5. Notre Dame survives slow start…
A few mental lapses helped create a bit of concern early for Notre Dame as it drove the length of the field to start the game before a slip by a wide-open end zone target and a ball lost in the sun kept the Irish to three points.
The second quarter saw Notre Dame put together a nice drive, but on fourth-and-3, freshman tight end Michael Mayer tried to do too much, stepping behind the line to gain and being tackled for a stop.
It wasn’t a pretty start by any means, but the defense played well enough to the hold the deficit to 7-3 before the game changed on one play.
Next: Turning point of the afternoon….