No. 3 Notre Dame did what good teams do when they get the chance to breathe: it slammed the door early and never let Purdue back inside.
The Irish rolled to a 49-10 win at Ross-Ade Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 26, turning what might have been a test into another long afternoon for the Boilermakers. Notre Dame scored once, then kept scoring, and Purdue never got close to making it interesting.
That makes four straight victories this season and 14 in a row since Notre Dame’s last loss more than a calendar year ago.
This was the Irish’s third game in four weeks against a Big Ten opponent, and it looked a lot like the previous two. One-sided.
Over before it could really start. Purdue, now 1-3, has lost 11 straight and 13 of its last 14 against its in-state rival.
Notre Dame’s offense wasted little time taking control. The first drive went four plays for 18 yards and ended without points, but the next two possessions told the real story: eight total plays, 139 yards, and two scores. By then, the Irish were already making the game feel out of reach.
Mike Denbrock’s offense kept expanding the menu from there. On the second drive of the second quarter, with Notre Dame up 14-0 and moving again, he called three passes to the tight ends on the same series.
One of them went 27 yards down the seam to Cooper Flanagan. Later, on a third scoring drive, Notre Dame converted a fourth-and-one from the Purdue 24, with CJ Carr picking up two yards to keep the possession alive.
That same drive also included the first Wildcat snap to Aneyas Williams.
By the time Notre Dame took over late in the first half at the Purdue 49, the game was already tilting hard. Six plays and 79 seconds later, the Irish were in the end zone again. Purdue then had to receive the third-quarter kickoff, and the gap only kept widening.
The floodgates really opened when Drayk Bowen scooped up a Ryan Browne fumble and returned it 12 yards for a touchdown to make it 28-0. Even before that play, Purdue students could be seen heading for the exits.
Notre Dame’s defense had plenty to handle while the game was still technically in reach, and it did so with some shuffling in the secondary. Freshman Joey O’Brien made his first career start at third-string safety, filling in for Luke Talich, who was wearing a bulky/length cast on his left hand after getting hurt against Michigan State. Talich had been starting in place of Brauntae Johnson, who suffered a left foot injury in the opener against Wisconsin.
Carr also threw his first interception of the season to start the second half, but it barely changed the mood or the scoreboard. Notre Dame kept control, kept scoring and kept Purdue from finding any real hope.
The Irish have now led by a combined 77-0 at halftime in their last two visits to Ross-Ade Stadium.
For Purdue, it was another reminder of how far things had gone off track. For Notre Dame, it was another clean step into October, where the schedule starts to ask different questions.
Whether this team can handle those will come later. Saturday was about showing it could make a rival look small and make a road trip feel easy.
In Other News...
Notre Dame Rolled Purdue But One Offensive Concern Still Lingers
Notre Dame took care of Purdue in convincing fashion, racing to a 35-0 halftime lead and turning what could have been a tricky in-state matchup into a comfortable blowout. CJ Carr did his part with three touchdown passes, and the offense had the kind of depth that showed up in the second half as well, with Noah Grubbs and Matt Jeffery each throwing their first career touchdown passes.
Still, the clean final score did not hide every issue for the Irish. The running game never really got rolling, and Carr had enough accuracy hiccups to leave a little room for concern even in a game that was never in doubt. For a team that wants to keep building momentum, those are the kinds of details that tend to matter once the competition gets sharper. [Read more 🡒]
North Carolina Fans Eye A Notre Dame Home Game Worth Planning For
Notre Dames 2026 trip to Chapel Hill already stands out on the calendar, and not just because it puts the Fighting Irish on the road against a North Carolina program trying to make the most of a marquee home date. The matchup is set for Oct. 3 at Kenan Stadium, and tickets are already on sale, with prices varying by seating. For fans on either side, it is the kind of game that can shape a fall trip plan well before the season even begins.
The broader schedule around it only adds to the intrigue, with both teams 2026 slates laid out and a mix of past results and upcoming matchups still waiting to be defined by the years progress. Most kickoff times remain to be determined, which leaves plenty of room for the buildup to that Saturday in Chapel Hill to grow. For North Carolina fans especially, this is one of those home dates that feels worth circling early, even if the bigger question of how both teams arrive there is still unwritten. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame's Defense Just Changed How The Rest Of The Schedule Feels
Notre Dames defense spent the first half against Purdue making the rest of the schedule look a lot different. The Irish shut out the Boilermakers over those first two quarters and kept them bottled up with a pass rush that came from everywhere, turning pressure into sacks and turnovers while the offense spent its time benefiting from short fields and momentum.
Bryce Young was at the center of it, finishing the half with two sacks and a forced fumble that was returned for a touchdown, and true freshman Joey OBrien added a sack of his own to the mix. Purdue managed only 78 passing yards and 12 rushing yards before halftime, the kind of total that suggests Notre Dames defense is not just playing well, but capable of making an opponents entire game plan collapse. [Read more 🡒]