The postponed Sugar Bowl College Football Quarterfinal Playoff game between the University of Georgia and the University of Notre Dame is set to take place Thursday afternoon, officials said.

The rescheduled time and date comes after a deadly attack in New Orleans, when authorities say a truck driver deliberately plowed into a New Year's crowd and killed at least 15 people. Officials are calling the incident an "act of terror."

The No. 2-ranked Bulldogs will now take on the No. 5-ranked Fighting Irish at an early kick-off time of 3 p.m. CT. The 2025 Sugar Bowl originally was scheduled to kick off at 7:45 p.m. local time on Wednesday.

"Public safety is paramount," Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley said at a media briefing alongside federal, state and local officials, including Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry and New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell. "All parties all agree that it's in the best interest of everybody and public safety that we postpone the game for 24 hours."

The Caesars Superdome, which will host the game Thursday afternoon. According to officials, the postponement allows for "additional security resources to be put in place."

The game will still be televised on ESPN, organizers said.

The casualties occurred when a driver rammed a pickup truck into a crowd of revelers in New Orleans’ famed French Quarter early on New Year’s Day. The driver was killed in a firefight with police following the attack at about 3:15 a.m. along Bourbon Street near Canal Street, the FBI said.

"We live in the fun and games world with what we do, but we certainly recognize the importance of this and support [public safety efforts] 100%," Hundley said.

The Georgia and Notre Dame football teams arrived in New Orleans on Sunday and have been staying at downtown hotels just blocks away from where the violence occurred.

The Superdome, which is about 20 blocks away, also is scheduled to host the Super Bowl on Feb. 9.

Notre Dame said they were "working with law enforcement and others to determine the full scope and impact of the tragedy," In a statement Wednesday morning.

"We ask our fans to join us in prayer for those injured and lost in this senseless act of violence. Those staying at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside Hotel are welcome to join us for the previously scheduled Mass there at 11 a.m. Otherwise, we ask that you join us in prayer from wherever you are," the university wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

The attack, which the FBI is investigating as an act of terrorism, occurred on Bourbon Street, known worldwide as one of the largest destinations for New Year’s Eve parties.

The driver was killed in a firefight with police, the FBI said.

At a news conference, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell also described the killings as a “terrorist attack” and the city’s police chief said the act was clearly intentional.

New Orleans Police Commissioner Anne Kirkpatrick said the driver was “hell-bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did.”

“It was very intentional behavior. This man was trying to run over as many people as he could,” Kirkpatrick said.

Hours after the attack, a Tesla Cybertruck exploded outside of Las Vegas' Trump International Hotel, killing one person and injuring several hours. Authorities were investigating a possible link between the two attacks, law enforcement officials said.