Notre Dame Defeats Miami To Keep College Football Playoff Hopes Alive

As the top high school player in Wyoming, Luke Talich received scholarship offers from a few Football Bowl Subdivision programs, including Utah and Washington State. Instead, Talich chose to enroll at Notre Dame as a preferred walk-on in 2023. A year later, he earned a scholarship. Now, Talich will be remembered for years to come.

On Saturday night, Talich, a senior safety, made two crucial defensive plays, helping the No. 11 Fighting Irish defeat No. 1 Miami, 31-24, to keep their hopes of advancing to the College Football Playoff alive.

Late in the third quarter, Talich picked off Miami quarterback Darian Mensah’s pass near midfield, only Mensah’s second interception this season. The Irish then scored to go ahead 31-17 early in the fourth quarter. After Miami cut its deficit to seven points and had the ball with a chance to tie the game, Talich broke up a pass in the end zone on fourth down with 3:36 remaining, keeping the Irish’s lead intact.

Although Miami had one final drive with 57 seconds remaining, Notre Dame’s defense again stopped the Hurricanes (8-1) and gave the Irish (8-1) their biggest regular season victory in decades. It was Notre Dame’s 10th win over the No. 1 team in the Associated Press poll and first since November 2020 when the Irish defeated Clemson, 47-40, in double overtime in a game that only 11,000 people attended due to Covid-19 restrictions.

Still, Saturday’s victory at a sold-out Notre Dame Stadium was even more important, as the Irish could have been eliminated from CFP contention if they lost. Notre Dame is No. 4 in the AP poll but just No. 11 in the CFP rankings, with selection committee chairman Hunter Yurachek noting on Tuesday that the Irish did not have a signature win. Not anymore.

“This is as good of a win as I’ve ever been a part of and as special of a moment, as special of an outcome that I’ve been a part of since I’ve been the head coach here,” Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said during his postgame press conference.

That is saying something considering Freeman led the Irish to the national title game in January 2025 after defeating Indiana, Georgia and Penn State in playoff games. But last season, the Irish lost their first two games to Miami and Texas A&M, by far the best opponents on their schedule. The Hurricanes ended up getting the final at-large berth in last year’s CFP because of that victory. And three weeks ago, Notre Dame lost 28-24 at BYU, the only other ranked team besides Miami it will face all season.

After entering the year No. 4 in the AP poll and with national title expectations, the Irish were suddenly facing pressure to defeat the Hurricanes, one of only three undefeated teams in the FBS. A loss would have severely diminished Notre Dame’s playoff chances, as the remaining schedule features games against Boston College (4-5), SMU (7-2) and Syracuse (4-5), so those victories would not count for much in the CFP selection committee’s eyes.

Now, the Irish are in a prime position, thanks to the play of Talich and so many others, including quarterback CJ Carr, who is among the Heisman Trophy favorites. Carr, who made his starting debut in last year’s 27-24 loss at Miami, had the best game of his career Saturday. Carr completed 29 of 40 passes for 319 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions and came through in crucial moments.

Late in the first half on third down and 4 from Notre Dame’s 25-yard line, Carr ran away from pressure towards the end zone, kept his composure and completed a 10-yard pass to running back Aneyas Williams. Five plays later, Carr threw a touchdown pass to receiver Micah Gilbert, putting the Irish ahead 17-3 with 26 seconds remaining.

Early in the fourth quarter, Carr had another throw that kept a drive alive and led to a score. On fourth down and 2 from the Miami 43-yard line, Carr completed a pass to running back Nolan James Jr., who ran up the left sideline for a 36-yard gain, giving the Irish a first and goal on the 7-yard line. After a penalty, James Jr. ran up the middle for a one-yard touchdown and a 31-17 lead.

In all, Carr completed passes to 10 players, including Gilbert, who had a career-high nine catches and two touchdowns, and Faison, who had six receptions. Faison also had a 56-yard punt return early in the third quarter that gave the Irish the ball on the Miami 30-yard line. Notre Dame took advantage, as Carr found Gilbert for a touchdown and a 24-3 lead.

From there, Miami’s explosive offensive finally came alive, as Mensah threw touchdown passes on the next two drives. But on both possessions, Notre Dame played without star cornerback Leonard Moore, who sat out after getting poked in the eye. Mark Zackery, an Irish backup cornerback, was covering on both of Mensah’s touchdown throws.

Moore returned late in the third quarter, helping an Irish defense that played the entire game without defensive linemen Francis Brewu and Jason Onye, linebacker Drayk Bowen and cornerback DJ McKinney, all of whom were injured. Miami wasn’t at full strength, either. Sophomore receiver Malachi Toney, who had 73 catches for 1,027 yards and 13 touchdowns this season, didn’t play after sustaining a high ankle sprain in practice during Wednesday’s practice.

With Toney sidelined, Mensah was without his top target and arguably the best player in the nation. As such, Mensah, who had completed 80.7% of his passes for 2,425 yards, 25 touchdowns and just one interception in Miami’s first eight games, wasn’t as effective Saturday. He completed 24 of 43 passes for 276 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

Still, the Irish’s defense deserves credit, too. Miami averaged 3.6 yards per play on its 28 carries, far below its 5.5 yards per carry entering Saturday, And Notre Dame pressured Mensah all night, compiling two sacks and breaking up seven passes, including Talich’s play on tight end Elija Lofton late in the fourth quarter.

Afterward, Miami coach Mario Cristobal criticized the call, believing that Lofton caught the ball in the end zone, which would have tied the score at 31-31. Instead, the referees ruled Talich broke up the pass and Lofton was out of bounds, giving the ball back to the Irish.

“We told our team before we left Miami, do not leave it in the hands of the officials because that’s what you’re going to get out here,” Cristobal said. “Aside from that, very hard fought game. Congratulations to Notre Dame for winning the game and very disappointed in the way that was called with the game on the line and clear possession of a football inbounds.”

Asked about what the referees told him when they reviewed the call, Cristobal said, “Zero explanation. Zero.”

Freeman, meanwhile, was effusive of his team’s performance, yet he knows the CFP berth is not yet locked up. Before Saturday, the Irish’s most recent significant regular season victory probably occurred in November 1993 when they defeated No. 1 Florida State, 31-24, in what was billed as the “Game of the Century.” The next Saturday, the Irish lost to Boston College at home.

A similar situation is occurring now. Notre Dame just defeated the nation’s No. 1 team by the same 31-24 score. And next Saturday, Boston College comes to town, although this year’s Eagles are much worse than the team from 33 years ago.

Still, Freeman isn’t taking anything for granted. He remembers what happened last year when the Irish seemed certain to get into the CFP, only to see Miami jump them in the final poll and receive the final at-large berth. But he also wants to cherish what happened Saturday.

Before the game, Freeman spoke with his players about Notre Dame’s 31-30 victory over No. 1 Miami in 1988, one of the most iconic games in program history. The Irish ended up winning the national title that season, the last time that occurred. Now, they can still dream of a CFP championship, thanks to their performance on Saturday.

“As we continue to move forward in life, I’m sure we’ll remember this moment,” Freeman said. “But I want time to stop right now because I know tomorrow’s coming. I know I’m going to wake up tomorrow and unfortunately you’ve got to let this one go. You’ve got to get ready for the next one. But I’m going to try to extend the night as long as I can, and then we’ll move forward.”

This article was originally published on Forbes.com