By Adeniyi Precious 
Notre Dame pulled off a nail-biter against Penn State, 37-34, in the Orange Bowl on Thursday night, earning a spot in the national championship game. That showdown was one of the most exciting matchups in the new 12-team College Football Playoff format and marked the 90th Orange Bowl game ever played.
While Notre Dame snagged its third Orange Bowl win in six tries, no team dominates the Orange Bowl’s history quite like the Oklahoma Sooners. OU’s got 12 wins in 20 appearances, more than any other program. The Sooners basically had a timeshare in Miami from 1954 to 1995, thanks to the Big Seven and later Big Eight’s deal with the Orange Bowl. Things shifted in 1996 when the Big 12 took its bowl business to the Fiesta Bowl.
Back when the Orange Bowl was the Big Eight’s playground, Oklahoma and Nebraska teamed up for 37 appearances. OU’s Orange Bowl record? A solid 12-8. Nebraska? Not bad either, with 8 wins in 17 trips.
The Orange Bowl’s story began way back in 1935, with Bucknell shutting out Miami 26-0 in the first-ever game. It eventually moved to the iconic Miami Orange Bowl stadium in 1937, before shifting to Hard Rock Stadium (after a few other names) in 1996. Fun fact: OU hasn’t played in the revamped Hard Rock Stadium since its 2015 update.
Oklahoma’s most recent Orange Bowl appearances were unforgettable – for very different reasons. In 2001, the Sooners went undefeated (13-0), beating Florida State 13-2 and snagging their seventh national championship. Fast-forward to 2005, and it wasn’t so pretty. USC handed OU a crushing 55-19 loss in the national championship.
The Orange Bowl’s been good to the Sooners historically, though. Four of OU’s seven national championships were won there. In 1955, Bud Wilkinson’s squad took down Maryland, 20-6, during their record-breaking 47-game winning streak. In 1976, Barry Switzer’s crew edged out Michigan 14-6 and jumped to No. 1 after Ohio State lost. Then in 1985, Switzer struck again, leading OU to a 25-10 win over Penn State for yet another national title.