Notre Dame is back in the national championship game for the first time in a dozen years and things couldn't be more different this time around. For conversation's sake I limited this to only being five things that are different this time around,

The first champion of the 12-team College Football Playoff era will be crowned Monday night as Ohio State and Notre Dame face off at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. It is a rematch of a 2023 regular-season thriller,

Ohio State and Notre Dame each have a top-two scoring defense and both narrowly pulled away in their respective semifinals thanks to their defense forcing a pivotal turnover. However, the Buckeyes hold the clear offensive edge over the Irish with weapons like Will Howard, Jeremiah Smith and TreVeyon Henderson. Ohio State 35, Notre Dame 17