Notre Dame’s defense made sure Saturday never became a real game. On the opening snap, safety Adon Shulder drilled Rice’s Davis Lane Jr., jarred the ball loose and Boubacar Traore turned it into a scoop-and-score.
By the time the third quarter opened, the No. 3 Fighting Irish were already rolling, and they kept pouring it on in a 52-0 win.
That kind of result has helped Notre Dame climb in the polls, with most Week 2 rankings putting the Irish at No. 3 and at least one predictive model calling them the best team in the country. Still, the first two weeks have not been free of questions.
The biggest concern has come on the ground. Notre Dame fans have been vocal about the lack of creativity in the run game, and some have wondered whether junior Aneyas Williams should be RB1 or even be on the field at all.
The coaching staff isn’t ignoring the issue, either. The Irish want more chunk plays from the rushing attack, and the numbers back up why that matters: Notre Dame is 116th nationally after averaging 114.5 yards per game and 3.58 yards per carry.
"We're doing a good job running the ball. We want to be more explosive," coach Marcus Freeman said.
"We want to find ways to create some big plays out of our run game, which we've done in the past. There are some really good things that they're doing.
I want to make sure we say it. Like, there's some really, really good things.
But sometimes it kind of takes going through seeing a different opponent, two different opponents, and saying, okay, 'hey, how can we enhance this?' And that's going to be the objective for our run game.
In Other News...
Ex-Notre Dame Walk-On's Sudden Firing Leaves One Big Mystery
Tyler Plantzs abrupt dismissal at Providence Catholic High School has raised eyebrows well beyond the local football scene, especially for Notre Dame fans who remember him as a former walk-on fullback with the Irish. His tenure ended despite a 4-0 start and a strong overall record, leaving the program in the middle of a promising run when the school opted to make a change.
Providence Catholic said only that it wanted to move in a new direction, offering no detailed explanation for the move. Plantz has said concerns were raised about recruiting and organizational issues, which he disputes, and the lack of clarity has left the firing with one big unanswered question: why a coach who was winning got let go now. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Is Trying To Separate In A Crowded Chase For 2028 Wing
The early chase for Kingsley Rogers is already starting to take shape, and Notre Dame is in the middle of it. The 6-foot-7 guard-wing from the 2028 PSA Cardinals has drawn interest from a long list of programs that also includes Utah, Hofstra, Rutgers, Baylor, Marquette, Auburn, Syracuse and Buffalo, but the Irish have been especially active in staying connected with him as the evaluation process begins to build.
Rogers has pointed to frequent contact from Notre Dame and Utah, while assistant coaches from Hofstra and Utah have also been in steady pursuit. Notre Dame is set to attend an open gym session at Rogers' school, another sign that the Irish want to keep separating themselves in a crowded field before this recruitment gets even more competitive. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dames Recruiting Edge Faces A Michigan State Test Fans Will Feel
Notre Dames recruiting momentum has become one of the clearest signs of where Marcus Freeman has taken the program, with a highly ranked class helping the Irish stack talent and deepen the roster ahead of the 2026 matchup with Michigan State. The comparison with the Spartans is part rankings, part development, and it sets up a familiar kind of test for Notre Dame: proving that the edge it has built on paper can hold up when the game is actually played.
Michigan State arrives under first-year coach Pat Fitzgerald with a different kind of argument, one built less on recruiting buzz than on getting production out of unranked prospects who have turned into starters. The contrast gives this rivalry a little extra bite for fans on both sides, because the matchup is not just about the historical connection between the programs but also about whether Notre Dames talent advantage can withstand a team that has found value in unexpected places. [Read more 🡒]