The Orange Bowl, hosted at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium, will feature a matchup between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Penn State Nittany Lions. The game, set to air on ESPN at 7:30 PM ET on Thursday, sees Notre Dame favored by 1.5 points, with an over/under of 44.5.
Notre Dame enters the game with only one loss early in the season, a narrow 16-14 defeat. Since then, the Fighting Irish have been dominant, defeating the Indiana Hoosiers in the first round and securing a 23-10 victory over the Georgia Bulldogs in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals. A win in the Orange Bowl would propel Notre Dame to the national championship game.
Notre Dame’s Projected Starting Lineup and Depth Chart for the Orange Bowl
Offensive Positions
WR-X (Wide Receiver X):
Starter: Beaux Collins
Backup: Jayden Thomas
WR-Z (Wide Receiver Z):
Starter: Jordan Faison
Backup: Kris Mitchell
Third-string: KK Smith
WR-F (Slot Receiver):
Starter: Jaden Greathouse
Backup: Jayden Harrison
LT (Left Tackle):
Starter: Anthonie Knapp
Backup: Tosh Baker
LG (Left Guard):
Starter: Sam Pendleton
Backup: Sullivan Absher
OC (Offensive Center):
Starter: Pat Coogan
Backup: Joe Otting
RG (Right Guard):
Starter: Rocco Spindler
Backup: Chris Terek
RT (Right Tackle):
Starter: Aamil Wagner
Backup: Guerby Lambert
TE (Tight End):
Starter: Mitchell Evans
Backup: Eli Raridon
QB (Quarterback):
Starter: Riley Leonard
Backup: Steve Angeli
RB (Running Back):
Starter: Jeremiyah Love
Backups: Jadarian Price, Aneyas Williams, Devyn Ford
—
Defensive Positions
DE (Defensive End):
Starter: RJ Oben
Backup: Bryce Young
NT (Nose Tackle):
Starter: Howard Cross III
Backup: Donovan Hinish
DT (Defensive Tackle):
Starter: Gabriel Rubio
Backup: Armel Mukam
VYPER (Edge Rusher):
Starter: Joshua Burnham
Backups: Junior Tuihalamaka, Loghan Thomas
WLB (Weakside Linebacker):
Starter: Jack Kiser
Backup: Jaiden Ausberry
MLB (Middle Linebacker):
Starter: Drayk Bowen
Backup: Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa
ROVER (Hybrid Linebacker):
Starter: Jaylen Sneed
Backup: Jaiden Ausberry
FCB (Field Cornerback):
Starter: Christian Gray
Backup: Karson Hobbs
FS (Free Safety):
Starter: Xavier Watts
Backup: Rod Heard II
BS (Boundary Safety):
Starter: Adon Shuler
Backups: Luke Talich, Kennedy Urlacher
BCB (Boundary Cornerback):
Starter: Leonard Moore
Backup: Karson Hobbs
NB (Nickelback):
Starter: Jordan Clark
Backup: Karson Hobbs
—
Special Teams
PT (Punter):
Starter: James Rendell
Backup: Eric Goins
PK (Placekicker):
Starter: Mitch Jeter
KO (Kickoff Specialist):
Starter: Mitch Jeter
LS (Long Snapper):
Starter: Andrew Kros
Backups: Joseph Vinci, Rino Monteforte
H (Holder):
Starter: Chris Salerno
Backup: Jack Polian
PR (Punt Returner):
Starter: Jaden Greathouse
Backups: Max Hurleman, Jordan Faison
KR (Kick Returner):
Starter: Jayden Harrison
Backups: Jeremiyah Love, Jadarian Price
—
Injuries
Rylie Mills (DT): Injured
CJ Carr (QB): Injured
I
nactive (Out for Season)
Gi’Bran Payne (RB)
Benjamin Morrison (CB)
Charles Jagusah (OL)
Boubacar Traore (DL)
Cooper Flanagan (TE)
This depth chart highlights Notre Dame’s preparation for a highly competitive Orange Bowl matchup.