Notre Dame’s offense finally ran into the kind of opponent that doesn’t let sloppy situational football slide.
The Irish walked out of Provo with their first loss in 16 games, a 28-24 defeat to BYU on the road, and the game exposed a problem that had been lingering beneath the surface all season. Notre Dame played what was described as arguably its “C-” game and still had chances to win, but that didn’t make the result any easier to swallow. There are no moral victories in this one for the Irish.
That’s the reality for a team trying to operate like a championship contender. Hindsight makes the issues easier to spot now, but the warning signs were already there through the first six games.
Wisconsin, Michigan State, Purdue, North Carolina and Stanford all saw Notre Dame’s situational flaws show up in stretches. The difference in those games was that the Irish were often able to survive them anyway.
BYU had enough quality to make them pay.
The biggest concern remains third down. Notre Dame is ranked No. 39 nationally in third-down conversion percentage, and that number tells the story of an offense that has too often stalled when it needs to keep moving.
The Irish have leaned on a philosophy that sometimes sets up favorable fourth-down situations, and against BYU that worked in one narrow sense: they went four for four on fourth down. But that still wasn’t enough to win.
The problem is bigger than one game, too. In major moments, Notre Dame’s ability to extend drives has been uneven.
Last season against Miami, the Irish went 4 of 9 on third down in a loss. Against Texas A&M, they finished 7 of 15 in another defeat.
They converted just 3 of 11 against USC in a 34-24 home win, and went 8 of 19 against BYU on the road in a loss.
This season, the same pattern has hung around against Power Four opponents. Notre Dame converted just 33.3% of its third downs against Wisconsin, 33.3% against Michigan State, 37.5% at Purdue and 36.4% at North Carolina.
The talent gap in those matchups helped cover it up. Against BYU, that gap wasn’t there to hide anything.
It hasn’t just been about third downs, either. The Irish have also struggled with how they begin games and how they open the second half, and those moments have cost them possession-based momentum.
Against Wisconsin, they opened with a three-and-out. Against Michigan State, they marched to the 7-yard line on their first drive and settled for a field goal, then put together a 17-play, 77-yard second-half opening march that also ended in three points from the 17.
Against Purdue, the first drive ended in a punt and the first drive of the second half ended in an interception. Against North Carolina, the opening possession was another punt.
Stanford was one of the better examples, with a score on the first drive, but that came after an 18-yard short field following a Boubacar Traore strip sack. The first possession of the third quarter there still ended in a punt.
BYU brought all of those issues into focus. Notre Dame settled for a field goal on its first drive after CJ Carr overshot Jordan Faison on what should have been a touchdown.
The Irish then punted on their final two drives of the first half, including the botched spiked-ball sequence to close the second quarter. They opened the second half with back-to-back punts and later failed to cash in on two short fields created by special teams and the defense.
Those chances mattered. In the second half, Notre Dame got the ball with good field position twice and came away with field goals both times.
One drive covered 28 yards in 10 plays. The other went just 3 yards in 4 plays.
That’s the difference between pressure and empty possessions.
None of that means the offense is broken beyond repair. It does mean the Irish have real work to do, and quickly. If Notre Dame wants to handle Navy, Miami, Boston College, SMU and Syracuse the way a contender should, it has to be sharper in the moments that decide games - third down, first drives, starts to the second half, and the opportunities that come after a turnover or a short field.
Those issues can be fixed. But the time to fix them is now.
In Other News...
Boubacar Traore Is Giving Notre Dame Fans One Big Reason To Watch
Boubacar Traore has become one of the more obvious defensive bright spots for Notre Dame this fall, and On3s midseason All-American first team nod only reinforced how much of an impact he has made. The junior edge rusher has stood out for more than the usual box-score stuff, with his sacks and quarterback pressures helping give the Irish a real presence off the edge while the rest of the defense works to settle in around him.
Anthonie Knapp also landed on On3s second team, giving Notre Dame another notable midseason recognition, but Traores selection feels like the one that really captures what has been happening on defense. The only concern for Irish fans is that Traores recent early exit raised a fresh question around his availability, and with no other Notre Dame players on the list, the spotlight on him feels even brighter as the season moves forward. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dames Dominant Run Defense Faces Its Biggest Question Yet
Notre Dames run defense has been one of the defining strengths of its season, and the numbers back it up. Through seven games, the Irish rank third nationally against the run, allowing just 67.3 rushing yards per game, and they have been especially steady against Power Five opponents, holding those teams to 67.8 yards on the ground while giving up only three rushing touchdowns.
The bigger test, though, is whether that front can keep carrying the load when the opponents quarterback can hurt defenses with his legs. Recent top-ranked units have shown that stopping designed runs and scrambles from mobile passers is often the difference between a very good rush defense and a truly suffocating one, and that is the area Notre Dame still has to prove. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Has A Receiver Problem Fans Didn't Expect
Notre Dames wide receiver usage has become one of the more curious subplots of the season, because the rotation has stayed remarkably tight even as the games have stacked up. In recent outings, only three or four pass-catchers have been getting the overwhelming share of the snaps, with the staff leaning heavily on a small core while the rest of the room has barely seen the field. That approach has shown up in the numbers from both BYU and North Carolina, where the workload distribution has been hard to miss.
The most striking part is not just who is playing, but who is not. Jaden Greathouse, Jordan Faison and Micah Gilbert have handled the bulk of the action, while other receivers have been left with minimal opportunities, raising obvious questions about whether this is a deliberate matchup-driven plan or something closer to a depth chart that has already started to harden. Miami looms next, and that should be the next checkpoint for a receiver group that suddenly has a lot more scrutiny on it than most fans expected. [Read more 🡒]