Penn State vs. Notre Dame: Start time, channel, how to watch and stream Orange Bowl

Penn State (13-2) began the season with zero College Football Playoff victories. Now the Nittany Lions are just one win away from their first national championship appearance since 1986.

First Penn State has to defeat Notre Dame (13-1) Thursday in the Orange Bowl, which is being held at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.

It’s not going to be easy for James Franklin and the Nittany Lions.

In order to get into college football’s Final Four, Notre Dame had to pull off an upset against No. 2 Georgia last week. The Fighting Irish have won 12 straight games, with their only loss of the season coming way back in early September against Northern Illinois. They’ll have sophomore running back Jeremiyah Love, who is averaging 7.4 yards per carry and has 18 touchdowns this season.

The game will be played at Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins, which is good and bad news for Penn State. On the one hand, Notre Dame has won six straight games played in NFL stadiums, but they’re also 0-2 at Hard Rock Stadium.

History will be made one way or the other — Franklin or Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman will become the first Black head coach to advance to college football’s title game.

Here’s everything you need to know to watch or stream Penn State vs. Notre Dame:

Thursday’s Penn-State vs. Notre Dame will air on ESPN beginning at 7:30 p.m. Eastern.

Calling the game will be veteran play-by-play announcer Sean McDonough, who has been with ESPN since 1989. Also in the booth will be former Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy. Molly McGrath and Katie George will report from the sidelines.

The game can also be heard on 94.1 WIP, with longtime play-by-play announcer Steve Jones and NFL Hall of Famer and former Nittany Lions linebacker Jack Ham on the call.

While ESPN is broadcasting the game, it won’t be available to stream on ESPN+.

Instead, you can stream Penn State-Notre Dame on any of the so-called skinny bundles that carries ESPN, including YouTube TV, Sling TV, Hulu + Live TV, and Fubo.

You can also stream the game on both the ESPN app and on the network’s website, though you’ll need to have a cable subscription.

McDonough is one of college football’s best playcallers, but ESPN is giving viewers a ton of options if a normal broadcast isn’t their cup of tea. The network’s three alternate broadcasts are:

Penn State is 9-9-1 against Notre Dame all time, though the two college football franchises haven’t played one another in 17 years.

The Nittany Lions crushed the Fighting Irish in their most recent game in 2007, with Penn State’s defense holding Notre Dame to just 144 yards in total offense.

Thursday’s game will be the 20th between Penn State and Notre Dame, a rivalry that dates back to 1913. When both teams were independent, they faced one another every season, from 1981 to 1992, ending with Jerome Bettis’ late touchdown during the famed “Snow Bowl” to defeat Penn State. But the series ended when Penn State joined the Big Ten in 1993.

» READ MORE: Classic Penn State-Notre Dame games in the 1980s and ’90s: Two-point tries, frigid cold, and a tug at a kilt

If the Nittany Lions win, they would move on to the Jan. 20 national championship game, where they would face the winner of Friday’s Cotton Bowl between Texas and Ohio State.

It’s safe to say Penn State is probably rooting for Texas, since the Nittany Lions have lost eight-straight games to Ohio State, including a 20-13 loss earlier this season. The Nittany Lions and the Longhorns have only faced off four times, most recently in 2007, and Penn State holds a 3-1 edge.