CJ Carr reaches for a first down as Bill Belichick watches. (Photo: Tim Erskine/Fighting Irish Preview)
Notre Dame struggled to cover the tight ends—so what else is new against a Bill Belichick offense?—and special teams supplied more excitement than anyone needed. There are things to fix after Saturday’s 37–26 victory over North Carolina.
But the Irish also took a huge step forward. The running game, the thing we’ve been fretting over every week for a month, came of age and carried this team to victory.
Notre Dame is 5–0 and has won 15 straight games, every one by double digits. There is plenty to appreciate about that. But the biggest reason to feel good about Saturday was how the Irish took control—with a sustained, physical running attack that could make this team considerably more dangerous.
There were steps backward elsewhere. The step forward was a big one.
The Offensive Line Announced Itself
Notre Dame rushed for 241 yards on 45 attempts, averaging 5.4 yards per carry. The offensive line also kept Carr upright against a respected Carolina pass rush, allowing no sacks. But the numbers only begin to explain how encouraging this performance was.
After a 98-yard kickoff return cut Notre Dame’s lead to 21–20, the Irish answered with a 17-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that consumed 9:10. Fourteen of those plays were runs—the most by Notre Dame on a single drive since 2003. Carolina knew what was coming. The Irish kept coming anyway.
The rain made throwing difficult, the game needed to be settled, and Notre Dame settled it up front. This running attack was brutally efficient.
We hadn’t seen this from the Irish this season. Frankly, it had been a while. During the Jeremiyah Love–Jadarian Price show, a possession could go two yards, two yards, then somebody was waving goodbye on a 75-yard touchdown run. There was plenty to love about that. But there is also something deeply satisfying about six, seven or eight yards, another first down, and then more of the same.
Jonaz Walton is good. The freshman finished with 120 yards on 23 carries, including 12 carries for 61 yards on that marathon possession. He converted two fourth downs before Carr finished the drive with a fourth-down touchdown run. Notre Dame trusted a freshman to help take control, and he rewarded that trust.
Then Nolan James Jr. took his turn, carrying six times for 49 yards on the next touchdown possession before catching the six-yard scoring pass. Carolina had barely caught its breath, and here came another back behind the same offensive line.
James finished with 65 rushing yards on nine carries, while Aneyas Williams added 42 on eight attempts. Notre Dame kept blocking, kept running and kept moving the chains, holding the ball for 13:18 of the third quarter. As the rain intensified, the Irish responded like champions.
“When they know you’re going to try to run the ball and you’re still able to run the ball because of the weather conditions, that’s a reflection of your team and the toughness and the physicality,” Freeman said. “And that’s the pride we have. And that’s what I’m most proud of.”
The offensive line arguably came of age Saturday. For four weeks, we had been waiting for the running game to give this offense something it could count on. When the Irish needed it most, it delivered.
Carr and Faison Delivered
The running game deserves the spotlight, but CJ Carr and Jordan Faison helped put Notre Dame in position to take over.
Carr completed 21 of 29 passes for 234 yards and four touchdowns without an interception. Add his rushing score, and he accounted for all five Irish touchdowns.
Carr is quietly making his case for the Heisman Trophy with his consistent mastery of this offense. Through five games, he has completed 71 percent of his passes for 1,197 yards, with 13 touchdown passes and just one interception in 124 attempts. He has added three rushing touchdowns. The production is there, and so is the command. He looks increasingly comfortable being the guy who makes this whole thing go.
Faison caught eight passes for a career-high 132 yards and two touchdowns. He caught five passes on Notre Dame’s first scoring drive, including the 28-yard touchdown that answered Carolina’s opening score. His diving grab on a 39-yard touchdown pass early in the second quarter helped push the Irish ahead 21–7.
Carr can throw it. Faison can go get it. Saturday showed what happens when the running game supplies its share of the answers, too.
A Little Too Interesting
Leading 21–7 midway through the second quarter, Notre Dame faced fourth-and-goal from the two. A short field goal would have made it a three-score game.
Freeman went for the touchdown. Carr’s pass to Cooper Flanagan fell incomplete, and Notre Dame came away empty.
There was a good argument for taking the points. But Freeman’s aggressive approach has served this program well, and even after the gamble failed, Carolina was backed up near its own goal line. The defense still had an opportunity to keep the Irish firmly in control.
Instead, the Tar Heels drove 97 yards for a touchdown, then returned the opening kickoff of the second half for another. In 35 seconds of game time, a 21–7 lead had become a one-point game.
Notre Dame’s response was outstanding. The Irish also could have spared themselves the drama.
Special Teams: A Bit of an Adventure
The kickoff return was the biggest breakdown, but it wasn’t the only one. Jasper Scaife had trouble handling snaps, including on the extra-point attempt following Carr’s third-quarter touchdown. His lone official punt traveled 34 yards, and a running-into-the-punter penalty added to an uneven afternoon.
The rain complicated things. It also rained on everyone, and Notre Dame needs cleaner execution from these units.
There were positives. Spencer Porath made his four extra-point kicks and a 31-yard field goal, while Luke Talich blocked Carolina’s final extra-point attempt. But the mistakes were too costly to brush aside.
Notre Dame overcame them Saturday. Against an opponent better equipped to take advantage, that could be a much tougher assignment.
The Run Defense Held. The Coverage Slipped.
North Carolina rushed for only 77 yards, the sixth straight game Notre Dame has held an opponent below 100. Taking away the run remains something this defense does very well.
The Irish also intercepted Billy Edwards Jr. twice. Boubacar Traore’s pressure helped create Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa’s interception, and Talich supplied the other. Traore finished with six tackles and four quarterback hurries. He continues to make life uncomfortable in opposing backfields.
But Carolina found room through the air, particularly with its tight ends. Jelani Thurman caught two touchdown passes, Shamar Easter caught another, and the Tar Heels scored touchdowns on all three trips into the red zone.
Carolina’s offensive touchdown drives covered 74, 97 and 75 yards. The Tar Heels converted five of 10 third downs. That 97-yard possession consumed more than seven minutes and helped turn a comfortable lead into a competitive game. The final touchdown came with Notre Dame ahead 37–20, which puts the finish in perspective.
There were disruptive plays and another strong performance against the run. But a defense this talented should expect better than allowing three long touchdown drives and touchdowns on every red-zone possession.
The Big Step Matters Most
Special teams need to be cleaner. Pass coverage needs to be better. But those corrections come after a victory that revealed something important about this team.
When the game was in doubt, Notre Dame’s offensive line and running backs took over. And North Carolina, Bill Belichick and all, couldn’t do anything about it.
A few steps back, one big step forward. And that big step brings Notre Dame’s national championship ambitions into sharper focus.