Playing away from Indiana for the first time since Week 1, No. 12 Notre Dame (6-1) defeated Georgia Tech 31-13 on Saturday. The Irish downed the short-handed Yellow Jackets (5-3) at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta with a balanced offense and a stubborn defense. It was the Irish’s formidable rushing attack that proved the difference maker in the contest. All three offensive touchdowns for the Irish came on the ground. With the Week 8 win over the upset-minded Yellow Jackets, Notre Dame improves its all-time series record against Georgia Tech to 31-6-1.
“A great team win,” head coach Marcus Freeman said to open his post-game press conference. “I have a lot of respect for that program (Georgia Tech). They did a heck of a job in terms of where they’ve gotten that program to and the way they played today. They played with a physicality and an edge. Our guys played well. After going down 7-0, they responded defensively and made the corrections. Offensively, they really got it rolling on the last two drives of the first half. Overall, everybody had a part in it. It was a group effort.”
Irish Forced to Play From Behind Again
For the fourth straight game, Notre Dame’s opponent scored first. The slow-starting Irish, however, have excelled in the scenario all season long. Following a Riley Leonard interception to Warren Burrell on the Irish’s second drive, Georgia Tech capped off a 13-play drive with a Jamal Haynes touchdown. Haynes recovered his own fumble at the goal line on the score, giving the Yellow Jackets an early 7-0 advantage.
Leonard and the Irish, however, answered on the next drive. Leonard found the end zone for his ninth rushing touchdown of the season, to tie the game at seven. He scored on the ground a second time in the first half, notching his 10th rushing touchdown of the season to put the Irish up 14-7. With that score, he became just the third Irish quarterback to rush for double-digit touchdowns in a season. He joins Brandon Wimbush, 14, in 2017, and DeShone Kizer, 10, in 2015. After his early miscue, Leonard settled down. He relied mostly on passes underneath, putting the ball in the hands of his playmakers to keep drives alive. All told, Leonard completed 20-of-29 passes for 203 yards and one interception.
On the receiving front, Beaux Collins logged his fifth game at Notre Dame with four or more catches. He finished the game with five receptions for a team-high 51 yards.
Notre Dame Rushing Attack Rolls On
The Irish ground game proved to be the driving force behind Saturday’s win. All three of Notre Dame’s offensive touchdowns came via the rushing attack. The dominant performance demonstrated the Irish’s ability to control the line of scrimmage and wear down their opponents.
Running back Jeremiyah Love scored from one yard out in the third quarter to cap a 60-yard, six-play drive. Love, a dynamic and instinctive runner, has scored in every game this season. He finished the game with 36 yards on 14 carries. Jadarian Price led all Irish rushers on the day. He gained 69 yards on eight carries (8.6 average). Leonard rushed for 51 yards on 10 carries with two rushing touchdowns.
Notre Dame’s D Stifles Georgia Tech’s Rushing Attack
With Georgia Tech’s starting quarterback Haynes King out with a shoulder injury, back-up Zach Pyron got the start for the Yellow Jackets. Making his first start since the 2022 season, Pyron was effective early. He opened the game 9-for-9 passing for 81 yards in the first quarter. The Irish defense, however, had Pyron’s number the rest of the way. Defensive lineman Rylie Mills sacked Pyron twice in the game. For the game, he completed 20-of-36 pass attempts for 269 yards. Pyron threw one touchdown and two interceptions. His touchdown throw, a 7-yard pass to Chase Lane, came with just 33 seconds remaining.
Georgia Tech entered Saturday’s game with a rushing attack that had racked up 311 yards against North Carolina and 245 yards against Duke. On Saturday, Notre Dame’s defense held Georgia Tech to a season-low 64 rushing yards. Haynes carried the ball eight times for 15 yards. Pyron led all Georgia Tech rushers with 45 yards on 13 carries. On the other side of the ball, the Irish amassed 385 yards of offense
No Morrison, No Problem for Irish
Despite missing cornerback Benjamin Morrison, the Irish defense stood tall once again. Xavier Watts intercepted Pyron early in the fourth quarter. Watts, who led the FBS with seven picks a season ago, now has 10 career interceptions. Three of them this season. Watts is the 19th Notre Dame player to intercept 10 or more passes in a career. He is tied for 12th (with six other players) on the all-time list for career interceptions in program history. Adon Shuler got in on the action as well with a 36-yard pick-six late in the game that put the Irish up 31-7. And freshman Leonard Moore, playing for the injured Morrison, flashed. Moore had a career-high seven tackles. In two starts this season, Moore has recorded 14 tackles.
Looking Ahead
While their victory over Georgia Tech lacked style points, the Fighting Irish have solidified their position as a legitimate College Football Playoff contender. The slow-starting Irish still have work to do. They took care of business against a team that lacked its starting quarterback and its leading tackler, linebacker Kyle Efford who missed the game due to an undisclosed injury. But Saturday’s win was the fifth consecutive victory for Notre Dame following the surprising loss to Northern Illinois in Week 2.
Having already defeated two ranked opponents in Texas A&M and Louisville, Notre Dame now faces a pivotal stretch of their schedule with crucial matchups against the service academies ahead. Notre Dame faces No. 25 Navy (5-0) next week at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ, and will take on Army in New York on Nov. 23. Both academies are playing well and won’t be easy outs this season. On Saturday, the Midshipmen defeated Charlotte 51-17.
