It will be a tough bout for Marcus Freeman and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at the College Football Playoff National Championship Game against the Ohio State Buckeyes in Atlanta, Georgia. The program is looking to write history against a team that has a history legacy of taking down opponents in clutch moments.

Ohio State's last win over Michigan was in 2019 when Sawyer was in high school. However, this season's loss to the rival may have hurt the most for the senior defender, as it was on the Buckeyes' senior day. Plus, the game ended in a brawl between both teams after a Michigan flag was planted in the middle of Ohio State's field.

Defensive end Jack Sawyer and the Ohio State Buckeyes are set to compete in the National Championship Game on Monday against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Theismann has spent a good bit of time around this team, and Tim Brown — Notre Dame’s last Heisman Trophy winner (1987) — has spent even more. Brown, who was at the Indiana and Penn State playoff games, has gotten to know Freeman and several key players well.

Ohio State had a couple snoozers to start things off as they dominated their first two CFP games. Ohio State blew out Tennessee at home in the first round as they won 42-17, and then they smoked one seed Oregon in the quarterfinals as it was 31-0 halfway through the second quarter. They cruised to a 41-21 win.

SportsLine's model simulated Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. Ohio State Buckeyes in the 2025 CFP National Championship game 10,000 times

Two of college football’s most recognizable schools will face off with everything on the line, as Ohio State and Notre Dame meet in the College Football Playoff

The inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff is set to crown a national champion on Monday as 7-seed Notre Dame takes on 8-seed Ohio State at Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium. This will be the ninth meeting for two of college football's most storied programs and marks the third consecutive season the Buckeyes and Fighting Irish will face off -- the longest such streak in the series' relatively brief history.

Ohio State football will once again play for the national championship. With a 28-14 victory over the Texas Longhorns in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Cotton Bowl, the Buckeyes will move on to play the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on January 20th.

The Buckeyes would be wise to control the running game on offense in their pursuit of college football's ultimate prize