Is Riley Leonard playing in the CFP national championship? Notre Dame's QB's status explored

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are set to face the Ohio State Buckeyes in the national championship game on Monday at 7:30 p.m. ET. The matchup will take place at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

The Fighting Irish are looking to win their first national title since 1988. Notre Dame won it all in 2012, but that championship was later vacated by the NCAA.

Is Riley Leonard playing in the national championship?

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish will start Riley Leonard at quarterback in the national championship game. The signal-caller is not on the team's injury report entering the title showdown and should suit up to face the Buckeyes tonight.

Notre Dame landed Leonard in the transfer portal after Sam Hartman went to the NFL. Leonard left Duke to go to the Fighting Irish and has played well at quarterback. He is a dual-threat quarterback who will need to play his best game of the season against Ohio State for Notre Dame to win.

This season, Leonard went 247-for-372 for 2,606 yards, 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He rushed for 866 yards and 16 touchdowns.

Ohio State coach praises Riley Leonard

Ohio State Buckeyes coach Ryan Day knows stopping Riley Leonard will be tough.

Leonard can beat teams with his arm as well as his legs, which makes it difficult to stop him. The Buckeyes also showed interest in Leonard in the portal, but Day believes he made his decision to go to Notre Dame quickly.

“I think Riley made his decision pretty quickly,” Day said, via SI. "But he is somebody that I’ve respected from afar. Just the way that he competes. He’s a great athlete. He’s got a great mindset. Again, watching him play this year and the toughness and leadership that he brings. You can tell that the offense and the entire team feeds off of him. So, a lot of respect for his game.”

Leonard has played smart football to help Notre Dame reach the national championship game. Irish fans will hope for the same in the most important matchup for the school in nearly a decade.

Who's favored to win the national championship game?

The Ohio State Buckeyes are an 8.5-point favorite to defeat the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the national championship game. The over/under is set at 45.5 points.

Ohio State blew out Tennessee and Oregon before beating Texas to advance to the College Football Playoff final. Notre Dame, meanwhile, beat Indiana, Georgia and Penn State to advance to the title game.