No. 2 Notre Dame travels to face No. 8 BYU in one of the biggest games of the season to this point. The Fighting Irish cruised to a 6-0 win, only playing one game within two scores to rank among the best teams in the country. Last week, they obliterated Stanford 58-7 behind 181 yards rushing from Jonaz Walton BYU's also been dominant during a 5-0 start, with four wins coming by multiple scores.
They have an impressive early-season win over Arizona, and held Iowa State to fewer than 100 yards until late in the fourth quarter. The Cougars are fresh off a Big 12 title game appearance only three years after joining the power conferences. The Fighting Irish and Cougars have played seven times in history, with Notre Dame holding a 5-2 advantage.
Notre Dame has won all four matchups since 2005, including a 28-20 win during the Shamrock Classic in Las Vegas in 2022. Super CJ: Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr is off to a blazing start to his second season as a starter, ranking among the most efficient passers in the country. Carr is completing 71% of his passes, averaging 9.6 yards per attempt and has thrown 16 touchdowns to one interception.
Wide receivers Jordan Faison and Micah Gilbert are neck-and-neck with more than 375 yards receiving each. Star down: BYU running back LJ Martin will miss the matchup against Notre Dame, dealing a significant blow to the Cougars' offense. The senior from El Paso posted nearly 1,600 all-purpose yards last year, ranking among the most impressive rushers in the nation.
With Martin sidelined last week, the onus fell on quarterback Bear Bachmeier, who ran for 109 yards in the win. No running back cleared 21 yards on the ground, bringing up the significant question of how the Cougars can generate offense against the elite Notre Dame defensive front. Best on best: Notre Dame and BYU both rank among the best rush defenses in college football.
The Fighting Irish are holding opponents to 2.1 yards per carry and 58.3 yards per game, while BYU is close behind at 2.9 yards per carry and 80.4 yards per game. Notre Dame's rush offense ranked among the best in the nation last season, but fell to No. 38 in yards per carry. They haven't played a rush defense close to BYU's.
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