The 5 Plays That Decided Notre Dame Football’s Win Over Michigan State

No. 3 Notre Dame kept the Megaphone Trophy in South Bend on Saturday night, handling Michigan State 27-10 at Notre Dame Stadium. The win moved the Irish to 3-0 and dropped the Spartans to 2-1 with their first loss of the season. It was also Notre Dame’s 13th straight win by double digits, breaking the program record of 12 in a row set by Knute Rockne’s teams in 1921 and 1922.

Notre Dame led 10-0 after a quarter and 17-3 in the second before Michigan State’s only touchdown made it a one-score game at the break. Then the defense took over. The Spartans gained 40 total yards across the final two quarters and not a single yard on the ground. Notre Dame outgained them 395-167, sacked Alessio Milivojevic four times, and picked him off twice.

Here are the five plays that decided it.

Early Swing Plays Set the Tone

Matt Jeffery Blocks a Punt, 10:44 First Quarter

Michigan State’s opening possession went nowhere: three plays, two yards, and a fourth-and-eight from its own 27. Jeffery came free and got a hand on Rhys Dakin’s punt, which traveled 14 yards and came down at the Michigan State 41. Notre Dame took over there and spent 11 plays covering those 41 yards, with Nolan James Jr. pushing in from two yards out for a 10-0 lead.

It was the first blocked punt of Jeffery’s career and the sixth for this program since the start of 2024. On a night when Notre Dame’s offense had to work for everything it got, the only easy points came off a special teams play.

Luke Talich Intercepts Milivojevic at the 27, 3:02 First Quarter

Michigan State had just picked up its first first down of the game, a 13-yard completion to Rodney Bullard Jr. On the next snap, Milivojevic threw from the shotgun and Talich took it at the Notre Dame 27.

It was the first interception Notre Dame’s defense recorded all season, and the fifth of Talich’s career. It also ended the first Michigan State possession that had shown any life, with the Spartans down 10-0 and still looking for a way into the game.

Notre Dame did nothing with it: four plays, 23 yards, and a turnover on downs at midfield.

The One Time Michigan State Pushed Back

Milivojevic Finds Bullard for 53, Fancher Scores From 15, 3:24 Second Quarter

Notre Dame had just gone up 17-3, and looked like they were going to run away with this one but this is where the game got interesting. On second-and-10 from his own 32, Milivojevic threw deep left to Bullard Jr., who caught it between Luke Talich and Adon Shuler at the Notre Dame 15. Fifty-three yards on one throw. Notre Dame challenged the catch because it was clear the ball touched the ground. It was unclear whether or not the ball moved, however, so the ball was upheld.

Cam Fancher came in as the change-of-pace quarterback on the next snap, took a first-and-10 out of the shotgun, and ran left into the end zone from 15 yards out. Liam Boyd’s kick made it 17-10 with 3:21 on the clock. Michigan State took advantage of Notre Dame’s aggressiveness and caught several Irish defenders including Bryce Young and Adon Shuler over pursuing.

Three plays, 68 yards, 1:17 of clock, and a 14-point Notre Dame lead was a one-score game with the half winding down. It was also, effectively, Michigan State’s entire offensive night. The Spartans scored 10 points and never threatened again.

The Fourth-Quarter Sequence That Ended It

CJ Carr Hits Micah Gilbert for 39, 11:27 Fourth Quarter

Notre Dame led 20-10 and had just gotten the ball back after Boubacar Traore’s strip-sack of Milivojevic, which Michigan State recovered before punting it away. Two plays into the drive, Carr threw deep left on second-and-12, and Gilbert caught it at the Michigan State 3.

Gilbert finished with eight catches for 170 yards, both career highs, and it was the biggest receiving day by a Notre Dame player since 2017. The 39-yarder put the Irish a snap away from ending the game.

Carr Runs It In From Three, 10:55 Fourth Quarter

First-and-goal from the 3, and Carr kept it up the middle himself. Porath’s kick made it 27-10 against a Michigan State offense that hadn’t scored since Fancher’s run in the second quarter.

It was Carr’s only touchdown of the night, and it came on the ground. His streak of 14 consecutive games with a touchdown pass ended there. All three Notre Dame touchdowns came on the ground – one each from Carr, Nolan James Jr, and Aneyas Williams.

Michigan State ran one play on the possession that followed. Milivojevic threw it, and Adon Shuler picked it off.