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For Kansas State and Iowa State, Farmageddon is a treasure — and the stakes have never been higher

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For Kansas State and Iowa State, Farmageddon is a treasure — and the stakes have never been higher

America’s breadbasket straddles the Missouri River, with Iowa on the eastern slope and Kansas burying a knee in its back from the southwest. The river’s thick, muddy waters and countless tributaries irrigate the world’s most fertile farmland. In Iowa, that means corn, hogs and even turkeys. In Kansas, that’s winter wheat, sorghum and cattle.

Agriculture dictates business in both states, and their land-grant institutions are among the nation’s best at cultivating the next crop of farmers. It has led Iowa State and Kansas State to forge close ties, and that cooperation spills over to competition in athletics. It also helped launch one of the greatest rivalry nicknames in sports.

Once considered a derisive moniker, “Farmageddon” has nudged its way into the lexicon of modern college football in a way that belies its threadbare roots. In a new-look Big 12 scuttled and reformed through realignment, Farmageddon is a relic and a treasure. With expansion, teams change conferences and rivalries disintegrate. Yet Iowa State and Kansas State have found in each other an organic partner and competitor.

“There’s that sense of a rivalry between the two schools, and it’s always a battle,” said Kansas State defensive end Brendan Mott, who grew up in Iowa City, Iowa. “It’s super physical up front. The conditions are always tough. It’s definitely a rivalry. I know us as players look forward to it every year. And I’m sure Iowa State does as well.”

Farmageddon has never meant more to the contestants, fans or college football, and the series has soared in importance. For just the second time in their century-plus competition, the programs meet as ranked opponents. Saturday night at Jack Trice Stadium, No. 18 Iowa State (9-2, 6-2 Big 12) could win a 10th game for the first time in school history and qualify for the Big 12 Championship Game. No. 24 Kansas State (8-3, 5-3) could ruin the party in Ames and perhaps sneak into the title game itself.

“We’ve had the game circled,” Kansas State tight end Will Swanson told reporters.

Humble beginnings

For generations, the Kansas State and Iowa State football teams sat like loose nails on a wooden fence waiting for the hammer to pound them into place. From the start of the Big Six Conference in 1928 through the completion of the Big Eight in 1995, either the Cyclones or the Wildcats finished in last place 54 times in 68 seasons. In 1989 and 1991, Kansas State moved its home games with Oklahoma to Norman so both squads could generate more revenue.

Then came the Manhattan Miracle led by Bill Snyder. In perhaps the greatest turnaround in college football history, Snyder took a program teetering toward shifting to a lower division and won multiple Big 12 championships. Snyder, a College Football Hall of Fame inductee, was 215-117-1 in 27 seasons with five top-10 finishes. The Wildcats had participated in one bowl game in their first 93 years. Snyder took them to 20.

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“When you look at both programs, their histories are very similar,” said Jeff Woody, a running back at Iowa State from 2009-13. “Kansas State just came out of it sooner. Kansas State, before Bill Snyder got there, was awful, and Iowa State was awful until (Dan) McCarney got there.”

Iowa State had a few peaks under McCarney, but the Cyclones were well behind their foes 350 miles to the southwest. For 90 years, it was less a rivalry than just a series between two similar institutions that simply played every year.

“They had a great run under coach Snyder, and in some ways, they were the gold standard of what maybe Iowa State kind of aspired to do,” said Iowa State’s Jamie Pollard, who ranks third in longevity among Power 4 athletic directors. “Their institutional composition, their makeup, their history, is more like us than not.

“You look at K-State as a program. They won Big 12 championships. They played in the Cotton Bowl. They did some things that Iowa State would like to do. Quite frankly, with coach (Chris) Klieman there right now, in some ways the path to where we want to go kind of goes through them.”

Farmageddon

In 2007, Kansas and Missouri played a top-five matchup at Arrowhead Stadium. The stands were full and feisty, the game a rousing success. Kansas City Chiefs brass then reached out to multiple schools to gauge interest in staging future games.

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“K-State was willing, as we were willing, to each give up a home game, so we did the two-year deal,” Pollard said. “It was a good one-off opportunity that allowed us to go to the Kansas City market, which is a big market for us.”

Before the first game in 2009, a Kansas State fan site coined the phrase “Farmageddom.” It caught on quickly and appeared in newspapers and other media outlets. At first, many fans and supporters considered the term cringeworthy and cliche. The nickname, however, gathered momentum and stuck despite the series moving back to campuses in 2011.

Concurrently, the Big 12 was amid a radical realignment. In multiple years, there were heavy discussions about six schools — including Texas and Oklahoma — joining the Pac-10. After the 2010 season, Nebraska and Colorado left for the Big Ten and Pac-10, respectively. The next year, Missouri and Texas A&M bolted for the SEC. Each time, Iowa State and Kansas State were left twisting at the whims of their higher-profile colleagues. Amid the chaos, a bond formed.

“I was in college for the first round of realignment, and Kansas State was also one of those afterthought schools,” Woody said. “And you go, ‘Well, where do we go?’ Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Iowa State and Texas Tech were the land-grant schools. No one expects as much from us. It’s sort of a sibling rivalry that I can fight you and you can fight me, and we can hate each other, but no one else is allowed to hate us.”

New era

Saturday marks the 108th consecutive season the Wildcats and Cyclones face off, but the stakes never have been higher. When both schools were ranked in 2002, it was midseason, and K-State rolled past Iowa State 58-7. Now, it’s the season finale and both teams still harbor Big 12 title hopes.

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Should the Cyclones win, they’re almost certain to appear in the title game for the second time, barring a three-way tie and a complicated tiebreaker. But the percentages are low, and coach Matt Campbell said Tuesday it’s not something that concerns him.

Kansas State, which won the Big 12 title two seasons ago, must win and get help to make another title appearance. The long odds don’t detract from the game’s importance, however.

Last year, 6 inches of snow fell during the Cyclones’ 42-35 win in Manhattan. In a game dubbed “Snowmageddon,” Iowa State running back Abu Sama III rushed for 276 yards and three touchdowns. For Saturday’s prime-time kickoff, temperatures are expected to fall into the single digits.

“It always seems like it’s a cold game or snowy game or something like that,” Mott said. “It’s always a good brawl and battle. Last year, they came down to Manhattan. It was a snowy game, and it was our senior night, and we didn’t really have the game that we wanted to have. So, we’re a real hungry team.”

Since the term Farmageddon was applied to this series, unusual situations and surroundings have determined the outcome. In the first Arrowhead game, Iowa State missed an extra point in a 24-23 Kansas State win. From 2014 through 2017, the Wildcats won four straight by 5 points or fewer. In 2015, Iowa State led by a touchdown with the ball and 1:31 left. All the Cyclones needed to do was kneel for the victory because Kansas State had just one timeout remaining.

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Instead, Cyclones coach Paul Rhoads chose to run the ball on first down. The back fumbled, and Kansas State tied the score with a touchdown four plays later. A strip-sack with 10 seconds left led to Kansas State’s game-winning field goal. Rhoads was fired the next day.

Campbell’s arrival in 2016 has escalated the stakes. He’s 4-4 against Kansas State, which matches the number of Cyclone wins against Kansas State from 1999 through 2007. Klieman replaced Snyder in 2019 and is 2-3 against the Cyclones. The programs are built with the same principles with development at their core. Iowa State leads the series all-time, 53-50-4.

“Both football teams play a style that their fan bases really embrace,” Kansas State athletic director Gene Taylor said. “They’re similar in a lot of ways, just hard-nosed kids from small-town Iowa, small-town Kansas. They just go out and really play good, hard, solid football.”

Future

There’s little chance of snow or below-zero temperatures for next year’s Farmageddon. Kansas State shifted the game to Ireland, and it will take place in Week 0. Aer Lingus, which operates an annual game in Dublin, met with Iowa State and Kansas State to consider playing a game there. Iowa State will host only four Big 12 games in 2025, so it declined. Taylor thought Klieman would do the same but asked his coach to research the proposal.

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“I said, ‘There’s no way Klieman is moving the Iowa State game to a neutral site in Ireland,’” Taylor said. “Chris came down to my office and said, ‘Let’s do it.’ I was shocked, literally, because of the importance of the game.”

Another change is on the horizon, one that has agitated the fan bases. In the 16-team Big 12, in which eight new members have joined in the last two seasons, only four rivalries (all in-state) are protected annually. Farmageddon is slated to cycle off the schedule in 2027. There are no plans for the schools to meet in a nonconference game.

“There have been a lot of changes,” Taylor said. “We probably haven’t had a chance to really slow down and take a look at an option like that. But I think it’s worthy of discussion in the future. And say maybe we do rotate — not just one team a year that you play every year, maybe it is two or three teams. How do we keep Iowa State for us and Kansas and rotate everybody else?”

Once an afterthought, Farmageddon now resonates as an authentic rivalry shaped by similarity and substance. Mott, Woody and both athletic directors acknowledge the other has become their school’s No. 2 rival, just behind their in-state foes. It matters emotionally and competitively.

“Ohio State–Michigan have played each other for forever, and that’s like a true hatred,” Woody said. “But the existence of those programs has never been threatened, like what happened to Iowa State and Kansas State. So, recognizing that it almost fell apart, and there’s this good thing between two similar programs that because it almost fell apart, you appreciate it for what it is. It’s impossible not to see the similarities between the programs.”

“It is kind of that battle of the farmers,” Mott said. “I think it’s cool it’s got this nickname. It just adds to the rivalry.”

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(Photo: Scott Winters / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

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Surviving and thriving in the nastiest spot on NHL ice

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January 10, 2025

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Surviving and thriving in the nastiest spot on NHL ice

You gotta want it, right? That’s what they always say, “they” being the NHL players who dare tread into the lawless border between slot and crease, the coaches who send them there, and the fans in the 300-level relentlessly calling for blood.

It’s about desire. It’s about a willingness to take the punishment, and an eagerness to dole it out. It’s about fearlessness and an almost wanton disregard for life and limb. That’s where the pain is, yes — the cross-checks to the back of the head, the slashes to the ankles, the elbows to the gut — but that’s also where the goals are. They’re called the scoring areas for a reason. They’re called the dirty areas for a reason, too. Pay the price, reap the reward. A red light is worth a black-and-blue every single time.

Easy to say that, of course. A tad more difficult in practice. Ever turn your back on an angry giant with a weapon in his hand? Ever step in front of a frozen projectile traveling at triple digits?

Ever do both at the same time?

“It’s scary at first,” Nashville Predators forward Filip Forsberg said. “When you had Zdeno Chara behind you and Shea Weber shooting it at you — that’s the best of both worlds right there.”

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Yes, it takes guts to work the net front in the NHL. But it’s facile, folly even, to say it’s simply about who wants it most. There’s a true art to working the net front — for the forwards trying to create havoc, the defensemen trying to prevent havoc, and the goaltenders trying to see through the havoc. It requires courage, sure. But it also requires precision timing, exquisite hand-eye coordination, uncanny instincts, physical fortitude and quick thinking.

And yes, a bit of a nasty attitude doesn’t hurt. Hey, gotta want it, right?

“It’s always chaos,” Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar said. “But you’ve just got to try and make it a little bit of controlled chaos.”

The defensemen

Let’s start not with the trespassers but those patrolling the fence line.

For defensemen protecting the crease, it’s much more complicated than simply outmuscling an intruding forward — though that’s certainly part of it. It starts with picking your battles. Or more accurately, when to battle.

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Just because a forward is in front of the crease doesn’t mean it’s time to start jockeying for position. As a defenseman, you have to conserve energy for when you truly need it. So if the puck is wedged between a slew of skates and sticks in the corner, you merely keep an eye, not your whole body, on that forward lurking in the goal mouth. Otherwise, you’ll tire yourself out before the real fight begins.

Former Chicago Blackhawks coach and 21-year NHL defenseman Luke Richardson made a point of having his blueliners — particularly his smaller, more offensive-minded ones — watch video of Toby Enstrom and Kimmo Timonen, a pair of 5-foot-10 guys who protected the crease from power forwards who outweighed them by 20, 30, 40 pounds while conserving enough energy to exit the zone and maintain possession once they did, rather than just dumping the puck and going for a line change. Enstrom and Timonen would use their stick as a spacer more than a weapon. Or they’d stick their arms out and stiffen them, forcing forwards to go around them, making them expend just a little more energy and just a little more time before getting themselves planted. Every fraction of a second counts when forwards are looking for drive-by tips and screens.

Now, once the puck skitters free, or you sense that a shot is coming, it’s time to start boxing out.

But wait a second, dumb question — how do you box someone out on slippery ice?

“It’s turning your skates,” Blackhawks defenseman Connor Murphy said. “You can actually dig in more than you can in shoes because of your edges, if you turn them outwards. So you plant your feet sideways — duck-footed, or whatever it’s called — and you can be tough to move. Sometimes, if a guy’s coming at you from the side, you just kind of lean into them and wait for the right time to push off of him to get the rebound. It’s all just feel and strength, really.”

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Five-foot-10 Kimmo Timonen (44) made a living boxing out much larger players, such as 6-3 Patrick Maroon (62). (Jim McIsaac / Getty Images)

Getting there first is key, too. Better to be the guy trying to stand still than the guy trying to move the guy trying to stand still. Anticipate the play, get into position, jam those skates into the ice, get a strong and wide base and dare the other guy to dislodge you.

This, of course, is where the nastiness begins — jockeying for position can mean a light shove or it can mean a full-on two-hander to the spine. Back in Richardson’s time, it got truly violent among that amorphous mass of bodies. How violent?

“As violent as I was allowed to be,” Richardson said. “(But) you would be careful who you’re up against. I might not have been as violent against Bob Probert as I was against a smaller guy that wasn’t as tough.”

It went far beyond the usual two-handed shoves in the back that you still see today.

The can-opener — wedging your stick between the forward’s legs and either dumping them to the ice or maneuvering them around like a marionette — was popular in Richardson’s time. And good luck to the knees and ankles of any forward in the 1980s who got close enough to a Ron Hextall or a Billy Smith, who’d take their big goalie paddles and chop a forward down like a lumberjack.

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That stuff is all verboten today. These days, even especially aggressive cross-checks will get you two minutes. With rising slap shots screaming toward the goal mouth, a poorly timed — or well-timed, depending on how old-school you are — cross-check can put a player’s face right into the line of fire. For obvious reasons, the league doesn’t like that.

“The game has changed,” Vegas center Tomáš Hertl said. “Hockey got a lot smaller, guys got a little faster. I got into the league when it was still Chara and Weber. It was different — there were big, strong guys and they could break their stick over your back. It’s changed, but it’s still not easy in there. The next morning, you still feel it.”

Modern defensemen have to find subtler ways to hinder a forward’s ability to tip a point shot, redirect a slap pass or pounce on a rebound. A quick stick is critical. Most intentional deflections happen on the ice, so Murphy said he’s usually trying to get his stick underneath the forward’s stick and lift it off the ice. On the flip side, when a forward intentionally raises his stick as a shot is on its way, the defenseman’s instinct is to whack it down back to the ice with his own stick or use his body to angle the player away from the net. Whatever the forward’s trying to do, don’t let him do it.

Of course, the more bodies in that net-front battle, the harder it is for a referee to see what’s really going on in there.

“I wouldn’t say it’s like free game in there,” Makar said. “But you’re still going to do anything to keep the puck out of your net. If that means grabbing a guy’s stick or something, you try to do that.”

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There is another option — leave the scrum entirely and try to step in front of the shot yourself. That involves unspoken communication with a defensive partner and a trust level with the goaltender. Some goalies love it when a defenseman sacrifices his body for a blocked shot. Other goalies want a clear line of sight to the puck and would prefer to handle it themselves.

So, get there first. But monitor the puck closely so you don’t waste energy. Make sure you and your defensive partner know which forward is his and which one’s yours. Then, decide if you want to fight for position or block a shot. And if you choose to fight, determine whether the forward is going for a deflection — and what type — or if he’s looking to roll off and pick up some loose change around the net. And don’t get a penalty, but be sure to get away with whatever you can.

Oh, and process and accomplish all that in a second or two. Maybe three.

“It’s instinct,” Murphy said.

“It’s fun,” Makar said.

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The forwards

Washington’s Tom Wilson can’t exactly articulate what it is that makes him effective in front of the net. It all happens too fast, too chaotically, to distill into an easily digestible soundbite that accurately conveys the experience to a layperson.

“A lot happens really quickly — we’re talking tenths of a second, pucks flying,” said Wilson, a quintessential example of what seems to be a dying breed in the NHL — the power forward. “It’s a hectic game. A lot of the best players around the league are able to slow it down and make plays.”

He was talking about extraordinary tippers like Joe Pavelski and Chris Kreider. Or quick-twitch rebound guys such as Anders Lee and Sean Monahan. Or guys with an innate ability to plant themselves in just the right spot along the blue paint for redirects and tap-ins, such as Zach Hyman and Tyler Bertuzzi.

But in the anarchic area in front of the net, sometimes skill is overrated. Being an agent of chaos can be just as effective. Maybe not like Sean Avery turning his back on the play and waving his arms in front of Martin Brodeur like a basketball player guarding an inbound pass, but, well, not not like that, either.

“There are times where maybe it’s part of my job to make it a little bit crazy,” Wilson said. “I try to thrive in that environment. That’s hockey.”

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This is what players mean when they say they want to “take the goalie’s eyes away.” It’s bodies in the way, it’s arms and sticks flailing, it’s planting yourself a millimeter outside the blue paint, your backside taking up as much of the goalie’s field of vision as possible.

“Goalies are so good now, so you need to do that,” Forsberg said. “You need to find any advantage, even if it’s just causing some kind of distraction.”

As for the rest of it, it’s a lot of the same things and thoughts defensemen are working through — just in reverse. Navigate the towering trees, avoid getting mauled, keep your stick on the ice, and get in the way as much as possible. For big guys like Wilson, who is 6-4, 220 pounds, it’s often about brute strength. For smaller forwards, it’s about using your lack of size to your advantage — whether that means using your lower center of gravity to knock bigger defensemen off balance or squeezing through tight spaces and finding open ice.

Utah’s Clayton Keller used to be hesitant to get too involved in the goal mouth. But once he started scoring goals from there, it got a lot less intimidating.

“For a guy like me, a smaller guy, I try to spin off guys, and that’s when you get the rebound, or sometimes you get the tips,” Keller said. “But for a smaller guy, it’s mostly about arriving at the right time and not always standing there. Being around it and getting used to it is the most important thing. That’s where a lot of the goals are scored.”

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Veterans such as Corey Perry can dig into their deep bag of tricks in front of opposing goalies. (Jason Mowry / Getty Images)

Savvy forwards can take advantage of the clutter and get away with bending the rules, too. Richardson pointed to a game last February in which Edmonton’s Corey Perry flat-out slashed the stick out of the hands of Anaheim goalie John Gibson, leading directly to an Evander Kane goal. The rules can be very different for a young guy versus a crafty veteran.

“Some guys get away with things because they’ve been around a long time, and they have relationships with the referees that the young guys don’t have,” Richardson said. “You’ve got to play that card, too. If you’re a younger guy trying to earn your stripes, play fair and don’t bark at the referee.”

When Alex DeBrincat first broke into the league, he was regularly getting into physical battles in front of the net, often leading to full-blown scraps after the whistle. Despite being 5-8, tied for the shortest player in the league, DeBrincat too often went toe-to-toe with some of the league’s biggest, strongest players.

He’s a little wiser now at 27 years old.

“I was a little bit more frisky earlier in my career,” he said. “But it’s just playing hockey. I’ve done it for so long, it’s just kind of second nature. I’m not always right in front of the net, but when I am, I’m just trying to get an edge on the other guy and trying not to get pushed out of the net. Sometimes I get a little angry, but usually I’m trying to stay out of the box. I like scoring goals better than fighting.”

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The goaltenders

The Boston Bruins’ Jeremy Swayman is 6-3, 195 pounds. By most standards, he’s pretty big. By modern hockey goalie standards, he’s average at best.

“I’m still growing, trust me,” he said. “We’ll get there one day.”

There are 240 forwards and defensemen who have played in the NHL this season who are 6-3 or taller. And very often, several of them are standing directly in front of him while the puck is moving along the blue line. So eight years after arriving at the University of Maine as a scrawny, somewhat short goalie, he’s still trying to see over people’s heads so he can do his job.

“As a freshman, I had to find ways to find and track that puck because these defensemen and forwards were so good at tipping pucks, so good at sifting pucks through,” Swayman said. “And obviously, the forwards in front of me are using their bodies to take away the goalie’s eyes. So I still love bobbing and weaving. I’m probably a little more physical than most goalies, too, making sure I see the puck. Because at the end of the day, I don’t care how it’s done, I just want to see the puck.”

At 6-4, Detroit Red Wings goaltender Cam Talbot tries to peer over the scrum, too. The New York Rangers’ Jonathan Quick is one of the few remaining goalies who likes to get low, coiling his body in the crease like a snake and peering through everybody’s legs. Whatever line of sight you prefer, being able to track the puck through all the traffic might be the most important skill a goalie can have.

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And if that traffic backs into you a few times each possession, so be it.

“That’s what you sign up for, right?” Talbot said. “It’s their job to make it as hard on us as possible, and it’s the D’s job to help us out as much as they can.”


Goalies such as Cam Talbot rely on their defensemen as much as their defensemen rely on them. (Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)

You’d think communication between goalie and defenseman would be key, but it’s more of a luxury, really. The action’s happening too fast to truly divvy up responsibilities on the fly. There’s usually not even time for trash talk between opponents; that has to wait for the inevitable post-whistle skirmish. Talbot is more vocal than most, though, and has no trouble yelling at his teammates to get out of his way.

“They’re pretty good about it,” Talbot said. “And sometimes they come back and tap me on the pads and say, ‘Good, I didn’t want to eat that one, happy to let you take it.’”

Just as video review has made most forward-initiated contact with the goalie a thing of the past, those Hextall stick swipes have mostly disappeared, too. But if the swarm of bodies in front of the net seeps into the crease, it’s not uncommon to see a goalie take matters into his own hands and start shoving people out of his way.

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And sometimes it’s not just the opponents.

“I’m color blind, so sometimes my own guys get in the mix,” Swayman said with a laugh. “Like I said, I don’t care how I get it done, I just want to make sure I see the puck.”

Shoves from behind. Shoves from ahead. Cross-checks to the back of the neck, butt-ends of sticks in the ribs, stick blades in the skates, gloves in the face. All while that hard chunk of rubber could be rocketing in — throat-high or knee-high or toe-high — at any moment.

No, it’s not glamorous at the net front. But when you do it right — whether it’s scoring a goal or stopping one — it’s totally worth it.

“It’s great in there,” Forsberg said. “OK, yeah, it’s awful sometimes. But when you get rewarded, there’s nothing better. Those are the best goals you can score. You earned those.”

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(Illustration: Will Tullos / The Athletic; Photos: Maddie Meyer, Ethan Miller, Scott Taetsch, David Berding / Getty Images)

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Riley Leonard returns from injury to lead Notre Dame to national championship game in CFP win vs Penn State

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January 10, 2025

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Riley Leonard returns from injury to lead Notre Dame to national championship game in CFP win vs Penn State

Notre Dame is going to the first College Football Playoff National Championship game of the expanded format era after a comeback 27-24 win over Penn State in the Orange Bowl on Thursday. 

Fighting Irish kicker Mitch Jeter kicked the game-winning 41-yard field goal to cap off a back-and-forth battle between the two storied programs. 

Notre Dame’s comeback victory may have never materialized had quarterback Riley Leonard not summoned the fortitude to return to the game after an injury.

“He’s a competitor and competitors find a way to win,” Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman said in a postgame interview on ESPN right after the game. “It’s an honor to be a part of this with him.”

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Penn State Nittany Lions face off at the line of scrimmage against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the Penn State Nittany Lions versus Notre Dame Fighting Irish College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl on January 9, 2025, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.  (Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Leonard had to leave the game in the second quarter, forcing in backup Steve Angeli. At that point, Notre Dame was already behind 10-0. But Angeli helped get the Irish back into it with a field goal drive to give Notre Dame its first points, as the Irish went into halftime down 10-3. 

But Leonard returned to the game in the second half, and led a touchdown drive to tie the game. The two teams then traded score for score in a competitive second half. 

EX-NFL STAR, WITH TIES TO ELI MANNING TRADE, DISCUSSES CHANCES OF SHEDEUR SANDERS REFUSING TITANS FOR GIANTS

Penn State Nittany Lions defensive end Abdul Carter (11) celebrates a tackle on Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) in the first half at Hard Rock Stadium.

Penn State Nittany Lions defensive end Abdul Carter (11) celebrates a tackle on Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) in the first half at Hard Rock Stadium. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)

Leonard had a chance to lead a go-ahead drive with two minutes remaining, but the Penn State defense came up with a big third-down sack to force a Notre Dame punt. 

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Then Allar, with a chance to lead a game-winning drive with less and possibly put himself into the conversation for the top quarterback taken in the NFL Draft, came back onto the field for the biggest moment of his career. And in that moment, he threw an interception to give the ball right back to Leonard and the Irish. 

Riley Leonard celebrates touchdown

Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) celebrates a touch down with teammates in the second half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Hard Rock Stadium.  (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)

Leonard then came back on the field and led the final drive that put Jeter in position to seal the deal. 

“I just trusted in Jesus,” Leonard said in a postgame ESPN interview.

Notre Dame’s storybook run continues after it came up with a historic win against Georgia in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans just one day after a deadly terrorist attack killed 14 innocent people. 

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The Irish will meet the winner of the Cotton Bowl on Friday between Ohio State and Texas. 

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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

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Rams wide receiver Demarcus Robinson charged in DUI case

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January 9, 2025

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Rams wide receiver Demarcus Robinson charged in DUI case

Rams receiver Demarcus Robinson, who was arrested in November, has been charged with one misdemeanor count of driving under the influence of alcohol, according to Los Angeles County Superior Court records.

Robinson is scheduled to be arraigned on Feb. 24 at the Van Nuys Courthouse.

TMZ.com first reported the charge.

Robinson was arrested on Nov. 25 on suspicion of driving under the influence after California Highway Patrol officers observed him allegedly speeding at more than 100 mph on the 101 Freeway in Woodland Hills. He was cited at the scene and released.

Coach Sean McVay did not suspend Robinson, who has 31 receptions for a career-best 505 yards and a career-best seven touchdowns. Robinson is scheduled to start on Monday when the Rams play the Minnesota Vikings in an NFC wild-card game at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.

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A few days after his arrest, Robinson said he made “a bad decision” to drive while impaired.

“It’s a bad look,” he said. “I don’t want to bring that type of light or any type of negative energy toward the team.”

The NFL conducts independent investigations of off-field incidents involving players but does not typically make a decision about suspensions until the legal process concludes.

Robinson, a ninth-year pro, played this season on a one-year $4-million contract that included $1 million in incentives, according to Overthecap.com.

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