Tag: orange bowl

Notre Dame women’s basketball tipoff time moved up for Orange Bowl

Had to avoid the schedule conflict.

When the Notre Dame football team won the Sugar Bowl, that meant a trip to the Orange Bowl in exactly one week. That meant only half an hour would have separated that game and the women’s basketball team’s home game against Wake Forest. Needless to say, the women’s basketball interest that night would have been almost nonexistent.

So the wise decision was made for the women’s basketball team to tip off against the Demon Deacons at 5 p.m. EST Thursday instead of its original time of 7 p.m. EST. Assuming the game doesn’t go into overtime, that should mean the fans at Purcell Pavilion will have enough time to file out of Purcell Pavilion and go watch the College Football Playoff semifinal game against Penn State somewhere.

Both Notre Dame basketball teams avoided scheduling games on campus for the playoff’s first weekend in case Notre Dame Stadium ended up hosting a game. That’s exactly what happened, and the playoff has caused a basketball schedule alteration once again. Fortunately, this will be the last one because neither team is playing the night of the CFP title game.

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Notre Dame updates its depth chart ahead of College Football Playoff vs. Penn State

Notre Dame has released the depth chart for the Penn State matchup, and it looks good for the health of certain players.

Notre Dame has released the updated depth chart for when the Irish take on the Penn State Nittany Lions in the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Orange Bowl in Miami.

What jumps out is running back [autotag]Jeremiyah Love[/autotag] is listed atop the RB spot, suggesting he is likely to play despite getting banged up in the 23-10 win over Georgia.

[autotag]Rocco Spindler[/autotag] sits atop the right guard spot, so he should be back in action after dealing with a right ankle injury.

On defense, [autotag]Xavier Watts[/autotag] is atop the safety spot. He left the field briefly against Georgia but appears to be OK. Meanwhile, linebacker [autotag]Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa[/autotag] is back on the depth chart as a reserve. [autotag]Junior Tuihalamaka[/autotag] continues to back up [autotag]Joshua Burnham[/autotag] at the vyper pass-rusher position.

Jan. 2, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana; Notre Dame Fighting Irish safety Xavier Watts (0) holds up the Sugar Bowl outstanding defensive player trophy after the game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Caesars Superdome. Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

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Photos of Notre Dame’s Sugar Bowl win over Georgia

What image will you remember most?

Notre Dame hadn’t won a major bowl game in some time. In fact, the current players were little more than twinkles in their parents’ eyes. That all changed with a 23-10 victory over Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.

Now, the Irish are in the College Football Playoff semifinals against Penn State via the Orange Bowl. Hardly anyone could have predicted that after the loss to Northern Illinois, but that’s a testament to the unpredictability of this beautiful sport. The Irish have done everything right since then.

It’s hard to imagine such a joyous occasion in New Orleans when the city still was reeling from a New Year’s Day tragedy that delayed the Sugar Bowl by a day. Still, the Irish pulled it off during and after the game while still acknowledging those affected by such a horrific event.

Here’s are some images that the Irish players will recall when and if they ever return to the Big Easy:

Notre Dame vs. Georgia: Fourth-Quarter Analysis

Guys, the Irish won a major bowl game.

The fourth quarter of the Sugar Bowl was less about Notre Dame building its lead over Georgia than maintaining it. That meant defensive stops and some trickery by [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag]. To the Irish’s credit, it all worked out, and they’ll be going to the Orange Bowl to face Penn State in the College Football Playoff semifinals after a 23-10 victory.

[autotag]Mitch Jeter[/autotag] added onto the Irish’s score early in the quarter with a 47-yard field goal. The Bulldogs then embarked on a lengthy drive that should have ended sooner but for a questionable fourth-down pass interference call against [autotag]Jack Kiser[/autotag] that advanced the ball to the red zone. Fortunately, the Irish’s fourth-down stop on the subsequent series was not nullified by a penalty.

The Irish quickly were faced with a fourth down deep in their own territory, and that’s when Freeman reached into his magic bag. After the punt team came out, it ran off the field in place of the offense, forcing the Bulldogs to quickly replace their punt return team with their defense. [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] waited a long time to snap the ball, and right before he did, the Bulldogs jumped offsides, giving the Irish a crucial first down.

The Irish drove for the next five minutes until punting it away inside the two-minute timeout. The Bulldogs barely put up a fight on their final possession, and when [autotag]Donovan Hinish[/autotag] sacked Gunner Stockton on the last play, it was time to celebrate in New Orleans.

Remarkably, this historic Irish season will continue. Hope you still have another week’s worth of cheering in you.

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Notre Dame vs. Georgia: Second-Quarter Analysis

The Irish came alive late.

If you love defensive struggles, the second quarter of the Sugar Bowl between Notre Dame and Georgia was much like the first. The only difference points actually were scored. Fortunately for the Irish, they scored far more and hold a 13-3 halftime lead.

Big offensive plays by both teams resulted in nothing more than field goals on their first full possessions of the quarter. For a while after that, nothing else of consequence happened.

The Irish then had a nice drive near the end of the first half that allowed [autotag]Mitch Jeter[/autotag] to kick the go-ahead 48-yard field goal.

Just when it seemed the Irish would take a 6-3 lead into the locker room, [autotag]RJ Oben[/autotag] sacked Gunner Stockton, who coughed the ball up to [autotag]Junior Tuihalamaka[/autotag]. On the very next play, [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] hit [autotag]Beaux Collins[/autotag] for the game’s first touchdown from 13 yards out.

Either team can win, at least at this stage in the contest. All that matters for these teams is surviving this game and moving onto the Orange Bowl against Penn State. Both sides have 30 minutes to prove they deserve that privilege, but the question is whether the winner deserves to play beyond that.

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Kickoff time for rescheduled Sugar Bowl announced

Adjust your schedule accordingly.

Tragic circumstances meant Notre Dame and Georgia were forced to wait an extra day to play in the Sugar Bowl. While a postponement was not in the cards, life sometimes interferes in the cruelest possible fashion. However, we now have some clarity about the path forward.

The Sugar Bowl has announced that the game, which had been rescheduled for Thursday, will kick off at 4 p.m. EST/3 p.m. CST. ESPN will televise the game as was previously scheduled, and all tickets that were purchased for the game will be honored.

The postponement was implemented in order to allow for enough time to put in additional security measures in response to the tragedy that befell New Orleans in the wee hours of New Year’s Day.

The game had an original kickoff time of 8:45 p.m. EST/7:45 p.m. CST, but officials for both schools and the playoff reportedly lobbied for a earlier kickoff time to allow the winning team enough time to recover and prepare for the Orange Bowl against Penn State.

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What is Penn State’s all-time record in the Orange Bowl?

Penn State is heading to the Orange Bowl for the sixth time in program history. Here is a quick look at past results.

After polishing off Boise State to win the Fiesta Bowl, Penn State is now setting its sights on the Orange Bowl as the next step on its hunt for a national championship. The Nittany Lions have a perfect record in the Fiesta Bowl and have a good winning percentage in the Orange Bowl as well. Can they keep that trend going in the next round of the College Football Playoff?

Penn State is 4-1 all-time in the Orange Bowl. The only setback cost Penn State a national championship at the end of the 1985 season when the Nittany Lions were handed their only loss of the season by No. 3 Oklahoma. The Sooners claimed the unanimous national title when No. 2 Miami lost in the Sugar Bowl. Of course, that led to Penn State’s national title run the following season, against Miami in the Fiesta Bowl.

Penn State will make its first trip to the Orange Bowl since an epic overtime clash with Florida State in the 2006 game, at the end of the 2005 season. That was highlighted as a showdown between two of college football’s all-time winningest coaches, Joe Paterno and Bobby Bowden.

This will mark Penn State’s second appearance in the Orange Bowl as a Big Ten member, and it will be the first time as a participant in the College Football Playoff semifinal round.

Here is a quick look at Penn State’s all-time results in the Orange Bowl:

  • 1969: No. 3 Penn State 15, No. 6 Kansas 14
  • 1970: No. 2 Penn State 10, No. 6 Missouri 3
  • 1974: No. 6 Penn State 16, No. 13 LSU, 9
  • 1986: No. 3 Oklahoma 25, No. 1 Penn State 10
  • 2006: No. 3 Penn State 26, No. 22 Florida State 23

Penn State will be making its sixth appearance in the Orange Bowl. whichever team Penn State faces, Georgia or Notre Dame, will also be making their sixth appearance in the bowl game. Georgia is 4-1 all-time in the Orange Bowl, and Notre Dame is 2-3 in the game. No other Big Ten team has appeared in the Orange Bowl as often as Penn State other than Nebraska, which has 17 Orange Bowl appearances.

Of course, the Big Ten has not traditionally sent teams to the Orange Bowl while the old Big Eight had a strong connection with the game (Oklahoma and Nebraska have a combined 37 appearances between them as former Big Eight members). As a Big Ten member, no other school has played in more Orange Bowl games than Michigan (four appearances representing the conference).

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Tennessee shuts out Oklahoma in 1939 Orange Bowl

A look back at Tennessee’s shutout win against Oklahoma in the 1939 Orange Bowl.

No. 7 Tennessee (3-0) will play Oklahoma (3-0) Saturday in Week 4 of the 2024 college football season. Saturday’s contest will be the Southeastern Conference opener for both schools.

Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. EDT at Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma. ABC will televise the SEC contest.

Saturday will mark the fifth game in the series between the Vols and Sooners, and the first meeting as conference opponents.

Tennessee and Oklahoma first played each other during the 1939 Orange Bowl at Burdine Stadium in Miami, Florida. The game was contested on Jan. 2, 1939.

Tennessee won its first national championship in school history during the 1938 season.

Tennessee (11-0, 7-0 SEC), under head coach Robert Neyland, defeated the Sooners, 17-0.

Tennessee led, 10-0, at halftime, after an 8-yard run by Bob Foxx.

Captain Bowden Wyatt extended the Vols’ lead to 10-0 after a 32-yard field goal in the second quarter.

Babe Wood scored on a 19-yard touchdown run for the final score in the fourth quarter.

Tennessee had three All-America performers on the 1938 team, including Wyatt, George Cafego and Bob Suffridge.

Following their playing careers, Wyatt and Cafego returned to Tennessee to coach.

Wyatt was the Vols’ head coach from 1955-62. Cafego was an assistant coach at Tennessee from 1955-84, serving under five head coaches including Wyatt, Jim McDonald, Doug Dickey, Bill Battle and Johnny Majors.

Cafego was also Tennessee’s head baseball coach from 1958-62.

Suffridge played football at Central High School in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Geno Smith reminisces about the 2012 Orange Bowl and his grandmother

Geno Smith reminisces about the 2012 Orange Bowl and his grandmother

In many ways, 2012 feels like it was yesterday, and in others, a lifetime away. Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith took to Twitter on his trip down memory lane in regards to the 2012 Orange Bowl.

Winding the clock back, a young Geno Smith was merely a junior at West Virginia. Smith had helped guide the Mountaneers to a respectable 9-3 regular season record as co-champions of the Big East. The calendar had barely flipped to January, and West Virginia was about to take on Clemson in the Orange Bowl.

Clemson, No. 15 was the designated home team and a three-point favorite. What happened next ended up being one of the most lopsided bowl games in recent memory.

Smith absolutely torched the Tigers, completing 32-of-43 passes for 407 yards and six touchdowns. Smith also racked up an additional 26 yards on the ground as well as a rushing touchdown. It was the first time a team had scored 70 points in a bowl game, and it was a record that stood until Army matched the total in the 2018 Armed Forces Bowl.

As for Smith’s personal connection, the memory of his grandmother seeing the last game of his live will surely be the thing he remembers most. January 4th, 2012 is certainly one of the more memorable moments in his career and life in football.

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A look at the hectic upcoming 2024-25 College Football Playoff schedule

The college football schedule in December could look a bit hectic this upcoming season with the playoff expansion.

It was a foregone conclusion that once college football went into a playoff format it would be expanded for more teams than just four.

That expansion begins this coming year as the College Football Playoff will include a total of 12 teams with the top four receiving a first-round bye. Those first-round games will be played on campus sites.

Expansion doesn’t just mean more teams, however.

The football calendar will also be pushed to the limit and will resemble the NFL playoffs and will last nearly that long. The days of college football ending on New Year’s are long over.

For those two teams that make the National Championship, they would have played 15 or 16 total games. There was a reason the regular season ended in late November and most bowl games were played in the southern part of the country.

The weather.

A December game played at Wisconsin or Michigan won’t be fun for players or fans, but these extra playoff games will rack in the dough for schools to spread around.

On top of just the new playoff games, coaches and programs will also have to deal with the transfer portal and the early signing period, both of which will come in early December as well. Here’s a look at the upcoming schedule for the 2024-25 season, wich dates set for games this postseason.