After the first-ever 12-team playoff in the history of the Football Bowl Subdivision, the 2025 College Football National Championship is officially set. The biggest game of the college football season arrives on January 20, and it’ll feature two of the sport’s most famous powerhouses.
This year, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Ohio State Buckeyes have made it to the big game, with both teams facing a long road in which they had to fight against uncertainty, pundits who didn’t think they’d make it, and of course, other teams loaded with talent. Now, only two teams remain, so let’s take a closer look at the final college football game of the season.
When does the Notre Dame vs. Ohio State national championship game kick off?
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Ohio State Buckeyes will face each other in the College Football National Championship on Monday, January 20. The game will kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
Notre Dame and Ohio State’s paths to the national championship
For both the Fighting Irish and the Buckeyes, there were times this season when the championship game felt out of reach. After starting their season with a convincing win over Texas A&M, the Irish faced the Northern Illinois Huskies at home in Week 2 in a game that was meant to be a chance to refine their squad heading into more challenging matchups. Instead, it turned into one of the year’s biggest upsets, and it placed a major question mark over their season.
But instead of a death knell, the loss to Northern Illinois became a rallying cry for the Irish, who used it to propel themselves to win every remaining game in the regular season. Despite their Independent statuswhich prevents them from playing in a conference championship, they earned their spot in the playoff through consistency. Entering the bracket at the No. 7 seed, the Irish rolled over Indiana 27-17, and then the upsets began. In the quarterfinals, they defeated the No. 2 seed Georgia in convincing fashion, then went on to beat Big Ten power Penn State in a 27-24 thriller. Now, they’ll face Ohio State, another legendary Big Ten team, in the title game.
As for Ohio State, they spent most of the season as one of the favorites to win the Big Ten conference. A Top 5 team throughout most of the regular season, the Buckeyes suffered one loss midway through the 2024 campaign, to eventual top-ranked Oregon in a Big Ten showdown, then kept right on winning. There was no reason to expect anything less than a Big Ten title appearance. Then came their annual rivalry game, against an unranked Michigan squad with something to prove, and disaster struck. Losing to the Wolverines seemed like the end for the Buckeyes, but the Buckeyes’ final rankings were good enough to earn them the No. 8 seed in the playoff bracket, one behind Notre Dame. What followed was a string of convincing, even dominant wins, including a first-round victory over Tennessee (42-17), a second round rout of Oregon in a rematch (41-21), and a thrilling semifinal victory over Texas (28-14). The Buckeyes have more than rebounded after the Michigan loss. They’ve proven that they were always one of the top teams in the country, and now they’ve earned the spot as one of the two best of the season.
What to expect from Ohio State vs. Notre Dame
Though both teams have potent and potentially explosive offenses led by bright young quarterbacks — Will Howard at Ohio State, Riley Leonard at Notre Dame — the Buckeyes and the Irish have set themselves apart throughout the season through their defensive performances. Heading into this game, Notre Dame has the second best defense in the country in terms of points allowed, giving up an average of 14.3 per game. The best defense in the country? Well, that belongs to Ohio State, who’ve allowed just 12.2 points per game.
So, we’re dealing with two defensive units that know how to stop offenses, including high-powered ones like Oregon, Texas, Penn State, and Georgia. That means the key to the game is not just having the defense that can hold, but being the team with an offense that can break through in key moments. In terms of total offense, Howard and the Buckeyes have the edge statistically, but Notre Dame has the better running game, which could serve them well in a defensive showdown where clock management and controlling the line of scrimmage will be key. It’ll be a close matchup, and Ohio State seems to have the edge in terms of raw talent, but Notre Dame will never quit, and this should be a game that keeps us on edge right up to the final minutes.