The Notre Dame Fighting Irish beat the Penn State Nittany Lions 27-24 on Thursday. Their Orange Bowl victory sent the Irish to the National Championship game for the first time since 2013. While the game got off to a slow start, the fourth quarter featured 31 total points and a last-second field goal. That ending prompted Fox Sports personality Colin Cowherd to laud the game on social media.

“Top 5 college football game ever,” Cowherd put bluntly on X, formerly Twitter.

Fans in his comments disagreed with this take nearly unanimously.

@7maryt thinks Cowherd missed some classics this season, “Not top 5 this year.”

@The_Real_Gorb wants to know, “Have you ever even seen a football game before?”

And @AidanLaPorta69 was not impressed with the quarterback play. “Both QB’s were unwatchable. It wasn’t even a top 5 playoff game.”

The first half of Notre Dame-Penn State was not as high-flying as the fourth quarter was. Irish quarterback Riley Leonard struggled to get going, throwing an early interception and missing the final drive in concussion protocol. And Nittany Lions QB Drew Allar missed a wide-open receiver on a sure touchdown.

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Notre Dame is in the title game for the first time in 11 years but their performance in most of the Orange Bowl should not instill a lot of confidence in fans.

Notre Dame will face a tough task in National Championship Game

Notre Dame Fighting Irish place kicker Mitch Jeter (98) kicks a field goal in the second half against the Penn State Nittany Lions in the Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium.
Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

On Friday, Ohio State and Texas will face off in the Cotton Bowl to determine Notre Dame's opponent. After they demolished Oregon in the Rose Bowl, the Buckeyes are heavily favored not only Friday but to win the whole thing. The Irish offense has struggled at points this season and their defense is missing two key starters up front. Whether it's Ohio State or Texas, they will have a tough matchup.

Notre Dame fans are scarred from the last time the Irish played in the National Championship Game. They were down 28-0 at halftime to Alabama, a game that happened in Miami, where they won on Thursday. Their run defense allowed 100 yards to both Eddie Lacy and TJ Yeldon and the game was never close.

But Notre Dame has already slayed the demons they built up over the past decade. They lost twice in the College Football Playoff semifinal in the four-team era. But Thursday night pushed them past that hurdle in heart-pumping fashion. Anything can happen in one game and while they will be underdogs, this Irish team can get it done.