REPORT: Notre Dame battling flu ahead of Orange Bowl vs. Penn State

It appears Notre Dame will be battling more than the Penn State football program when the Fighting Irish take the field for Thursday night’s Orange Bowl in Miami.

According to a report from Blue & Gold’s (On3) Tyler Horka, illness has been making its way through the Fighting Irish locker room ahead of the College Football Playoff Semifinal matchup.

“Been told the flu is going around the Notre Dame locker room,” Horka tweeted Thursday morning. “Those who have it have it bad, but it sounds like that’s mostly backups and special teams players. Still, something to monitor for the Fighting Irish going into the Orange Bowl vs. Penn State tonight.”

Been told the flu is going around the Notre Dame locker room. Those who have it have it bad, but it sounds like that’s mostly backups and special teams players. Still something to monitor for the Fighting Irish going into the Orange Bowl vs. Penn State tonight.

— Tyler Horka (@tbhorka) January 9, 2025

Notre Dame comes into the matchup as a 1.5-point favorite, according to DraftKings Sportsbook. The 20th all-time meeting between the two schools, Penn State football is looking to punch its ticket to the program’s first CFP National Championship game with a win.

“Obviously a well-rounded team,” Penn State football head coach James Franklin said of Notre Dame this week. “Obviously, you don’t get to this point in the season without being good in all three phases. So far, got a ton of respect for what we’ve seen on film and what we’ve studied, and we’ve got a lot of work to do. Excited about the opportunity.”

Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. on ESPN.

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