Fox Sports host Colin Cowherd is sticking with Notre Dame and Miami as his national championship pairing after the Fighting Irish handed the top-ranked Hurricanes their first loss of the season, 31-24, Saturday night in South Bend.

“Nothing I saw last night changes that opinion,” Cowherd wrote on X on Sunday morning, adding that he said before the season the two programs “would meet for the natty” and that “only Georgia is close.”

Why is Cowherd still riding with Notre Dame?

Cowherd backed the Irish before they played a snap. “I picked Notre Dame to win the whole thing. They’re going to be my national champion,” he said in late August.

Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr held up his end of that pick Saturday, completing 29 of 40 passes for 319 yards and three touchdowns. He hit Micah Gilbert for two scores and Jordan Faison for another as the Irish built a 24-3 lead early in the third quarter.

Miami pulled within a touchdown, but Notre Dame safety Luke Talich intercepted Miami quarterback Darian Mensah late in the third quarter and later broke up a potential tying touchdown pass to tight end Elija Lofton.

The win mattered most for an Irish team that entered with the No. 11 College Football Playoff ranking that surprised ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit. Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman called it “as special of a moment, as special of an outcome that I’ve been a part of since I’ve been the head coach here.”

The Irish close the regular season against Boston College, SMU and Syracuse.

Malachi Toney and a Miami rematch

Cowherd attached one condition to his title game pick. “I would take the Canes in a rematch if Malachi Toney plays,” he wrote.

Miami wide receiver Malachi Toney suffered a high-ankle sprain in practice Wednesday and had tightrope surgery Thursday. The sophomore led the ACC with 73 catches, 1,027 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns through eight games, and CBS Sports reported he’s expected to miss four to six weeks.

That timeline could put Toney back for the ACC Championship Game on Dec. 5 and keeps him on track for the playoff. His absence showed in a first half that ended with Miami trailing 17-3. Mensah then threw three second-half touchdown passes, two of them to Duke transfer Cooper Barkate.

Miami finishes the regular season with home games against Duke, Virginia Tech and Boston College.

Georgia rolls Ole Miss in Oxford

The second-ranked Bulldogs backed up Cowherd’s lone exception Saturday, routing Ole Miss 42-7 as Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton threw four touchdown passes and ran for another.

Georgia led 28-0 at halftime, rushed for 295 yards and snapped Ole Miss’ 16-game home winning streak. The win was Georgia head coach Kirby Smart’s first at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, and it came days after former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer named Georgia the best team in college football.

The selection committee releases its second College Football Playoff rankings Tuesday at approximately 9 p.m. ET on ESPN, and Georgia has a strong case to replace Miami at No. 1.