Junior back Kaytron Allen has hauled 201 carries for 1,026 yards and eight touchdowns. He adds 147 yards and two scores through the air.
The Nittany Lions are seventh in the nation in scoring defense (15.8), eighth in rushing yards allowed (100.9) and sixth in total yards allowed (288.8).
Penn State’s defense has allowed 24 points through two playoff games, including containing Heisman finalist Ashton Jeanty to a season-low 104 rushing yards. They also nabbed a pair of defensive touchdowns in the first round against SMU. That’s a total of seven takeaways in two CFP games.
One of the best run defenses in the nation shut down the best running back in the FBS. Five opponents have reached 100 yards or more this season. Penn State has held five teams under 75 rushing yards and recorded 39 sacks this season.
The Nittany Lions defense is guided by junior defensive end Abdul Carter, who has tallied 11 sacks, two forced fumbles and 40 solo tackles.
Senior safety Jaylen Reed lurks in the secondary with three interceptions, three pass deflections, one forced fumble and 47 solo tackles.
Junior Kobe King anchors the linebackers with 49 solo tackles, three sacks and one forced fumble.
Two programs dripping in tradition. Notre Dame has 13 national titles while Penn State has claimed two. It’s the 20th all-time meeting between the two schools. The series is deadlocked, 9-9-1.
Watch Notre Dame vs. Penn State for free on DirecTV Stream
The traditional broadcast will be on ESPN. Here is a full breakdown of the different angles of ESPN coverage for tonight’s College Football Playoff national semifinal.
Buy tickets to College Football Playoff Orange Bowl
Sean McDonough (play-by-play) and Greg McElroy (analyst) will be the announcers while Molly McGrath and Katie George report from the sidelines.
Spread: PSU: (+1), ND: (-1)
Moneyline: PSU: (-102), ND: (-118)
Point total: 45.5
Odds from DraftKings
Here’s more information on how to watch this game on TV and streaming services.
What: College Football Playoff Orange Bowl semifinal: Notre Dame vs. Penn State
When: Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025
Time: 7:30 p.m. Eastern
Where: Hard Rock Stadium | Miami Gardens, Fla.
Channel: ESPN
Best streaming options: FuboTV (free trial), DirecTV Stream (free trial) and Sling (half off first month)
Cable Channel Finder: AT&T U-Verse, Comcast Xfinity, Spectrum/Charter, Optimum/Altice, Cox, DIRECTV, Dish, Verizon Fios
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