Notre Dame and Ohio State can no longer be underestimated as they prepare for the Jan. 20 national championship.

Two upset losses stood out among the rest in college football this season. Notre Dame suffered one of them. Ohio State the other.

Notre Dame outlasted Penn State in a 27-24 thriller to reach the program's first national championship game since 2012 in the Orange Bowl. Thanks to the 12-team College Football Playoff format, the Fighting Irish officially became the first team to win multiple bowl games in the same season.

Ohio State is favored by 9 1/2 points over Notre Dame in the College Football Championship national title game.

Notre Dame awaits the winner of the Cotton Bowl in the College Football Playoff national championship game after the Irish beat Penn State 27-24 in the Orange Bowl on Thursday night. Notre Dame trailed Penn State by seven at halftime and the two teams combined to score 31 points in the fourth quarter after scoring just 20 points in the first three quarters.

The national championship matchup is set. The Notre Dame football team will take on Ohio State next Monday night in Atlanta with everything on the line. Both the Fighting Irish and the Buckeyes were tested in the semifinal round as Notre Dame narrowly outlasted Penn State,

Notre Dame's Fighting Irish are primed to claim their first national championship since 1988, and here's why they'll defeat Ohio State in the upcoming NCAA title game.

Ohio State had its toughest College Football Playoff game of its three-game run against Texas in the Cotton Bowl. The Buckeyes won, 28-14, but it really came down to two game-changing plays made by seniors.

Ohio State football can taste it now. The Buckeyes are four quarters away from capturing their ninth national championship. They’re rolling after pulling away from Texas in the Cotton Bowl Friday and will be the favorite to surpass Notre Dame.