Notre Dame had a nice run of 26 consecutive home wins, but all good things must come to an end. It happened Saturday with a 24-13 loss to Cincinnati, and the Irish’s College Football Playoff hopes likely died along with the aforementioned streak. Meanwhile, the Bearcats’ playoff hopes remain alive, and they have their revenge against Brian Kelly and Marcus Freeman.
The Bearcats (4-0) looked to be in business early in the fourth quarter when Desmond Ridder completed a 44-yard pass to Alec Pierce to get to the 25-yard line of the Irish (4-1). They barely got into the red zone, prompting a call to Cole Smith to attempt a 37-yard field goal. Smith missed his second field goal of the half, and the score remained 17-7.
Drew Pyne came on to lead a drive that included completions of 14 yards to Lorenzo Styles and 20 yards to Michael Mayer. It culminated in a 32-yard touchdown pass to Braden Lenzy, putting the Irish within an extra point of a three-point deficit. Instead, Jonathan Doerer picked a bad time to miss his first extra-point kick since Oct. 2018, meaning the Irish would need another touchdown without giving one up to take the lead.
The Bearcats’ offense went right back to work. Jerome Ford ran for 16 yards on one play, and Leonard Taylor had a 36-yard reception on the other. After another Ford run that went for 11 yards, Ridder took the ball himself to earn a 6-yard touchdown run. Notre Dame Stadium was silent once again except for the large contingent of Bearcats fans in attendance.
Pyne did his best to manufacture a response with time running out, getting the offense to the Bearcats’ 41. That’s where Jabari Taylor and Malik Vann sacked Pyne on second down, and the Irish’s last flickering hopes went out with the back-to-back incomplete passes that followed. Let the party begin in Ohio for the Bearcats’ biggest win ever.
