Notre Dame vs. Penn State live score, updates, highlights from 2025 College Football Playoff semifinals

By | January 9, 2025
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The 2025 College Football Playoff semifinals have finally arrived, and four teams will play over Thursday and Friday evening. 

The first matchup Thursday evening will be No. 6 Penn State facing No. 7 Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. 

Both of these teams had impressive showings in the first two rounds of games. Penn State took care of SMU and Boise State in the first and second rounds, winning by a combined score of 69-24. Notre Dame beat Indiana at home in the first round, then stifled Georgia 23-10 in the Sugar Bowl. 

STREAM: Watch Notre Dame vs. Penn State live with Fubo (free trial)

Despite Penn State’s two losses to playoff teams in Ohio State in the regular season and Oregon in the Big Ten title game — both decided by just one score — the Nittany Lions had no problems earning a bid.

The offense is led by quarterback Drew Allar, who is having the best season of his PSU career. He’s thrown for 3,192 yards with 24 touchdowns and seven interceptions, rushing for another 285 yards and six touchdowns. 

Notre Dame, meanwhile, seems to be entering a new, dominant era under head coach Marcus Freeman. Despite entering the 2024 season with an 0-2 playoff record under Brian Kelly, Notre Dame has looked impressive in wins over Indiana and Georgia. 

The Irish’s defense looks like one of the strongest units in the country. ND’s defense kept Indiana out of the end zone until the final minute and a half of the game. The Irish also forced Georgia to go 0-for-3 on fourth down, along with two Bulldog turnovers. The unit ranks eighth overall in total defense. It’s led by linebacker Jack Kiser, who has 75 total tackles with two sacks and two forced fumbles. 

Neither of these head coaches have been this close to a national title game. Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman is 32-9 over four seasons in South Bend. James Franklin is 101-41, dating back to his first season in Happy Valley in 2014. ND is a slight 2.5-point favorite. 

The Sporting News is tracking live scoring updates and highlights from Notre Dame vs. Penn State in the Orange Bowl. Follow below for complete results from the 2025 College Football Playoff semifinals.

Notre Dame vs. Penn State live score

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Notre Dame vs. Penn State highlights from 2025 College Football Playoff semifinals 

(All times ET) 

10:50 p.m. — Notre Dame makes Penn State punt, and the Irish get the ball back with 2:34 left. A field goal here would win it for the Irish, and they have three timeouts. 

Penn State 24, Notre Dame 24

10:41 p.m.—TOUCHDOWN: And Notre Dame responds! Leonard hits a wide-open Jaden Greathouse for a 54-yard touchdown pass to tie this game up. It looked like the Penn State defender slipped trying to make the play. 

Penn State 24, Notre Dame 17

10:32 p.m. — TOUCHDOWN: Nicholas Singleton scores his third touchdown of the night, and gives his team back the lead. Let’s see how Notre Dame responds here. 

10:30 p.m. — Oh my goodness, Drew Allar throws what appears to be a pick by Notre Dame in the end zone, but the Irish get flagged for pass interference. It looked like a good call, even though the Notre Dame fans didn’t like it. Penn State is knocking on the door here. 

10:27 p.m. — Oh my, on Notre Dame’s first play of the next drive, Riley Leonard throws an interception straight into the arms of Dani Dennis-Sutton. Penn State is already inching close to field goal range, on Notre Dame’s 35. 

Penn State 17, Notre Dame 17

10:22 — TOUCHDOWN: And that’s how you respond! Nicholas Singleton takes it in for a seven-yard touchdown run to tie the game back up. 

10:19 p.m. — Penn State has a great drive going here in response to that Notre Dame touchdown. Drew Allar is three-for-three on the drive, and Penn State is already down to Notre Dame’s 28. Tight end Tyler Warren took a big hit, and came off for a play, but he seems to be OK. 

Notre Dame 17, Penn State 10

10:14 p.m. — TOUCHDOWN: Wow, what a drive by Notre Dame here. Jeremiyah love takes it in on a powerful three-yard touchdown run to give his team a seven-point lead. Let’s see how Penn State responds here. 

End of the third quarter: Penn State 10, Notre Dame 10

10:08 p.m. — On 3rd-and-9, Riley Leonard hits his receiver Jaden Greathouse for 18 yards for a first to the Penn State 42. The Irish have a nice drive going here.  

10:00 p.m. — It’s a punt fest so far in the second half. Notre Dame sacks Drew Allar on third down, and Notre Dame gets the ball back once again. 

9:54 p.m. — And Penn State’s defense responds right back, forcing a Notre Dame three-and-out. Zion Tracy got smacked while fielding the punt, and the Nittany Lions will start their drive from their own 15.

9:48 p.m. — What a response from Notre Dame’s defense! The Irish force a Penn State three-and-out, stuffing Kaytron Allen on 3rd-and-2. Let’s see what ND does on offense here. They have the early second-half momentum for sure. 

Penn State 10, Notre Dame 10

9:42 p.m. — TOUCHDOWN: Well, I guess Riley Leonard is OK! He punches it in for a three-yard rushing touchdown to cap off a brilliant drive by the Irish to open the second half. We got a ball game, folks! 

9:40 p.m. — Notre Dame has its longest pass play of the night, as Leonard hits Aneyas Williams for 36 yds to the Penn State 19. The Irish have a great drive going here to start the second half. 

Start of the third quarter: Penn State 10, Notre Dame 3

9:35 p.m. — The second half is underway here, and Riley Leonard will be coming back in for the Irish. ESPN’s Molly McGrath said he was evaluated for a concussion at halftime and was “asymptomatic.” Notre Dame gets the ball first to start. 

9:18 p.m. — Penn State’s defense has done a great job containing Notre Dame’s rush offense. The Nittany Lions have won the battle in the trenches so far in the first half. 

9:16 p.m. — Riley Leonard was seen jogging off the field with his helmet into the locker room, as head coach Marcus Freeman says during the ESPN interview his quarterback will be looked at and evaluated at halftime. Here’s the hit that sent him to the sideline: 

Halftime: Penn State 10, Notre Dame 3

9:11 p.m. FIELD GOAL — Mitch Jeter makes a 41-yard field goal to get some points on the board in the first half. The Irish will get the ball to open the second half.

9:07 p.m. — Backup quarterback Steve Angeli is still in under center, and he’s doing OK so far, five-for-six passing with 40 yards so far. 

9:00 p.m. — Riley Leonard takes a big shot and goes into the injury tent. It looked like his helmet hit the field, and the officials told him to go to the sideline. Notre Dame’s offense, meanwhile, is dealing with yet another injury along the offensive line. Backup Steve Angeli is in for Leonard. 

Penn State 10, Notre Dame 0

8:51 p.m. TOUCHDOWN — Nicholas Singleton takes it in for a five-yard touchdown to cap off a beautiful drive by Penn State. The Nittany Lions went 90 yards on 15 plays, and took 7:17 off the clock. The last time Notre Dame trailed at halftime? Against Northern Illinois, the Irish’s only loss of the season.  

8:45 p.m. — Penn State has a nice drive going here, with Nicholas Singleton leading the way. The Nittany Lions are down to Notre Dame’s 32. Penn State’s got this Irish defense on its heels here. 

 8:39 p.m. — An impressive stand by Penn State’s defense here. The unit stuffs Riley Leonard for a loss of four, then stops the Irish short of the first down. Notre Dame needs to get its down-field passing game figured out quick. The Irish have just 75 total yards of offense so far. 

Related, I hope everyone took the under tonight! 

8:35 p.m. — Notre Dame left tackle Anthonie Knapp gets rolled up on and exits the game. Fifth-year senior Tosh Baker is in now.

Penn State 3, Notre Dame 0

8:27 p.m. FIELD GOAL — It looked like Nicholas Singleton had a walk-in touchdown, but Drew Allar’s pass was just a little low and he missed it. Penn State settles for a 20-yard field goal to come away with points, though.

End of the 1st quarter: Penn State 0, Notre Dame 0

8:21 p.m. — Oh wow, it looks like Notre Dame’s Christian Gray picked off Drew Allar in the end zone, but he gets called for defensive holding on the play. Penn State stays alive and has first-and-goal. 

8:17 p.m. — Penn State goes for it on 4th-and-2 and Nicholas Singleton gets it pretty easily running around the left edge. Notre Dame’s defense thought the Nittany Lions were going to run it left. 

8:12 p.m. — Aaand Riley Leonard throws a pick! His pass sails over his intended receiver and goes right into the hands of Zakee Wheatley. Carter had some nice pressure on Leonard on the play. Penn State gets the ball back on its own 42.  

That’s Leonard’s first interception thrown since the first-round game against Indiana. 

8:10 p.m. — Abdul Carter gets some nice pressure on Riley Leonard, and his arm seems to be holding up just fine. He’s got some pretty, uh, unique eye-black on tonight:  

8:05 p.m. — Notre Dame’s defense doesn’t let the Nittany Lions go past their own 20, as the Irish was helped by Penn State’s Zion Tracy fair-catching the punt at the PSU 2. Notre Dame gets the ball back on the 35 after Penn State’s punt. 

7:59 p.m — Penn State’s defense holds the Irish on third down, as Evans can’t haul in the third-down pass from Leonard. Both offenses have had to punt on their opening drives, so both defenses are showing up, as expected. 

7:55 p.m. — On third down, Riley Leonard makes a nice pass to his tight end Mitchell Evans for 32 yards and a first down. Nice drive for the Irish here. Abdul Carter made a tackle on Leonard earlier, so he seems to be alright for now. 

7:50 p.m. — Notre Dame’s defense does a nice job holding Penn State on its first drive, but was helped by an illegal procedure penalty by the Nittany Lions on third down. Let’s see what Riley Leonard and this ND offense can do with its first possession. 

7:47 p.m. — Drew Allar avoids a blitz from Notre Dame and hits Nicholas Singleton for a big gain. The Irish are across midfield.

Start of the first quarter: Penn State 0, Notre Dame 0

7:43 p.m. — The pre-game coin toss complete with the Capital One guy from the commercials is here.  Notre Dame wins the toss and defers. Let’s get this thing kicked off!

7:40 p.m. — Both teams are coming out of their respective tunnels, as we’re getting ready to get rolling here. 

7:30 p.m. — We’re getting close to kickoff here! Should be a great game. 

7:15 p.m. — All eyes are on EDGE rusher Abdul Carter going through warmups. He’s got his left arm heavily wrapped: 

6:45 p.m. — Jeremiyah Love will be wearing a knee brace during the game, and Penn State EDGE rusher Abdul Carter, dealing with an arm injury he suffered in the Fiesta Bowl, will be about 85 percent: 

5:49 p.m. — Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, who has been dealing with a knee injury, is reportedly expected to play:

5:35 p.m. — Looks like picture-perfect weather in Miami for this game.

The expected temperature around kickoff is around 60 degrees. 

5:22 p.m. — Kickoff is just over a couple of hours away. Earlier on Thursday, it was reported that both teams could be dealing with some illnesses. Notre Dame is reportedly dealing with a flu outbreak in the locker room, although it’s reported to be mostly non-starting players. There are also rumors that Penn State is dealing with some illnesses within the locker room, but those have yet to be confirmed. 

Notre Dame vs. Penn State start time

  • Day: January 9, 2025
  • Time: 7:30 p.m. ET, 4:30 p.m. PT

Notre Dame and Penn State will face off in the CFP at 7:30 p.m. ET on Thursday evening. The semifinal playoff matchup will be in Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida. 

How to watch Notre Dame vs. Penn State in Orange Bowl

  • TV Channel: ESPN
  • Streaming: ESPN+, Fubo

Thursday’s CFP matchup between Notre Dame and Penn State will be broadcast on ESPN. Sean McDonough and Greg McElroy will be on the call with Molly McGrath and Katie George as sideline reporters.

Streaming options include ESPN+ or Fubo, which offers a free trial to new users.

College Football Playoff schedule 2025

Thursday, Jan. 9

Game Matchup Time (ET) TV/Live stream
CFP Semifinal (Orange Bowl) No. 6 Penn State vs. No. 7 Notre Dame 7:30 p.m. ESPN, Fubo

Friday, Jan. 10

Game Matchup Time (ET) TV/Live stream
CFP Semifinal (Cotton Bowl) No. 5 Texas vs. No. 8 Ohio State 7:30 p.m. ESPN, Fubo

Monday, Jan. 20

Game Matchup Time (ET) TV/Live stream
CFP National Championship (Atlanta) TBD vs. TBD 7:30 p.m. ESPN, Fubo

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