ATLANTA -- Maybe Ohio State football fans will like coach Ryan Day now.
Fifty-one days after suffering the worst loss of his career, Day guided the No. 8 Buckeyes to their first national championship in 10 years with a 34-23 victory over No. 7 Notre Dame in the CFP National Championship presented by AT&T on Monday night.
The Buckeyes led the Irish 31-7 midway through the third quarter, but the Irish kept fighting and pulled to within one score and a two-point conversion with 4:15 remaining. Quarterback Riley Leonard threw a 30-yard touchdown to Jaden Greathouse with 3:03 left in the third. Leonard tossed a two-point play to tailback Jeremiyah Love to make it 31-15.
Then, after a late defensive stop, Leonard found Greathouse again for a 30-yard touchdown. Leonard's pass to Beaux Collins on a two-point play pulled the Irish within 31-15 with 4:15 remaining in the game.
The Buckeyes finally put the Irish away for good when quarterback Will Howard threw a deep ball to freshman Jeremiah Smith, who beat cornerback Christian Gray for a 56-yard gain to the Irish 10. That led to Jayden Fielding's 33-yard field goal that put the Buckeyes up 11 with 26 seconds left.
