Ohio State vs. Notre Dame: What to know about CFP championship game

Where: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Ga.

TV/Radio: ESPN/1410

Series history: Ohio State leads 6-2 with six consecutive wins. The Fighting Irish won the first two games in the 1930s, but the Buckeyes won a home-and-home series in the mid-90s, beat ND in the 2006 and ’16 Fiesta Bowl and swept another home-and-home the last two years.

Last meeting: Chip Trayanum scored from 1 yard out with one second left to push Ohio State to a 17-14 win over Notre Dame in South Bend last season.

Coaches: Ohio State’s Ryan Day is 69-10 overall and 46-5 in the Big Ten in six seasons, all at Ohio State. Marcus Freeman is 33-9 in three seasons at Notre Dame.

Ohio State notes: Day is 7-4 in postseason games… Ohio State is 1-1 in the CFP National Championship Game with a win over Oregon in 2015 and a loss to Alabama in 2021… Ohio State is seeking its ninth national championship… The Buckeyes have not trailed in the CFP… The Buckeyes are 28-26 all-time in bowls… Ohio State leads the nation in scoring defense (12.2 points per game), total defense (251.1 yards per game) and passing defense (161.1 ypg.)… Ohio State is making its sixth College Football Playoff appearance. The Buckeyes also made it in 2014, ’16, ’19, ’20 and ’22… Senior Emeka Egbuka needs three catches to match K.J. Hill’s Ohio State career record of 201, and Egbuka is 95 yards behind Michael Jenkins for the career yardage record… Ohio State is 2-0 against Notre Dame in bowl games.

Notre Dame notes: The Fighting Irish are 3-0 against the Big Ten this year with wins over Purdue, Indiana and Penn State… Notre Dame is seeking its 12 national championship… Freeman is a Wayne grad who was a three-year starter at linebacker for Ohio State… Right tackle Aamil Wagner and cornerbacks coach Mike Mickens are also Wayne grads… Notre Dame has already set a program record with 14 wins… Notre Dame is No. 2 in the nation in scoring defense (14.3 ppg.) and passing defense (165.3 ypg.)… Riley Leonard is one of four FBS quarterbacks with at least 2,600 passing yards and 700 yards rushing this season… The Fighting Irish are 102nd in the nation in passing yards.

Quoted: Freeman on the importance of maintaining a team-focused approach: “That mentality has got us to this point. It’s every person in this program putting this football program in front of itself. That’s what we continue to do and we demand of each other is that everybody outside of this football program will find ways to give individual glory or individual praise or whatever it is, but we know inside this building that every person has a vital role for us achieving the results that we have. That’s what’s going to be as we prepare for this game.”

Prediction: Ohio State 27, Notre Dame 10