Must-see: Bald eagle lands on Notre Dame fans before Cotton Bowl

Although their team lost to Clemson in Saturday's Cotton Bowl in Arlington, Texas, two Notre Dame fans got a consolation prize before the game even started: a surprise visit from a rogue bald eagle.

Explore>> College football bowl games 2018: Here is the full schedule of bowl and playoff games

According to ESPN, the stately bird, which was brought to AT&T Stadium for the national anthem, took a couple of detours while flying over the crowd, landing on a shocked spectator before resting on another Notre Dame fan's arm.

>> Watch the moments here

The eagle landed all right. On a Notre Dame fan. pic.twitter.com/6koNTfitvm
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) December 29, 2018

🦅☘️ pic.twitter.com/5upm9Ym4L4
— Kimberley A. Martin (@ByKimberleyA) December 29, 2018

The second fan, Tuyen Nguyen of South Bend, Indiana, told ESPN that stretching his arm out to the eagle was an "instant reaction."

"He looked pretty tired," Nguyen told ESPN. "I just put my hand out to see if he was going to land on me, and he did."

>> See one of the viral photos here

NOTRE DAME BY ONE MILLION!!!! GO IRISH !!! #GOIrish pic.twitter.com/aafwKSVorh
— Boba Bettis (@CBusIrish) December 29, 2018

Handlers eventually retrieved the eagle, whose name is Clark, ESPN reported.

>> Read more trending news

Clemson defeated Notre Dame 30-3 to advance to the college football national title game, where the No. 2 Tigers will face No. 1 Alabama on Jan. 7 in Santa Clara, California.