Honestly, if you grew up in Pennsylvania or Indiana in the 80s, you didn't just watch the Penn State vs Notre Dame game. You survived it. It was a cultural event that felt like a heavyweight title fight every single November.
Last night, I found myself thinking about the 1992 "Snow Bowl" again. It was the last time these two played as regular-season staples before Penn State fully committed to the Big Ten. There’s something about watching a game through a blur of white flurries that makes every tackle look like a car crash. Rick Mirer throwing to Jerome Bettis with seconds left? Pure cinema. Lou Holtz going for two? Absolute madness.
But let’s get real about where we are now.
The CFP Semifinal That Woke the Echoes
We finally got the "big one" recently. On January 9, 2025, the college football world stopped spinning for a few hours. This wasn't some early-September exhibition. This was the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Orange Bowl.
Notre Dame walked away with a 27-24 win, and yeah, it stung for the Happy Valley faithful. Riley Leonard was basically a human highlight reel that night, but Nicholas Singleton kept the Nittany Lions in it until the very end. That game proved that despite the long breaks in the schedule, the "vibe" between these two programs hasn't aged a day. They still hate each other in the most respectful way possible.
The 2025 Orange Bowl matchup felt like a time machine. It had that same grittiness we saw in the 80s when names like Blair Thomas and Tim Brown were the only things people talked about at the local diner.
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Why They Don't Play Every Year (And Why That's a Crime)
You’ve probably asked yourself why this isn't a locked-in annual rivalry. Basically, it’s a logistics nightmare. Once Penn State joined the Big Ten in '93, their dance card got filled with Michigan and Ohio State. Notre Dame, meanwhile, has that weird-but-lucrative independent status and their scheduling deal with the ACC.
It's sorta tragic.
Fans are left begging for scraps—a home-and-home here, a bowl game there. We had that brief spark in 2006 and 2007. I still remember the 2007 "White Out" in Beaver Stadium. 110,000 people screaming in unison while Derrick Williams returned a punt 78 yards. Notre Dame didn't know what hit them. 31-10 was the final, but it felt like 100-0.
Penn State vs Notre Dame: By the Numbers
If you look at the all-time series, it’s almost spooky how even it is. After the Irish took that 2025 CFP game, the series shifted slightly, but for decades it sat at a dead-even 9-9-1.
- The 1913 Start: It began with a 14-7 Irish win.
- The 1980s Peak: This was the golden era. Between 1981 and 1992, they played every single year.
- The Upset: 1990. Penn State was #18. Notre Dame was #1. The Lions walked into South Bend and escaped with a 24-21 win.
The 1925 game ended in a 0-0 tie. Imagine driving a Model T to State College just to watch three hours of punting and no points. Kinda legendary in its own boring way.
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The New Rivalry: Ice and Sticks
If you're looking for the Penn State vs Notre Dame game today, you're actually more likely to find it on a sheet of ice than a field of grass.
The hockey rivalry has actually surpassed the football one in terms of frequency. Just this past weekend (January 17, 2026), No. 8 Penn State completed a brutal sweep of the Irish at Pegula Ice Arena. It was a 6-3 thriller where Aiden Fink tied a program record with four assists. The atmosphere in that building is basically a mini-White Out with skates on.
It's different, sure. But that underlying tension? It’s exactly the same.
What Most People Get Wrong About This Series
People think this is just another regional matchup. It's not.
This is a battle of identities. You have the "Linebacker U" blue-collar grit of Central PA clashing with the "Golden Dome" prestige of South Bend. It’s Catholic school kids vs. State school die-hards.
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One big misconception is that Notre Dame "ducked" Penn State when they joined the Big Ten. Honestly? It was more about the math. When you have nine conference games, you only have three slots left. If one of those is always Navy and another is USC, there just isn't room for a permanent PSU game. It sucks, but that’s the business of modern college sports.
What Really Happened in the 1987 Heisman Shutdown
A lot of younger fans don't realize how much Penn State impacted Heisman history. In 1987, Tim Brown was the heavy favorite. Penn State's defense basically lived in his back pocket all afternoon, holding him to just 80 yards.
The Lions won 21-20 because they stopped a two-point conversion with 31 seconds left. It's those "win or go home" moments that define this series. Whether it's 1987 or 2025, this matchup never seems to end in a blowout unless someone is having a truly catastrophic day.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Alumni
If you're trying to catch the next installment of this rivalry, you have to be proactive. Since there are no currently scheduled football games between the two for the 2026 or 2027 regular seasons, your best bet is following the "bowl math" in December.
- Watch the Hockey Schedule: If you want the physical intensity of the old-school football games, get to Pegula Ice Arena. They play at least four times a year.
- Monitor the CFP Rankings: With the expanded 12-team playoff, the odds of another Penn State vs Notre Dame game in the postseason have tripled.
- Check Secondary Markets Early: When these two do meet, tickets usually double in price the moment the game is announced. Don't wait for the "official" release if you see a neutral-site rumor.
- Visit the Museums: If you're in State College, hit the All-Sports Museum. If you're in South Bend, walk the Basilica. You can't understand this game without seeing the dirt it was built on.
The reality is that we might never go back to the days of 12 straight years of matchups. But when that schedule finally aligns, it doesn't matter if you're wearing blue and white or gold and green—you're going to see something you'll talk about for the next twenty years.