Minutes after confetti fell on a cheering Notre Dame Fighting Irish team huddled in a corner of the Superdome, quarterback Riley Leonard brushed some of the blue-and-white flakes off his newfound trophy after being named the Sugar Bowl’s offensive MVP was.

The signal-caller took a moment to consider the award and all the accomplishments it represented, then brought up something that had been in short supply in New Orleans following a devastating truck attack just three hours into the new year . A few miles away, in the famous French Quarter, over a dozen people were killed and many more injured in a tragic event that cast a shadow over the course of the game and resulted in the game being moved from its usual spot on the calendar a day later was postponed.

However, as Riley stood away from a makeshift stage and fully embraced the moment, he smiled broadly. Then he looked up and started hugging and high-fiving everyone around him, especially coach Marcus Freeman’s young children, who joined the action to hug their father.

Coming off a hard-fought 23-10 victory over the No. 2 seed Georgia Bulldogs, this little moment was as pure and wholesome as it gets — and offered a sharp contrast to the 36 hours before when there was little in one city of which could find This redefines how to have a good time on a regular basis.

“I want to thank the New Orleans Police Department for responding so quickly and creating a safe environment for us to play in today,” Leonard said. “I think adding another day only helps our superpower. We always say that our superpowers are our preparation and the character in our locker room. These are two intangible things that we have.

“Those are our superpowers, our preparation, and I think that definitely paid off today.”

There is little objection to that, as the clash between two bluebloods at the same venue that hosted their 1981 classic that decided the national championship became a welcome distraction for all involved.

Everything seemed to come together to meet the moment. After several days of cloudy and cold weather spreading across the Mississippi Delta, the sun shone in warmer temperatures for most of the afternoon and cloudless skies made the gold exterior of the Superdome sparkle magnificently. Shortly before kickoff, the French Quarter reopened and the city once again showed how capable it is of recovering and moving forward.

It was fitting that Notre Dame embodied all of that to win their first major bowl game in decades, which was also their second straight victory in the College Football Playoff. After a single home loss in September to a MAC team, the program is now just one win away from the national championship game at the end of the month.

That they looked more physical, faster and better prepared in all three phases perhaps brought even more satisfaction, ending Notre Dame’s ignominious 0-10 mark in major bowl games, dating back to a win in the 1994 Cotton Bowl.

It was a straight-up win over an SEC team over four quarters that proved Notre Dame was not only equal but better across the board this season.

“When we were preparing, I told them it was going to be a 60-minute fight. Georgia has been down in nine games this year and found a way to come back and win, so they have that mentality,” Freeman said. “Our coaches played a great game, our players did everything and put everything on the line for this university, this football team. I’m really proud of her.”

Freeman deserves credit for taking the program to a point both fans and critics of American college football’s Rorschach test never thought possible.

He lost his first three games after taking over in South Bend and inherited a team that rarely competed well with the boys from south of the Mason-Dixon Line. Regardless of the competition, Notre Dame has often looked slow and urgent in recent years. It wasn’t possible to find enough playmakers on either side to actually get over the hurdle and win at a level worthy of its unprecedented history.

The Irish were solid and good, but never great. Now they have the chance to do so.

A consistently strong offensive line has been bolstered by increased athleticism, including the addition of freshman left tackle Anthonie Knapp from Georgia’s own backyard. A stiff linebacker room gave way to a much deeper group that could attack downhill as well as rotate and run out of the backfield with a variety of tailbacks.

At wide receiver, a position where the Irish have long lacked competent answers in important moments, coaching changes and unconventional thinking (starter Jordan Faison, for example, won a lacrosse national championship at the school) led to crucial moments the team needed. Depth also improved to an impressive degree, with the loss of starting defensive lineman Rylie Mills and struggling defensive tackle Howard Cross III proving far less of a concern.

Nothing defined the victory more than a 54-second stretch around halftime that turned a tough exchange between two heavyweights into a one-sided result for Notre Dame.

It started with the clock ticking less than a minute into the first half when Georgia coach Kirby Smart called a timeout for ice kicker Mitch Jeter.

The South Carolina Gamecocks transfer has made good use of the extended rest built into the CFP, returning from a hip injury he suffered against the Stanford Cardinal in October to recover for this stretch run. With a 48-yarder, he easily scored the goal that gave Notre Dame the lead for the first time – after falling behind for the first time since October just moments earlier.

On the ensuing Georgia drive, just one play later, new UGA starting quarterback Gunner Stockton dropped back and held the ball just a touch long enough for Notre Dame end RJ Oben to come around the corner and pick him off. Junior Tuihalamaka saw the football rolling across the turf and immediately jumped on it at the 13-yard line.

A snap later, Leonard calmly executed a play-action fake before pulling up and hitting wideout Beaux Collins for a touchdown.

A significant portion of the announced 57,267 fans were brought into a state of euphoria. The majority, dressed in black and red, were dazed and confused.

However, the Irish weren’t done yet.

On the first whistle of the second half, Jayden Harrison initially weaved his way to the left before pulling the ball back and finding plenty of daylight on the right side. Proving that speed isn’t just the preserve of Southeastern Conference players, the Marshall Thundering Herd graduate outpaced the rest of the Bulldogs’ coverage unit down the sideline with a 98-yard touchdown.

The offense, defense and special teams combined for a 17-point outburst in less than a minute of play.

“I didn’t want to survive, and I think that’s the natural tendency in a big game,” Freeman said. “Let’s be aggressive now. I didn’t know we were going to come out of the locker room and score a kickoff return touchdown, but that was the middle eight we talk about a lot. The ability to close the half that way and start the second half with a kickoff return touchdown was huge for the outcome of the game.”

Georgia wasn’t going to sit still, though, especially with a senior class that was 53-5 to lead the FBS over the last four years. The Bulldogs moved efficiently down the field in the third quarter before Stockton (20 of 32, 234 yards) threw his first touchdown pass of the season on a diving reception by Cash Jones, who flew out of the backfield on a wheel route and Hitting a linebacker in coverage.

It seemed like that might be just the spark the team needed to turn things around, but Georgia never quite took control.

That’s largely because Leonard continued to embody the courage that defined the Irish as they recovered from an inexplicable loss to the Northern Illinois Huskies and continued to win ever since.

The quarterback used his full 6-foot-3, 200-pound frame to force yards and first downs, giving the Bulldogs a taste of what they usually dish out.

Not only did Leonard throw for 90 yards and a touchdown while rushing for a game-high 80 yards, but he was also incredibly skilled when it mattered most.

Late in the fourth quarter, he delivered a few trick plays on fourth-and-short from his own 18-yard line, just as things seemed to be turning back in the SEC champions’ favor. After Freeman and special teams coordinator Marty Biagi initially skipped the punt unit, the Irish instead put a full 11 on the field and Leonard barked a hard count that earned him a free play and a new set of downs.

A few plays later, the QB converted a third-and-7 with a keeper who bested John Elway at the goal line in a spinning, leaping flip over All-American safety Malaki Starks for the first down. Although the entire sequence ended without points, it lasted 7:36 minutes and the defense was able to end the game with its fourth sack.

“I say that for him, great decision,” joked Leonard, who revealed that Freeman changed the fourth-down trick play two days ago and downplayed his own role in consistently moving the chains. “I mean, everyone keeps telling me to stop (those jumps), and then I did, and today it worked. Plus, we’re in the playoffs and you know you’re putting everything on the line. That’s pretty much my attitude every game.”

This attitude permeates the entire program and allows the previously weak Irish to take on an SEC team and come out victorious as expected.

“It’s about the team, it’s about everyone,” added Freeman, who, by reaching the semifinals alongside his Penn State counterpart James Franklin, will ensure that a Black head coach appears in the national title game for the first time. “As the head coach of this place, I understand that we won’t be in this position without everyone in this program doing their job.”

This is what they did to cement a decisive victory in a place that is difficult to achieve. It’s worth a smile for that and more in a sugar bowl you won’t soon forget.