Penn State had to wait an extra day to learn who it would play next. After dispatching of Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Eve, the Nittany Lions were hoping to sit back and watch the Sugar Bowl between Georgia and Notre Dame on New Year’s Day to learn who they will face in the Orange Bowl. After the game was postponed due to the events in New Orleans early Wednesday morning, Penn State waited a little longer. And now they know who is next up on the schedule.
Penn State will play Notre Dame in the quarterfinal round of the College Football Playoff. Notre Dame beat Georgia Thursday’s postponed Sugar Bowl, 23-10, to advance to the Orange Bowl, the site of the semifinal matchup with the Nittany Lions.
Penn State already had the advantage of an extra day of rest since its last game on New Year’s Eve. Penn State will get another extra day to prepare for Notre Dame after the Irish had their Sugar Bowl matchup with Georgia delayed by a day. Penn State and Notre Dame will play in the Orange Bowl in Miami next Thursday, January 9.
The winner of next week’s Orange Bowl will advance to the College Football Playoff national championship game in Atlanta. The opponent will be determined in the Cotton Bowl between Texas and Ohio State next Friday night (Jan. 10).
Penn State and Notre Dame are tied in the all-time series with nine wins each and one tie. The last time the two teams played was in 2007 when Penn State blew out the visiting Fighting Irish, 31-10.
This will be just the second meeting in the series to occur in the postseason. The last time Penn State and Notre Dame clashed in the postseason was in the 1976 Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida. Notre Dame won that matchup by a score of 20-9.
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