Ohio State holds off Notre Dame to win college football championship

Ohio State sprinted out a huge first-half lead in Monday’s College Football Playoff championship game and didn’t look back in a 34-23 win over Notre Dame to claim the ninth national title in school history.

Buckeyes running back Quinshon Judkins ran for two touchdowns and caught another in the contest, helping Ohio State respond to an opening-drive score by Notre Dame with 31 unanswered points.

The Fighting Irish did their part to make it a game in the second half, with quarterback Riley Leonard throwing for two touchdowns to get back within one score.

The Buckeyes had one last surge in them, however, as on third-and-11 from their own 36, Will Howard completed a 55-yard bomb to Jeremiah Smith to set up in Notre Dame territory. Ohio State kicked a field goal to go up by 11 and seal their fate as champions.

With the win, Ohio State becomes the first team to conquer the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff format. The Buckeyes entered the tournament as the No. 8 seed, knocking off No. 9 Tennessee, No. 1 Oregon and No. 5 Texas before dispatching No. 7 Notre Dame on Monday.

It is Ohio State’s first national title since 2014.

Howard continued his excellent play in the playoff against the Fighting Irish, connecting on his first 13 passes of the game to set the record for consecutive completions in a College Football Playoff championship game.

He tied the mark late in the second quarter when he hit Carnell Tate for 20 yards on third-and-7, then broke it with a 15-yard pass to Jeremiah Smith two plays later.

Howard’s streak ended when Notre Dame safety Xavier Watts broke up his pass intended for TreVeyon Henderson near the goal line.

Alabama’s Mac Jones set the previous record with 12 completions in a row against Ohio State in the 2021 title game.

Howard came into the championship game with a hot hand. He had completed 73.8 per cent of his passes for 919 yards with six TDs and two interceptions during the Buckeyes’ first three CFP games.

More to come.

— With files from The Associated Press