Miami and Notre Dame are barreling toward a November showdown in South Bend that now feels even bigger after both teams handled business in very different ways on Saturday.
The No. 1 Hurricanes stayed unbeaten with a 38-35 escape at North Carolina, while No.
5 Notre Dame answered its only loss of the season with a 35-13 win over Navy. Miami is now 8-0 overall and 6-0 in ACC play.
The Irish sit at 7-1. ESPN’s College GameDay is headed to South Bend for the primetime matchup, set for 7:30 p.m.
ET on NBC.
It’s a rematch of the 2025 season opener, when Miami’s 27-24 win wound up helping the Hurricanes grab the final at-large College Football Playoff berth over Notre Dame.
Miami’s trip to Chapel Hill turned into a fight, not a showcase. The Hurricanes led early, then found themselves trailing in the fourth quarter before Mark Fletcher Jr. punched in the go-ahead score on a 2-yard touchdown run on fourth down with just under eight minutes left. Moments later, edge rusher Marquise Lightfoot forced a strip-sack of Billy Edwards Jr., and Justin Scott fell on the loose ball at about the five-minute mark.
Darian Mensah then connected with Malachi Toney on a 9-yard touchdown to push Miami ahead 38-28 with 2:33 to play. The Hurricanes still had to survive a messy finish, recovering an onside kick after North Carolina’s recoveries were wiped out by penalties before kneeling out the clock.
The result kept Miami perfect, but North Carolina’s 35 points marked the most the Hurricanes have allowed in regulation this season. Mensah finished with 274 yards and three touchdowns.
Toney hauled in seven catches for 75 yards and two scores, tying the school single-season receiving touchdowns record at 13. Fletcher also had a huge day, accounting for three touchdowns - two on the ground and one through the air - while moving to 35 career rushing touchdowns, tied for the Miami record, and 38 total career touchdowns, a school mark.
Notre Dame’s response against Navy was much cleaner. The Irish trailed 13-7 late in the first half in the Shamrock Series at Gillette Stadium, then scored on their final possession before halftime and rolled from there, adding three touchdowns in a second-half shutout. Navy managed just 56 total yards after the break.
CJ Carr went 19 of 29 for 210 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. Nolan James Jr. delivered 107 rushing yards and two scores on only nine carries. Jerome Bettis Jr. added six receptions for 78 yards and his first career touchdown.
That victory came two weeks after Notre Dame’s 28-24 loss at BYU, and now the Irish get Miami with the stakes fully in view. A loss would put a major dent in their playoff hopes.
Both teams are also carrying injury concerns into the matchup.
For Miami, Joshua Moore and CharMar Brown are out for the season. Max Buchanan, OJ Frederique Jr., Ja'Boree Antoine and Luka Gilbert were already sidelined before the North Carolina game.
Notre Dame’s list is longer and more complicated. DJ McKinney is expected to miss an extended period after suffering an ankle injury against BYU.
Brauntae Johnson remains out with a foot injury, though a November return is still possible. Drayk Bowen also suffered a significant ankle injury against Navy and is expected to miss an extended period.
Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa is expected to be available for Miami after dealing with a thumb injury, while Leonard Moore was available against Navy but did not play.
The setting only adds to the weight of the game. It will be the first night meeting between Miami and Notre Dame at Notre Dame Stadium since 1984, and Miami’s only previous trip to South Bend in the last decade came in 2016.
There’s also a clear comparison point already on the schedule. Both teams beat Stanford, and Notre Dame handled UNC more convincingly than Miami did.
For both programs, the margin for error is gone. Miami still has the No. 1 ranking and one of the few undefeated resumes among Power conference teams.
Notre Dame’s lone defeat came against a then-top-10 BYU team. But neither side is likely to find a better resume game than this one.
In Other News...
Miami Gets A Big Opening In Notre Dames Secondary
Notre Dames secondary will look different when the No. 1 Miami Hurricanes arrive, with cornerback DJ McKinney sidelined for an extended stretch after suffering an ankle injury on Oct. 17. McKinney had been a fixture in the Irish back end all season, starting every game and giving them stability on the outside before the injury forced a change.
Sophomore Jayden Sanders is expected to step into the lineup in McKinneys place, which gives Miami a notable opening to test a defense that has leaned on continuity at corner. The timing matters, too, with McKinneys return now pushed toward the College Football Playoffs, leaving Notre Dame to sort out a key spot just as the stakes rise. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Escaped UNC But A Bigger Problem Should Worry Hurricanes Fans
Miamis escape at North Carolina was the kind of win that keeps a season moving, but it also left plenty for Mario Cristobals staff to sort through. The Hurricanes survived 38-35 in Chapel Hill for their first victory over the Tar Heels in six tries, yet the final score did not hide how shaky things looked on defense for long stretches. North Carolina kept finding answers on third down, and the Tar Heels ability to extend drives put Miami under constant pressure.
Cristobal pointed to tackling and finishing plays as problem areas afterward, and those issues are hard to ignore when a defense is trying to handle a mobile quarterback on the road in conference play. Pro Football Focus coverage grade for Miami was historically low, a jarring mark for a unit that has bigger goals than simply escaping with a win. The Hurricanes got the result they needed, but the performance raised a more pressing question about how sustainable that formula will be against better opponents. [Read more 🡒]
Malachi Toney Is Chasing Even More Miami History This Season
Malachi Toney has already carved out a place in Miami history, and he is still only a sophomore with four regular-season games left to play. The Hurricanes receiver has become the kind of weekly problem defenses have to plan around, and his latest milestone underlines just how quickly he has climbed into rare company for one of the programs most storied positions.
Against North Carolina, Toney kept producing even while drawing heavy double teams, finishing with seven catches for 75 yards and a touchdown. His season total has pushed him into record territory for Miami, and with more games still ahead, the only question now is how much more he can add to a season that already belongs alongside some of the biggest names in Hurricanes history. [Read more 🡒]