If you wanted to see a glimpse of how dangerous Notre Dame’s offense could be in 2026, Saturday was the perfect example as the Irish trounced Rice 52-0.
Notre Dame tallied 480 yards of offense and that came with quarterback CJ Carr playing just one drive of the second half.
Carr was once again efficient, finishing the day 16-of-20 for 253 yards and four touchdowns, including seven completions of at least 18 yards.
“I feel very confident,” Carr said following the win. “We've worked through some different kinks in the offense for the last 2.5 years here. I feel really confident in my own ability and then also the ability of the veteran guys like Jordan (Faison) who have been here and done it for a really long time.”
Sure, Rice was completely overmatched, but the Irish started the game sharp.
Notre Dame’s first-team offense was on the field for seven drives and scored six touchdowns. That works against anybody.
But perhaps the most impressive part was that Notre Dame accomplished it on a short week.
“It feels really good,” explained Carr. “It feels easy. It's something we're striving for every game. You do that through preparation and execution and I thought we did that really well today.”
Carr was his usual self at the line of scrimmage. He changed passes to runs, runs to passes and flipped plays when needed, something that has caught the attention of head coach Marcus Freeman.
“His decisions are impeccable,” said Freeman. “Last week he made the right decision 99 percent of the time. This week it felt like he was making the right decision and getting us in the right protections, the right checks, all those different things that he does. I've been really impressed with his decision-making.”
A week ago, Carr didn’t have much of an opportunity to push the ball down the field. On Saturday, he let it fly.
The highlight might have been a 56-yard hookup with Jerome Bettis Jr. to start the second half. Or it could have been his 39-yard touchdown to Micah Gilbert on a scramble drill.
But Carr believes the best part of the offense is simply how easy it looks when everything is clicking.
“I think the most fun football that we played is when we're moving the ball, whether that's throwing it deep, throwing it short, running the ball,” Carr stated. “However, when it feels easy like it did today, like it did a couple of those drives against Wisconsin, that's the most fun football we play in my opinion.”
Speaking of Bettis, Carr wasn’t surprised the sophomore receiver finished the day with 61 receiving yards.
“Unbelievable guy, unbelievable job going out there and making plays,” explained Carr. “He's done it throughout the spring and the fall. A guy we trust to go up and make 50-50 catches. He ran a great stop route on the left side to start us off and then takes one deep later. Super excited to see that guy come up with some huge plays.”
And in typical Carr fashion, he made sure to highlight the offensive line for not allowing Rice to touch him on Saturday afternoon.
“A group of guys that we trust to be at their best week in and week out,” said Carr. “The ultimate competitors. It's a bloody game against Wisconsin. Guys are throwing their bodies around. Then they turn around and do the same thing out there today.
“I feel like I didn't even play a football game the way they're protecting me up there. I don't think I got touched all day. Unbelievable job out of that group.”
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