For the first time this season, Notre Dame’s rushing attack was dominant, and it sucked the life out of Bill Belichick's Tar Heels in the second half to give the Irish a 37-26 win.
Notre Dame’s run game combined for 45 rushes for 241 yards. Freshman running back Jonaz Walton had a breakout day in the backfield, rushing for 120 yards. Nolan James Jr. also had a dominant drive in the third quarter, ending his day with 65 yards and a touchdown through the air.
CJ Carr continued his strong season under center, matching a career-high with four touchdown passes and adding on one more through the ground. Carr went 21-29 for 234 yards and five total touchdowns.
The story of the first half started and ended just the way North Carolina drew it up heading into Saturday. After forcing an early punt on the Irish’s first drive of the afternoon, the Tar Heels went right down the field for seven.
Billy Edwards had a strong start at quarterback to put UNC up early, hitting Jordan Shipp up the seam on third down for a 44 yard completion. Edwards followed that up by finishing the drive with a roll out completion Shamar Easter for six.
Notre Dame would settle into the game shortly after thanks to CJ Carr, who went on to shred Bill Belichick’s defense apart for most of the half. Carr got the Irish on the board with a strike over the top to Faison for a 28-yard score.
Meanwhile, UNC couldn’t keep the momentum of its perfect start going as Edwards was pounded by Boubacar Traore right when he released the ball. The wobbly pass ended up in the arms of Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa for an easy pick and a short field for Carr and company.
On the sudden change, Carr kept his arm warm, immediately converting on a pass to Jaden Greathouse for a 12-yard touchdown.
Notre Dame’s next score came off Edwards' second interception of the first half as Luke Talich — who returned after missing last week against Purdue with a hand injury — easily picked off a deep ball. Carr once again connected with Faison off of a blown coverage, finding his favorite target all alone for a diving 39-yard touchdown grab.
Faison had himself had an excellent half, hauling in six catches for 109 yards and a pair of scores. Carr also had a strong opening 30 minutes, completing 72% of his passes for 169 yards and three touchdowns. The Irish quarterback didn’t have much trouble against Belichick’s defense, who until Saturday was allowing under 190 yards through the air.
But as Notre Dame appeared to be turning the game into an early laugher, on the verge of going up 28-7, the Tar Heels flipped the game on its head. UNC came up with a big stop at the goal line as Carr’s fourth and goal attempt bounced off the hands of Cooper Flanagan in the back of the endzone.
From there, Edwards and the Tar Heels’ tight ends brought UNC back to life. Edwards completed seven of his eight passes in a 15-play drive that went 97 yards. UNC’s Thurman and Easter feasted over the middle as Edwards threw for 78 yards, including a handful of intermediate passes over the middle to his big targets.
Thurman finished off the drive, beating Adon Shuler in the end zone for a 14-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 21-14 at the end of the first half.
The second half didn’t start any better for the Irish as UNC perfectly executed the second half kickoff. Jaden Jefferson answered the bell with a 98-yard house call, and all of a sudden an Irish team that was winding up for the knockout punch was up just 21-20.
There didn’t appear to be any panic on Notre Dame’s sideline however as the offense answered with a dominant drive on the ground. Offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock decided to enforce the Irish’s will on the Tar Heels, and it worked to perfection.
Notre Dame went on a 17-play drive that included 14 run plays. Jonaz Walton continued to be a focal point in the offense as the freshman rushed 12 times in the drive, converting twice on fourth down. The Irish faced another fourth and goal, but Marcus Freeman didn’t blink, leaving the offense on the field which this time paid off as Carr bounced around the backfield before running into the endzone for a three-yard touchdown run.
The drive set some Notre Dame records too with the 14 run plays being the most in an Irish drive in 20 years, and Carr became the first Notre Dame quarterback to throw for three touchdowns and run for a score in back-to-back weeks in 30 years.
The lengthy, dominant drive seemingly sucked all the life out of UNC as its offense never found the same rhythm that it sparked in the first half. It also didn’t help that the Tar Heels just never had the ball.
On the Irish’s next drive, it was Nolan James Jr. 's turn to turn his wheels, rushing six times for 49 yards to get the Irish down to the six-yard line. Carr paid off James’ hard running by finding him through the air for a six-yard touchdown reception.
Notre Dame would add on three more points after an 11-play drive to eat more clock and extend the lead to three scores at 37-20.
The Irish will return to South Bend for a home matchup against Stanford, with a Top-10 matchup against BYU awaiting on Oct. 17. Kickoff against the Cardinal is set for 3:30 p.m.
