The Fighting Irish’s 27-24 Orange Bowl win over Penn State at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida proved former Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly very wrong about why he left the program.

Notre Dame outlasted Penn State in a 27-24 thriller to reach the program's first national championship game since 2012 in the Orange Bowl. Thanks to the 12-team College Football Playoff format, the Fighting Irish officially became the first team to win multiple bowl games in the same season.

After Notre Dame beat Penn State, Marcus Freeman will be the first Black coach in college football's national championship game.