Ohio State 34-23 Notre Dame: Buckeyes hold off Fighting Irish to win thrilling CFP National Championship game

The Ohio State Buckeyes held disconnected a thrilling Notre Dame comeback to triumph the CFP National Championship crippled 34-23 successful Atlanta connected Monday night.

In beforehand of a star-studded 77,660-strong crowd astatine Mercedes-Benz Stadium that included LeBron James, Travis Scott, Ezekiel Elliott, Bryce Harper and Anthony Mackie, the Buckeyes secured triumph erstwhile Will Howard connected with Jeremiah Smith connected a heavy shot with 2 minutes remaining.

The showdown betwixt 2 of assemblage football's astir storied programs also featured a message from president Donald Trump, who was sworn successful connected Monday, that was broadcast by ESPN astatine halftime. 

Also successful attendance was the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s youngest daughter, the Rev. Bernice King, who is CEO of The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change.

This was the archetypal clip the CFP nationalist title crippled was held connected Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and besides the archetypal clip the crippled was played connected the time of a statesmanlike inauguration.

Ohio State's triumph was the ninth National Championship successful programme past and moving backmost Quinshon Judkins dominated with 3 touchdowns and 121 yards from 13 touches.

Buckeyes backmost Howard deed big-play receiver Smith for 56 yards connected a precocious third-and-11 to fastener down a crippled they had dominated earlier the Fighting Irish threatened to recover.

Trailing 31-7, Notre Dame scored 2 touchdowns and 2 2-point conversions to marque it a one-score crippled precocious successful the 4th quarter.

The Irish stopped Ohio State, who has built a star-studded roster acknowledgment to astir $20million successful NIL funds, connected the archetypal 2 plays of the adjacent thrust and utilized their timeouts. 

But connected 3rd down, Howard recovered Smith successful azygous sum connected the close sideline and dropped his champion walk of the play into the hands of the receiver.

Howard, a transfer-portal occurrence communicative from Kansas State, threw for 231 yards and 2 scores, but thing volition bushed the walk to Smith with everything connected the line. 

It acceptable up a tract extremity that started the solemnisation successful earnest, closing retired a seven-week ascent from the depths of a nonaccomplishment to 20-point underdog Michigan to the apical of assemblage football. 

Ohio State scored touchdowns connected its archetypal 4 possessions successful a ascendant opening to the game, past added a tract extremity connected its fifth.

When Judkins, a transportation from Mississippi who highlighted Ohio State's judicious usage of the ever-growing portal, busted a 70-yard tally to acceptable up the people that made it 28-7, this crippled looked over.

It wasn't, and present Irish manager Marcus Freeman volition person to reply a fewer pugnacious questions.

The archetypal is astir a failed fake punt successful the 3rd 4th that turned into a tract extremity for a 31-7 lead.

The different astir sending Mitch Jeter successful for a abbreviated tract extremity effort portion down 16 and facing fourth-and-goal from the 9. It mightiness person looked similar a amended telephone had Jeter's footwear not clanged disconnected the near upright.

Really, though, Ohio State was the amended team. The Buckeyes outgained Notre Dame 445 yards to 308 and Howard completed his archetypal 13 passes and ne'er truly got stopped.

Ohio State completed a four-game romp done the archetypal 12-team CFP bracket, winning each of its playoff contests by a multi-score margin. 

The postseason blitz followed a regular-season-ending nonaccomplishment to rival Michigan that led to questions astir the occupation stableness of Buckeyes manager Ryan Day. 

But Day volition present bring Ohio State's ninth 'natty' and archetypal since the 2014 play backmost to the Horseshoe successful Columbus.