Notre Dame was sitting at 2-0 after wins against Michigan and Ball State in September of 2018 when Vanderbilt made their first trip to South Bend since 1995.
The Irish jumped out to a 13-0 lead but for the second week in a row the offense was struggling, not finishing drives and it has anything but dominating despite the two-score lead.
The Commodores appeared headed to the end zone and to making it a one-possession game five minutes before halftime until Gilman stepped in and changed that quickly.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quFbBmJTW7U&w=560&h=315]
The teams would exchange field goals then before halftime while Notre Dame’s offense would almost entirely disappear in the second half, doing just enough to get by with a 22-17 win over the eventual 6-7 Commodores.
Gilman’s forced fumble seemed big at the time but proved to be even larger than first thought after the struggles the offense showed as the game went on. Had it not been for this forced fumble who knows if Notre Dame gets out of September unscathed, let alone go all the way to 12-0 and their first-ever appearance in the College Football Playoff.
-Playoff Berth on the Line and Another Huge Takeaway: