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By Bryan Colbert Jr.
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Notre Dame built a 21-point lead against the nation’s highest-scoring team Saturday night.
By the time Miami faced fourth down at the Irish 18 late in the fourth quarter, the difference between a Notre Dame win and a potential tie came down to whether a receiver had control of the ball in the end zone.
Officials ruled the pass incomplete, and the call stood after review.
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Notre Dame held on for a 31-24 victory in South Bend, handing No. 1 Miami its first loss four days after the College Football Playoff committee put the Hurricanes atop its opening rankings. Both teams are now 8-1.
CJ Carr threw three touchdown passes for the Irish, two of them to Micah Gilbert on either side of halftime. With 29 seconds left in the second quarter, Carr found Gilbert from 18 yards out to give Notre Dame a 17-3 lead.
After the Irish forced a punt to open the third, Jordan Faison’s return gave them the ball at the Miami 30.
Three plays later, Carr hit Gilbert again, this time from 20 yards out for a 24-3 lead.
Miami had scored at least 30 points in each of its first eight games, but it had to mount its comeback without injured receiver Malachi Toney, who had caught 13 of Darian Mensah’s 25 touchdown passes entering Saturday.
Mensah found two other targets in the third quarter, hitting Elija Lofton and Cooper Barkate for 12-yard touchdowns less than three minutes apart.
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With Miami back within seven, Notre Dame safety Luke Talich intercepted Mensah. Nolan James Jr. finished the ensuing drive with a 1-yard touchdown run.
Mensah’s second scoring pass to Barkate cut the lead to 31-24 with 9:53 left, setting up Miami’s late chance to pull even.
The result gives the playoff committee a different head-to-head comparison than it had a year ago. Last season, Miami beat Notre Dame 27-24 and claimed a playoff berth while the Irish stayed home.
This time, Notre Dame entered the weekend 10 places behind Miami in the committee’s rankings. It leaves with the same record and a win over the team that held the top spot.
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