Notre Dame delivered a complete, wire-to-wire performance in Pittsburgh, overwhelming No. 23 Pitt 37–15 behind explosive plays, relentless defense, and a ground game led by Jeremiyah Love. The Irish struck twice in the first 20 seconds, built a 21–3 halftime lead, and never let the Panthers threaten as Marcus Freeman’s team earned its most convincing road win of the season. From Tae Johnson’s pick-six to C.J. Carr’s efficient three-touchdown afternoon, the Irish controlled every phase in a game that showcased November football at its best.
- Love’s lightning strike opens the scoring. Jeremiyah Love took Notre Dame’s first offensive snap 56 yards to the house, setting the tone for a dominant day on the ground.
- Tae Johnson’s pick-six makes it 14–0 in seconds. On Pitt’s first play after the kickoff, Johnson jumped a route and returned it 49 yards for his first career touchdown.
- Carr to Fields — twice. C.J. Carr connected with Malachi Fields for touchdowns of 25 and 6 yards, part of Fields’ season-high 7 receptions for 99 yards.
- Shuler flips the momentum back after a pick-six. After Pitt cut the lead to 28–9 on a defensive touchdown, Adon Shuler returned the blocked PAT for two points to immediately reclaim control.
- Carr adds a rushing score to finish it.
The freshman QB punched in a 5-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to close out a 212-yard, three-score performance. - Special teams shine.
Erik Schmidt went 5-for-5 on PATs, Jordan Faison added 36 punt return yards, and Jadarian Price flipped the field with a 43-yard kickoff return.
Frank Vitovitch has been Co-Owner and Editor in Chief of UHND.com since joining forces with Kyle Flavin in 1999. Since that time, he has written over 2,000 articles covering Notre Dame football, recruiting, and basketball. He also works with all staff and external writers on all articles published on UHND.com. Frank's love for Notre Dame football started at a young age watching Rocket Ismail give opposing coaches ulcers in the late 1980's. By day Frank works in marketing and holds a degree in Digital Media from Drexel University. Frank's work has been cited by online/print editions of NBC Sports, ESPN, and Sports Illustrated and has been quoted on air by ESPN's Collin Cowherd. He's conducted interviews with Notre Dame legends Rocket Ismail, Randy Kinder, Lee Becton, Reggie Brooks, Michael Stonebreaker, and Ned Bolcar among others over his 20+ years of covering Notre Dame football. He's also been published in the print edition of USA Today Sports Weekly and the USA Today College Football Preview multiple times. Other Published Works/Citations for Frank Three Reasons Notre Dame Will Beat Alabama - USA Today Notre Dame Suspends WR Kevin Stepherson, RB C.J. Holmes Indefinitely - Bleacher Report Notre Dame / Ohio State Fiesta Bowl Preview - Eleven Warriors Brace Yourself: The Fighting Irish are Relevant Again - Sports on Earth Interviews with the Enemy: A Q&A with Frank Vitovitch of UHND - Yahoo! Sports Five Good Minutes: Notre Dame Football Preview With UHND.com - BC Interruption Vicious Electronic Questioning with UHND - MGO Blog
A convincing beatdown versus ND hater, Coach What Uhdoozy, but Pitt did hold ND to under “100 or 110!” ACC refs gave his team a last second TD opportunity with their weekly phantom calls, this week for apparently ND trying to tackle the backup QB.
Twice !!
Great team effort but . . .
Fourth and a foot and you pass?
Enough of these horizontal passes. Raridon and Fields were outstanding. The D’ played their best game of the season, now two weeks in a row. The DBs excelled.
10 QB hurries ( most since 2018) with consistent pressure and varying zone schemes that caused their young talented QB apoplexy.
Great run defense !
Sneed led the team in tackles.
Pitt 0-13 on third down
Gotta love Love.