The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and LSU Tigers (23) are used to playing in much bigger games this time of year, but both teams went through down seasons by their standards.

Notre Dame started out 6-0 this season before finishing 1-5, losing their last three matchups with ranked opponents. LSU started its season with a win over Wisconsin, but tripped up later on with defeats to Mississippi State and Auburn before losing twice more to Alabama and Arkansas.

CLICK HERE to listen to the game live via TuneIn. Kickoff at the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET in Nashville, Tenn.

With quarterback Everett Golson returning from an academic suspension, the Irish's passing game thrived and the team averaged 293 yards per game. But few teams in the nation were tougher on defense than LSU, who allowed an average of 16 points per game 305 yards per game.

But Golson's production fell off later on and now Notre Dame will reportedly start Malik Zaire and employ a two-passer system.

However, the Tigers' defense was sink-or-swim in their losses and their wins. In four losses, they allowed 428 yards overall and 228 passing yards per game. LSU will lose 22 seniors and a yet-unknown amount of underclassmen, but this season was certainly a transitional one for a team accustomed to playing in bigger bowl games.

"There's a tradition and a culture here we've kind of established and the young men that come here really enjoy stepping into this room and being a part of that culture," LSU coach Les Miles said ahead of the game, according to ESPN. "It's interesting too, you hate to say good-bye, we said good-bye to 22 seniors at the banquet and they're a quality group of men. To think the team, they talk about their time here, and what they don't realize is they impact the people here."