Riley Leonard and Molly Walding
Courtesy of Molly Walding/InstagramNotre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard The cheering section was in Orange bowl Thursday night – including his old girlfriend, Molly Walding.
Walding was in the stands at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens next to Leonard's parents, Chad and Heatherfor the Fighting Irish's dramatic 27-24 victory over Penn State, which earned Notre Dame a trip to the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday, January 20.
“Pinch me!!!!!!! ??????????????????????
Walding eventually found her way to Leonard after the game and posted a selfie of the happy couple via her story. “I'm giddy! Turning dreams into reality!!!!!!!” “”””””””
Courtesy of Molly Walding/Instagram Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard and his girlfriend, Molly Walding, have a romance that's been almost a decade in the making. Leonard, 22, and Walding have been in each other's lives since they attended Fairhope Middle School in Fairhope, Alabama. Since then, the couple has witnessed it all – from above (…)
During his post-game interview with SEC Network Just AlyssaLeonard said he was eager to see Walding and give her an orange he had been saving from the team's postgame celebration.
Riley Leonard #13 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish celebrates with his team after winning the game against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Hard Rock Stadium on January 9, 2025 in Miami Gardens, Florida.
Michael Pimentel/ISI Images/Getty Images“I'm looking for my girlfriend, and I hope I can give her one,” Leonard said. “She likes oranges… let's hope we find her now.”
Leonard and Walding, currently students at Auburn University, have been dating since December 2017, when they were students together at Fairthorpe High School in Fairthorpe, Alabama.
Their friendship goes back even further, as evidenced by the photo Walding posted Via Instagram In September 2016 when the two were students at Fairthorpe Middle School.
When the couple celebrated their sixth wedding anniversary in December 2023, Leonard exploded Via Instagram“Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then. Happy 6 years.”
As for Leonard's performance on the field Thursday night, it came with a bit of trepidation. Near the end of the first half, the quarterback was pulled from the game due to concussion protocol after taking a hard hit. reserve midfielder, Steve Angellexecuted the team's final drive of the half in Leonard's absence.
However, Leonard returned for the second half after being cleared and helped lead Notre Dame to the school's first national championship game since 2013.
“I knew I was going to be back there,” Leonard told ESPN after the game. “Obviously safety first on the football field. I had to prove to everyone that I was okay. I got up a little shaky, but it's OK.”
Notre Dame will play the winner of the other College Football Playoff semifinal between Ohio State and Texas — who they will face off in the Cotton Bowl on Friday, Jan. 10 — when it is in the national championship game from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Jan. 20.
