Penn State and Notre Dame are two of the most storied programs in college football history. Both teams played their inaugural season in 1887, and multiple national championships, a rivalry, and nearly 140 years later, they’ll meet on Thursday in the 91st edition of the Orange Bowl.

While the teams share an expansive history, they also share a similar identity that’s persisted for most of the modern era of football.

The Nittany Lions have leaned on the run game throughout the past two years, but a strong running back room has been a staple of the blue and white for much longer. This year, Penn State has rushed 573 times yards and has attempted 414 passes.

The Fighting Irish have also been a run-heavy team this year and ran 500 times alongside 382 passing attempts. With strong rushing stats, the Nittany Lions and Irish have stout defenses to bolster the play style of the offenses.

“It’s what we do well and what we have to do to have success with this current team,” Marcus Freeman said during the joint head coach press conference on Wednesday morning. “But as you look at Penn State, if you aren’t able to do a good job at stopping the run, you’re not going to have success.”

The same can be said for the Nittany Lions. Success in the Orange Bowl hinges on stopping mobile quarterback Riley Leonard and running backs Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price. On Wednesday, Freeman said Love is expected to play in the Orange Bowl. On the opposite side of the ball, James Franklin said he anticipates Abdul Carter to play on Thursday, but he remains a game-time decision.

The similarities don’t stop at history and style of play either. The geographic region of Penn State and Notre Dame is an area that hasn’t traditionally been a football powerhouse for the last few years of SEC dominance. Since 2000, 21 national champions have hailed from the South, with Ohio State and Michigan being the lone representatives from the North.

This year, Texas is the lone representative from the South among the last four teams standing.

“I don’t know if it’s a there’s enough data points and enough information to kind of make a strong statement on it. There’s been a ton of changes in college football over the last five years, probably more so than the 25 years before,” Franklin said. “I also think it’s good for college football that there are more teams represented, there are more parts of the country represented, and it’s not the same old story.”

Part of the new story is the run-heavy offenses, but the Nittany Lions already have experience stopping a strong run game. Last week in the Fiesta Bowl, the Penn State defense limited Heisman finalist Ashton Jeanty to 104 yards, his lowest rushing total of the season.

This week, the gameplan will be more of the same.

“This is going to be a four-quarter football game, and we’re going to have to be prepared to compete like that,” Franklin said.

“Stopping the run is priority No. 1.”