Beyond the Boxscore: Notre Dame Makes Virginia Pay in 35-14 Victory

Bolstered by a 28-0 halftime lead, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish collected its eighth straight win with a 35-14 win over the Virginia Cavaliers. The final score of the Senior Day effort was somewhat misleading, with Virginia notching its two touchdowns after the Irish led 35-0. The latter of those two scores came with just 18 ticks remaining in the game.

Jeremiyah Love led all rushers with 137 yards on 16 carries and two touchdowns, with his 76-yard scoring jaunt marking the final points of the game for Notre Dame. Riley Leonard delivered mostly with his arm, completing 22 of 33 for 214 yards and three touchdowns. He did throw only his second interception since the Irish winning streak began but that came with the game already in hand. On the running front, he gained 32 yards on eight carries.

Below are some key aspects of the game:

The Cost of Errors

Mistakes were the continuing theme during the opening 30 minutes, with Virginia’s errors proving to be fatal to any upset possibilities. The Cavaliers ended the first half with five turnovers, including a trio of interceptions in the final three minutes before the break that resulted in a pair of Notre Dame touchdowns. The Irish’s lone turnover during this span was quickly negated when Virginia fumbled the ball back to them.

The run of miscues began on the opening kickoff when former Irish player Chris Tyree muffed the return to set up the first score. The Cavs appeared to have held Notre Dame to a field goal, but a roughing the passer call extended the drive, which culminated with a Jeremiyah Love touchdown.

Virginia’s aforementioned fumble came on the Irish 12 and got the Irish offense going. Leonard connected with Jayden Thomas on the ninth play of an 88-yard drive to double the Notre Dame advantage to 14. On the Irish’s next series, Leonard and Thomas appeared to connect on a 78-yard scoring pass, but that was called back after an illegal hands-to-the-face call against center Pat Coogan.

Forced to punt, the Irish used some trickery that allowed Jordan Faison to score an apparent touchdown. Unfortunately, that was called back on an illegal formation call that caused Marcus Freeman to erupt on the sidelines. However, from that point, the flurry of interceptions began, with Adon Shuler coming within two yards of a pick-six.

Early Sputters

Notre Dame took a quick 7-0 lead in the first minute of the game, then watched as the team’s offense entered hibernation on the next four drives. All four of those efforts were three-and-outs that only moved the ball forward a combined 20 yards. Even on that opening scoring drive, the Irish gained an extra four points only because of the ill-timed penalty against Virginia.

Eight of those 20 yards were on the ground, with one drive short-circuited because of a holding call against tight end Eli Raridon. Leonard managed to connect on four of six passes for a total of 32 yards but was getting plenty of heat from Cavalier pass rushers.

Delivering the D

One of the reasons why that early futility failed to cause any panic on the part of the Notre Dame coaching staff was because of another standout effort of the team’s defense. Before garbage time kicked in early in the third quarter, the Irish defense had allowed only 158 of Virginia’s 300 yards of total offense.

Continuing its penchant for big plays, the trio of interceptions by Notre Dame late in the first half drastically changed the momentum and effectively ended the game. Allowing just six third-down conversions on 18 attempts might have been more notable had the Irish offense not had another weak game in this category, converting on just one of 12 tries.

That Jayden

Making sure that there was no confusion with fellow receivers Jaden Greathouse and Jayden Thomas, Jayden Harrison’s performance stood out. Among the 11 different Notre Dame receivers who caught a pass on the afternoon. Harrison matched his season-best three catches in the win over Miami of Ohio in September. He notched his first touchdowns with the Irish and had another called back by penalty.

Harrison’s circuitous route to Notre Dame began at Vanderbilt. He moved on to Marshall before entering the transfer portal during the offseason. Before Saturday’s game, he had only caught 12 passes for 150 yards but was coming off a two-catch game against Florida State in which he gained 47 yards.

Next Up for Notre Dame Football

The Irish face the Army Black Knights for the first time since 2016 next Saturday night at Yankee Stadium. In that prior game, the Black Knights were pounded 44-6 but are entering this game with a perfect 9-0 record. The game itself could be overshadowed by the historical implications surrounding it. On Oct. 18, 1924, Notre Dame defeated Army, 13-7, at the long-gone Polo Grounds, leading sportswriter Grantland Rice to create the iconic lore of the Four Horsemen.