NEW ORLEANS — Riley Leonard passed for a touchdown, Jayden Harrison returned a kickoff 98 yards for a score and Notre Dame’s defense made it hold up in a 23-10 victory over No. 2 seed Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Thursday that sends the seventh-seeded Irish into the College Football Playoff semifinals.
In a game delayed by a day because of a deadly terror attack in the host city, Notre Dame (13-1) made enough big plays and got some help from a clever move by coach Marcus Freeman.
Georgia (11-3) was in position to close within one score when Notre Dame stopped the Bulldogs on fourth-and-5 from the Irish 9-yard line with 9:29 to go.
Then on fourth-and-short deep in his own territory, Freeman sent out the punt team before running all 11 players off the field and sending out the offense. Georgia raced to match up and then jumped offside as the play clock ticked down, giving the Irish a clock-sapping first down with 7:17 to go.
By the time the Bulldogs got the ball back, just 1:49 remained and Notre Dame was well on its way to playing No. 6 seed Penn State (13-2) in a semifinal on Jan. 9 at the Orange Bowl in Miami.
Georgia entered the game without starting quarterback Carson Beck, who injured his elbow in the Southeastern Conference championship game. He was replaced by Gunner Stockton, who was 20 of 32 for 234 yards and one touchdown.
Leonard finished with 90 passing yards and a team-high 80 rushing yards.
