NOTRE DAME have pocketed a bumper $20million bonus for reaching the CFP National Championship.
The Fighting Irish recorded a tense 27-24 victory over the Penn State Nittany Lions in Thursday’s College Football Playoff semifinal.
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish bagged $20m for reaching the National Championship[/caption]
The team celebrated after beating Penn State 27-24 in Thursday’s Orange Bowl[/caption]
Notre Dame will now face No. 8 seed Ohio State after the Buckeyes beat Texas.
And as an independent FBS program, they will be receiving a huge check following their impressive win.
The two teams that make the College Football Playoff Championship Game earn $20 million for their conference.
Notre Dame will get to keep the full amount for itself since it doesn’t have any affiliation, per Front Office Sports.
The Fighting Irish are an ACC affiliate in other sports.
But they remain independent in football, which allows them to keep all of the money they earn through various outlets.
Penn State head coach James Franklin has called for every CFB affiliated with a conference.
“It should be consistent across college football,” Franklin said.
“This is no knock at [Freeman] or Notre Dame, but I think everybody should be in a conference. I think everybody should play a conference championship game, or nobody should play a conference champion championship game.
“I think everybody should play the same number of conference games.”
Notre Dame is looking to win its first national title since 1988.
They overcame the Nittany Lions at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium thanks to a 41-yard field goal from Mitch Jeter with seven seconds remaining.
Coach Marcus Freeman, 39, will be the first Black head coach in a Football Bowl Subdivision national title game.
“I’ve said this before – I don’t ever want to take attention away from the team,” Freeman told ESPN.
“It is an honor, and I hope all coaches, minorities, Black, Asian, White, it doesn’t matter, great people, continue to get opportunities to lead young men like this.
College Football Playoff schedule
First-round games:
- No. 10 Indiana at No. 7 Notre Dame – Friday, Dec. 20, 8 pm ET, ABC/ESPN
- No. 11 SMU at No. 6 Penn State – Saturday, Dec. 21, 12 pm ET, TNT/Max
- No. 12 Clemson at No. 5 Texas – Saturday, Dec. 21, 4 pm ET, TNT/Max
- No. 9 Tennessee at No. 8 Ohio State – Saturday, Dec. 21, 8 pm ET, ABC/ESPN
Second-round games:
- No. 3 Boise State vs. No. 6 Penn State – Tuesday, Dec. 31, 7:30 pm ET, ESPN
- No. 4 Arizona State vs No. 5 Texas – Wednesday, Jan. 1, 1 pm ET, ESPN
- No. 1 Oregon vs No. 8 Ohio State – Wednesday, Jan. 1, 5 pm ET, ESPN
- No. 2 Georgia vs No. 7 Notre Dame – *POSTPONED* Thursday, Jan. 2, 4 pm ET, ESPN
Semifinals:
- No. 6 Penn State vs No. 7 Notre Dame – Thursday, Jan. 9, 7:30 pm ET, ESPN
- No. 5 Texas vs No. 8 Ohio State – Friday, Jan. 10, 7:30 pm ET, ESPN
National Championship Game:
- Penn State/Notre Dame vs Texas/Ohio State, Monday, Jan. 20, 7:30 pm ET, ESPN
“But this ain’t about me. This is about us, and we’re going to celebrate what we’ve done because it’s something special.”
Notre Dame have come a long way since a shock loss to Northern Illinois in September.
“You find out a lot about your team at its lowest moments,” Freeman continued.
“This is a group that continued to stay together. They trusted each other, they leaned on each other, and they got better.
“And that’s the reality of this team. In those toughest times, that’s when you make the major gains.
“I’m proud of this group, proud of this place, proud of this University. Let’s go celebrate a little bit.”
