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College Football Playoff players to watch, key to the Sugar Bowl: No. 7 Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Georgia

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College Football Playoff players to watch, key to the Sugar Bowl: No. 7 Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Georgia


The final College Football Playoff quarterfinal is the fourth postseason meeting between Notre Dame and Georgia. The Bulldogs have won all three of the previous matchups. Can they get a fourth?

[More CFP: Ohio State vs. Oregon | Boise State vs. Penn State | Texas vs. Arizona State]

Date: Jan. 1 | Time: 8:45 p.m. ET | TV: ESPN | Line: Georgia -1.5 | Total: 44.5

Notre Dame: The Irish dominated Indiana in a 27-17 win that turned out to be the closest margin of victory of any of the four first-round CFP games. Notre Dame broke the game open on Jeremiyah Love’s 98-yard TD run and kept the Indiana offense in check until the game was out of reach.

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Georgia: The SEC champions beat Texas twice to secure the league title. Georgia lost to Alabama and Ole Miss on the road but ended up in the SEC title game thanks to chaos within the conference and three league losses for both the Crimson Tide and the Rebels. Georgia beat Texas 30-15 in the regular season and then beat the Longhorns 22-19 in the SEC title game.

We don’t have much college data to go on for Gunner Stockton. The No. 2 QB for the Bulldogs is now the starter after taking over during the SEC title game for Carson Beck after Beck suffered a UCL injury on a Hail Mary attempt at the end of the first half. For the season, Stockton was 25-of-32 passing for 206 yards and an interception over four games. In the second half against Texas, he was 12-of-16 for 71 yards and an interception. He’s the biggest unknown in the College Football Playoff.

Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard has gotten more and more comfortable as the season has gone on. Leonard was 23-of-32 for 201 yards and a TD and interception against Indiana and also rushed 11 times for 30 yards and a score. Leonard has just 17 passing TDs but has rushed for 15 TDs and averages 5.6 yards a carry. His 751 yards this season on the ground are a career high.

Notre Dame RB Jadarian Price: Love broke the big run in the first half but saw sporadic playing time as he’s been dealing with a knee injury. If he’s not fully healthy, the bulk of the rushing load could fall to Price, who has been a fantastic wingman in 2024. Price has rushed 100 times for 683 yards and seven scores this season. He had just 32 yards on 11 carries against Indiana but had 12 rushes for 111 yards against USC in the regular season finale and 10 carries for 53 yards and two scores against Army.

Georgia WR Arian Smith: Smith has the most yards of any Bulldogs receiver with 47 grabs for 750 yards and four TDs. But he’s been inconsistent and drops have been a serious issue. Smith has come up big in the College Football Playoff before, however, and this would be a great time for him to become a reliable target. He’s Georgia’s best downfield threat and can be a field-stretcher against the Notre Dame secondary if Georgia trusts Stockton to throw it down the field.

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No one will question how well Georgia coach Kirby Smart can motivate his team, especially in a circumstance like this with his starting quarterback injured and off to the NFL. But just how well can Georgia move the ball with Stockton in the game? The Bulldogs’ offense hasn’t been great in big games with Beck, though weeks of practice with Stockton as the starter will be very beneficial. We’re not going to be surprised if Georgia runs the ball a lot. And neither will Vegas. Just look at how low the total is (44.5). It’s by far the lowest of the four quarterfinal games.



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Top 2026 Wisconsin Running Back Announces Transfer To Georgia 5A Champion Milton

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Top 2026 Wisconsin Running Back Announces Transfer To Georgia 5A Champion Milton


First it was one of the state of Wisconsin’s top signal callers leaving for Georgia.

Now add one of the state’s top running backs as well. Homestead running back Bentley Hickman made it be known on New Year’s Day that he plans to head over to one of the Southeast’s top high school football programs.

The 2026 running back announced on X that he will be leaving Homestead and heading for Georgia Class 5A state champion Milton.

Down below is the post by the running back that he put up on Wednesday afternoon.

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New year, New beginnings… I am so so thankful for what Homestead High School and the district has done for me. The community, the love and support that I got there was incredible. But I will actually be finishing my last year at Milton High School in Georgia!

Hickman is one of Wisconsin’s top 2026 running backs and is coming off a strong 2024 campaign for Homestead. This past fall season, Hickman totaled 1,055 all-purpose yards and accounted for 11 touchdowns.

The 5-foot-10, 205-pound back follows in the footsteps of another Wisconsin product that plans to leave for Northwest Georgia, as 2026 quarterback Brayln Albritton announced back on Christmas that he will be leaving Milwaukee Academy of Science for Milton.

With Albritton coming in to compete for the job, the quarterback has been impressive during his time at Milwaukee Academy of Science. Albritton this past 2024 season ended up throwing for 2,830 yards and 29 touchdowns.

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As a freshman in 2022 with MAOS, Albritton threw for 2,447 yards and 27 touchdowns.

Follow High School On SI throughout the 2024 high school football season for Live Updates, the most up to date Schedules & Scores and complete coverage from the preseason through the state championships!

Be sure to Bookmark High School on SI for all of the latest high school football news.

To get live updates on your phone – as well as follow your favorite teams and top games – you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App| Download Android App

— Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi

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Sugar Bowl Kickoff Time Again Adjusted for Notre Dame vs. Georgia Showdown

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Sugar Bowl Kickoff Time Again Adjusted for Notre Dame vs. Georgia Showdown


The postponed Sugar Bowl between Notre Dame and Georgia is changing times again.

Instead of being played at 8:45 p.m. ET on Thursday night the game is now going to kickoff at 4:00 p.m. ET instead. This comes after both coaching staffs reportedly requested an earlier start time following the announcement of the game being pushed back a day. The game is still set to be broadcast on ESPN.

Pete Thamel of ESPN was the first to report the news on Wednesday afternoon.

The move makes sense for Notre Dame and Georgia, as the winner gets advances to take on Penn State in the Orange Bowl on January 9 in Miami.

Penn State already had extra rest going into the Orange Bowl as it played and defeated Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl on Tuesday night. The Nittany Lions will now have nine days rest before the national semi-final while the winner of the Sugar Bowl will have just a week.

In the relm of things a roughly four hour difference in kickoff times might not seem like much but certainly every hour is valuable when you get to this point in the season.

We will continue to keep you updated here at Notre Dame on Sports Illustrated throughout the day.

A Look at Notre Dame’s Massive College Football Playoff Payday in Comparison to Others

Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard Scouts Georgia Defense Ahead of Sugar Bowl

Urban Meyer Makes His Prediction for Notre Dame vs. Georgia Sugar Bowl

Kirby Smart Breaks Down Notre Dame and Marcus Freeman Ahead of Sugar Bowl





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Georgia Tech's Dani Carnegie leads women's basketball starting five for Week 7

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Georgia Tech's Dani Carnegie leads women's basketball starting five for Week 7


These women’s basketball players posted big-time performances and were named to the NCAA.com starting five this week.

⛹️‍♀️ MORE WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL ⛹️‍♀️

Dani Carnegie, Georgia Tech

For the third straight week, and fourth time overall this season, Georgia Tech freshman guard Dani Carnegie was voted Atlantic Coast Conference Rookie of the Week, after recording her fourth 20-plus point game in Tech’s lone outing this week.
 
Carnegie scored 24 points and added five rebounds and two steals in Georgia Tech’s 100-61 home win over Pittsburgh on Sunday. It marked her second straight game with 20-plus points, and third in the last four games. Overall, Carnegie has logged 12 double-figure scoring games with a personal-high against the Panthers. Carnegie had four three-pointers to match her season-best, which she has done six times this season. The freshman has hit multiple three-pointers in 11 games to highlight her impressive freshman debut.
 
Carnegie leads Georgia Tech offensively on the year, averaging 15.1 points per game. She also leads the Yellow Jackets in three-point field goals made (39) and three-point field goal percentage (39.4). She ranks fourth in both statistical categories in the ACC. Carnegie continues to lead all freshmen in scoring in the league and ranks 12th nationally among the freshmen class.
 
With Georgia Tech’s win against Pittsburgh, the Yellow Jackets moved to 14-0 on the season and 2-0 in conference play. Tech remained steady at No. 13 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll, also released on Monday.
 
The Yellow Jackets return to action on Jan. 2, welcoming Syracuse to McCamish Pavilion.

TEAM OF THE WEEK: Norfolk State earns honor following second SEC upset win of the season

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Delanie Crawford, Tulsa

Tulsa’s Delanie Crawford put on a brilliant performance in the Golden Hurricane’s 93-84 home win over East Carolina on opening day of the American Athletic Conference season, scoring a career-high 36 points.
 
The senior guard connected on 14-of-20 shots from the field, including a 3-for-7 tally from 3-point range, and a perfect 5-for-5 mark from the free-throw line. She collected a team-high seven rebounds and added four steals and two assists for a record-setting day in the Donald W. Reynolds Center.
 
The 36 points by Crawford ranks as the third-highest total scored by a Tulsa player in program history, just four points shy of the single-game record 40 by Cheryle Meppelink (vs. John Brown, Jan. 10, 1987). The 36 points also marks the second-most scored in a conference game for Tulsa. In addition, Crawford had 26 first-half points, tying Kendrian Elliott’s (2016-20) Reynolds Center record for most points scored in a half. Elliott had 26 in the second half against Arkansas State in 2019. Crawford also finished with 14 made field goals, the second-best single-game effort in Tulsa history. It ties the record for the most recorded in a conference game for the Hurricane.
 
The Hurricane, 7-6 overall, will spend New Year’s Day in Denton, Texas, where they’ll face North Texas.

Harsimran Kaur, Rhode Island

Senior Harsimran “Honey” Kaur shot lights out in the Atlantic 10 Conference opener for Rhode Island, pouring in a career-best 27 points leading the Rams to an 83-63 win over Saint Louis on Dec. 29.
 
The center connected on 10-of-16 shots from the floor and was  5-of-7 from the 3-point line, with the five threes establishing a new career-high. Kaur added 10 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season, and second in as many games.
 
Named A-10 Player of the Week, Kaur leads the Rams this season in scoring, averaging 12.5 points per game over the first 14 games.
 
The Rams, 6-8 overall, are back in action on Jan. 2 at St. Bonaventure.
 
POWER RANKINGS: UCLA tops final Power 10 women’s basketball rankings of 2024

Olivia Miles, Notre Dame

Olivia Miles Notre Dame dribbles

Notre Dame point guard Olivia Miles produced a historic performance on Sunday against Virginia with an 11-point, 10-rebound, 14-assist triple-double as the third-ranked Fighting Irish rolled to a 95-54 victory over the Hoos. The 14 assists tied a career-high for Miles.
 
The 5-10 junior achieved her third triple-double of the season and sixth of her career. Miles is now tied with Maryland great Alyssa Thomas for most career triple-doubles in ACC history, and she is the first ever ACC player to notch back-to-back triple-doubles. Miles had 18 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists against Loyola Maryland on Dec. 22. Additionally, Miles joins Jackie Young as the only Notre Dame player to post a triple-double in Atlantic Coast Conference play. Young also did it against Virginia.
 
But the triple-double accolades weren’t the only lines added to the All-American’s resume last weekend. When Miles grabbed rebound No. 9 on Sunday, she reached 500 in her career. She is now one of just three players in Notre Dame women’s basketball history to have 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 500 assists, joining Skylar Diggins and Lindsay Allen.
 
On the season, Miles is leading the ACC with 7.2 assists per game. She is also the NCAA’s active leader in career assists per game at 6.8.
 
Miles and the Irish, 11-2 overall and 2-0 in ACC play, will return to action on Sunday at No. 17 North Carolina.
 
Maddy Skorupski, Oakland

Maddy Skorupski Oakland dribbling

Oakland improved to 3-0 in Horizon League play as junior guard Maddy Skorupski finished with a career-high 29 points (11-of-20 field goals), five steals and four assists in an 86-85 overtime win over Northern Kentucky on Dec. 29.
 
Skorupski had given Oakland a two-point lead with 14 seconds remaining in regulation only to see Northern Kentucky tie the game and send it to overtime. In overtime, the Golden Grizzlies would put the game away, as Skorupski’s and-one layup put Oakland ahead 82-75 with 34 seconds left, giving them enough to secure an eventual one-point win, behind a team-effort, going 6-8 (.750) from the field in overtime.
 
Through 12 games this season, Skorupski is averaging a team-best 17.2 points per game, while shooting 41.9 percent from the floor.
 
Oakland, 5-7 overall, will look to stay perfect in conference play when they host Cleveland State on Jan. 3.



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