Some post-Fiesta Bowl/pre-Orange Bowl notes awaiting the star-studded final four:

n Thursday night’s College Football Playoff semifinal between Penn State and Notre Dame will break a tie in the series currently tied at 9-9-1.

And what a reward the winner will get: A berth in the national championship game on Monday, Jan. 20 vs. the Ohio State-Texas winner.

The matchup is especially meaningful in our region as, in addition to being in the heart of Penn State country, Notre Dame, with a local Catholic school in Bishop Guilfoyle Academy, has always boasted a strong following here and throughout Pennsylvania.

In fact, there were really only two schools that would sell out Beaver Stadium for post-Thanksgiving games (when students were off), and that was Pitt and Notre Dame.

Not Michigan State, Wisconsin, Maryland or Rutgers or other Big Ten home finales.

The Lions had a tremendous annual series with the Irish, from 1981-92, that ended after Penn State joined the Big Ten.

The teams combined for three national titles during that stretch — Penn State winning in 1982 and ’86 and ND in 1988.

n One of Thursday’s sidebars will be the presence of former Nittany Lion Al Golden, who serves as ND’s defensive coordinator.

The tight end and team captain was part of the Lions’ 1990 win in South Bend — stunning the Irish 24-21 on Craig Fayak’s late field goal when ND was No. 1.

Golden caught the game-tying touchdown pass after the Lions overcame a 21-7 halftime deficit.

A former PSU assistant coach who later become head coach at Temple and Miami, Golden interviewed and was strongly considered for the PSU job when James Franklin was hired in 2014.

n One of the most touching videos of the week was of 500-plus Notre Dame fans, in Mass at the team hotel in New Orleans on Wednesday morning following the unspeakable tragedy, singing the school’s alma mater, all arm-in-arm and many dressed in green.

n If you’ve never visited the Phoenix area, the hospitality in the Valley of the Sun is matched only by the beauty of the Camelback Mountain.

n Bowl trips bring inevitable interaction, friendliness and inquiries of “Where are you from?” The answer of Altoona on this trip brought many to the recent case of Luigi Mangione. All agreed our town — and those who brought Mangione to justice — handled itself incredibly well.

n I found myself, for the first time, in a driverless Uber in Phoenix, one of the first cities to offer Waymo’s autonomous vehicles. Our ride was only about 10 minutes. I wouldn’t be as game for a freeway excursion, but no complaints. And it’s not like the driver was annoyingly chatty.

n In case you missed it, the Beaver Stadium press box will be torn down at 8 a.m. Saturday morning as part of the renovation project. After decades of wondering if it was going to fall down due to uncomfortable swaying vs. certain opponents, I’m grateful it’s dying of natural causes. RIP to an old friend.

Rudel can be reached at nrudel@altoonamirror.com.