A trip to the College Football Playoff National Championship will be on the line when (7) Notre Dame faces (6) Penn State in the Orange Bowl semifinal game on Thursday. It also will mark the 19th meeting between the programs with the all-time series deadlocked at 9-9-1.

Notre Dame’s path to defeating Penn State in their CFP clash relies on 5 critical factors. Here’s what the Irish must do to win.

It’s been a long time since either Notre Dame or Penn State reached college football’s mountaintop as national champions.