NEW ORLEANS — Marcus Freeman grabbed hold of his six kids, each making their way to a podium covered by blue and white confetti. Notre Dame’s head coach had already lifted the Sugar Bowl trophy, capping a Thursday night that took everything and everyone. So Freeman stole a moment to soak in the scene Notre Dame hired him to deliver, sharing it with his family.

They’d all just watched Notre Dame beat Georgia 23-10 to advance to the semifinals of the College Football Playoff.

Inside the Caesars Superdome, Freeman became something bigger than the first-time head coach thrust into the top job three years ago after Brian Kelly’s abrupt exit for LSU, only because he had Notre Dame at his back. His program played fearless football against the kind of opponent that had made it feel inferior for so long. The Irish went for it on fourth down, and when they didn’t get it, they forced a four-and-out. When they wanted to burn clock in the fourth quarter, they made Georgia panic with a mass substitution that got the Bulldogs to jump offside.

The Irish sprung their first kickoff return touchdown of the season, buoyed by a Marshall transfer. Notre Dame created two massive turnovers, one of which was a strip sack by a Duke transfer that set up a touchdown pass to a Clemson transfer. A South Carolina transfer hit three field goals. And when the Irish needed a fourth-down stop near the goal line, a transfer from Northwestern broke the pass up.

This Notre Dame team did what no Notre Dame team has done in 31 seasons and won a major bowl game. And it did it only because its head coach manifested this scene into reality, pulling every available lever and finding every possible edge. The Irish needed them all.

“That’s the aggressiveness in terms of our preparation that I want our program to have, and again, out there when it matters the most,” Freeman said. “That’s got to be one of our edges, that we are going to be an aggressive group and not fear making mistakes.”

The end result sends Notre Dame to the Orange Bowl to face Penn State on Jan. 9, one week after this signature win that included so many autographs. It would be impossible to read off them all, starting with the head coach and going all the way down to the walk-on receiver Leo Scheidler, who helped spring Jayden Harrison’s 98-yard kickoff return to open the third quarter.

JAYDEN HARRISON

9️⃣8️⃣ YARDS#GoIrish | @j_harrison5

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— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) January 2, 2025

Notre Dame needed every leading actor and bit part to follow the script. And the entire football program remembered its lines.

“They’re incredible kids. They are the best of the best,” said defensive coordinator Al Golden. “I think they choose Notre Dame for all the right reasons. It’s not me, me, me. Any of those guys to come here and submit to the program and put your ego aside and go for team glory? That’s rare. Rare. Rare. Rare.”

Golden’s defense delivered without star defensive tackle Rylie Mills and cornerback Benjamin Morrison, both lost for the season to injury. And so reserve defensive tackles Gabriel Rubio and Donovan Hinish stood tall, especially after Howard Cross III left with an ankle injury. Cornerbacks Christian Gray and Leonard Moore continue to fill in for Morrison. And when All-American safety Xavier Watts missed time, Rod Heard II stepped forward.

“All of us who decided to join the team for our last year committed ourselves to this vision of being national champions,” Heard said. “We’ve leaned into Notre Dame. Whatever I have to do for this team, that’s what I’m gonna get done.”

Inside the Notre Dame locker room, RJ Oben cradled the game ball given to him by Freeman. For one night he wasn’t the other transfer from Duke, Oben was the guy who made his first sack in an Irish uniform, dropping Gunner Stockton in the final seconds of the first half and forcing a fumble recovered by Junior Tuihalamaka. One snap later, Riley Leonard hit Beaux Collins for a 13-yard touchdown, Notre Dame’s only offensive touchdown in the game.

“If you’re gonna make a game-changing play, now is the time,” Oben said. “We came here knowing this is a big stage and this is why we’re here, to perform in a season like this. All the guys.”

But how Notre Dame put down Georgia said less about personnel than the culture connecting it. The Irish got production from virtually every transfer against the Bulldogs, none of those players wanted by the SEC champions. And Notre Dame got much from its core too, an offensive line that’s grown throughout the season into a group that could spring a 12-play, 41-yard drive in the fourth quarter that bled 7:36 of clock and left the Bulldogs without recourse.

A punt has never looked so good.

“It’s Notre Dame football at its finest. They delivered their very best when their very best was needed,” said offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock. “We probably set offensive football back 15 years. But we did what we needed to do to win.”

Notre Dame will meet Penn State in the CFP semifinals. (Sean Gardner / Getty Images)

Notre Dame did it because Freeman called the biggest game of his life, the day after a tragedy on Bourbon Street pushed the Sugar Bowl back a day.

At breakfast, Golden counseled defensive backs coach Mike Mickens that Notre Dame needed to stay aggressive in coverage, even if the Irish got beat with a deep ball. And they did get beat with Stockton’s arm. And they did stay aggressive.

Freeman knew he needed something big from special teams, no matter how much Jeter had struggled through injury this season and no matter what it took from special teams coordinator Marty Biagi. Freeman got that too. After the game, Biagi wore his father Stephen’s Notre Dame jacket, honoring him after he succumbed to lung cancer four hours after the Indiana game late last month. Just a day before Notre Dame beat the Hoosiers, Biagi’s wife gave birth to the couple’s twins. A girl and a boy. Their names are Brooke Renee and Stephen Jacob.

“He wouldn’t have wanted, as a Notre Dame grad, to go any other way,” Biagi said. “I know he was up there tonight watching. Trying to make him proud.”

Stephen Biagi would have been as Jeter drilled field goals from 44, 48 and finally 47 yards early in the fourth quarter to put Notre Dame ahead by the final score. And Harrison’s kickoff return did feel like divine intervention as he cut through Georgia’s coverage units, sprung by a walk-on receiver’s block after Scheidler subbed in for starter Collins, who needed an IV at halftime.

Even not punting worked, as Notre Dame tried that mass substitution on fourth-and-1 from its own 18-yard line early in the fourth, rushing the punt unit off and the offense on, trying to get Georgia to jump offside. Notre Dame had no intention of actually snapping the ball, until Jalon Walker jumped.

The play was called “Got ’Em.”

“And we did,” Denbrock said.

In the Superdome tunnels, Denbrock tried to make sense of this all, less the game he just called and more what it meant for the program he’d called it for. This is Denbrock’s third stint at Notre Dame under his third head coach. He’s been in these games. Never won them. No one around Notre Dame has, amid a major bowl losing streak that dates back to Lou Holtz and covers the tenure of four other head coaches. Most of these games haven’t been close. They’ve been supposed referendums on what Notre Dame football can be in the modern age.

And now Notre Dame is something else entirely.

“We’ve all endured all of these ‘we don’t belong’ and ‘you’re not supposed to be here’ and all that stuff that we’ve had to deal with all those years,” Denbrock said. “To see those kids erase that, at least for the time being, and do the things, that was all about heart and toughness.

“Regardless of the stage we’ve been on, we’ve been true to who we are. I’m just so happy for everybody.”

Because that’s exactly what this required.

Everybody.

GO DEEPER

CFP semifinals first look: Previewing Notre Dame-Penn State, Ohio State-Texas

(Top photo: Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images)

Three teams have booked their tickets to the College Football Playoff semifinals. Who will be the fourth?

The final game of the quarterfinals — the Sugar Bowl showdown between Georgia and Notre Dame — was postponed to Thursday after a terrorist attack on Bourbon Street in New Orleans in the early hours of Jan. 1 left 15 dead and dozens injured.

Follow the game action below (scroll for live updates).

Date: Jan. 1 | Time: 8:45 p.m. ET | TV: ESPN | Line: Notre Dame -1 | Total: 45.5

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 Gunner Stockton in the game? We won’t be surprised to see Georgia stick to its run game.

The Sugar Bowl wraps up College Football Playoff quarterfinal action on Thursday.

The final College Football Playoff bracket quarterfinal features Georgia vs. Notre Dame on Jan. 2, after the game was postponed from the original Wednesday date.

Here’s what you need to know about how to watch, the College Football Playoff bowl game schedule and more.

Sugar Bowl Georgia-Notre Dame game: Odds, picks and predictions

When is the 2024-2025 Sugar Bowl tonight?

The Sugar Bowl is played at 4 p.m. ET Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025.

Where is the 2024-2025 Sugar Bowl today?

The Sugar Bowl will take place at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.

What College Football Playoff bowl teams are playing in the Sugar Bowl today?

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Georgia Bulldogs will meet in the Sugar Bowl at 4 p.m. ET Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025.

Why was Notre Dame vs Georgia Sugar Bowl College Football Playoff game postponed?

The 2024-2025 Sugar Bowl College Football Playoff quarterfinal game was postponed after 15 people were killed and about 30 people were injured early Wednesday morning in New Orleans, according to USA Today. The deadly attack saw an armed man drive a pickup truck into a large crowd of people on Bourbon Street.

What time does the Georgia Bulldogs-Notre Dame Fighting Irish Sugar Bowl College Football Playoff game start today?

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Georgia Bulldogs will play in the Sugar Bowl at 4 p.m. ET Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025.

Watch College Football Playoff bowl games on Sling

What channel is Georgia vs Notre Dame Sugar Bowl game on tonight? How to watch College Football Playoff game today

The Sugar Bowl featuring the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Georgia Bulldogs will air on ABC and ESPN at 4 p.m. ET Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025.

Watch CFP bowl games on Fubo

How to stream, watch Notre Dame vs Georgia Sugar Bowl College Football Playoff game tonight. Where to watch today

The Sugar Bowl featuring the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Georgia Bulldogs will stream on ESPN+ at 4 p.m. ET Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. The app is available in the Apple App Store or on Google Play. Fans can also download NFL+ in the Apple App Store or on Google Play.

Watch Georgia vs. Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl on ESPN+

2024-2025 Sugar Bowl predictions: Picks for Georgia Bulldogs vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish today

The six experts at USA Today favored Notre Dame over Georgia, giving the Fighting Irish a 4-2 edge. Read more about what each expert has to say.

2024-2025 College Football Playoff bowl game schedule, results: quarterfinals

Sugar Bowl

Fiesta Bowl

Peach Bowl

Rose Bowl

When are the 2024-2025 College Football Playoff bowl game semifinals?

The College Football Playoff semifinal games will be played at the site of two bowl games on Jan. 9 and Jan. 10.

Orange Bowl

Cotton Bowl

When is the 2024-2025 College Football Playoff National Championship bowl game?

The College Football Playoff National Chamionship will be played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Jan. 20:

• Orange Bowl winner vs. Cotton Bowl winner: 7:30 p.m., Monday, Jan. 20 (ESPN).

Chris Sims is a digital content producer at Midwest Connect Gannett. Follow him on Twitter: @ChrisFSims.

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