Senior quarterback Riley Leonard has been named to the Davey O’Brien Great 8 list for his dominant performance in the 66-7 win at Purdue. In the first half alone, Leonard passed for 112 yards and rushed for 100 yards and three touchdowns. The senior has already been named to the 2024 Davey O’Brien Award watch list.
Leonard was the first quarterback since Lamar Jackson in 2016 to pass for 100 yards, rush for 100 yards and rush for three touchdowns in a first half.
The 42-0 lead at halftime for Notre Dame was the team’s second-highest lead at the break since 1996. Prior to this past weekend, no road FBS team had owned a larger halftime lead against a home team this season. With the lead, Leonard did not see action in the second half.
With three rushing touchdowns in just the first half at Purdue, Leonard is one of just two quarterbacks so far this season to achieve that feat in a single game, and the only one to do so this weekend. He is the only FBS quarterback this season to achieve the feat in a single half.
With 23-career rushing touchdowns, Leonard ranks tied for third among all active FBS quarterbacks in rushing touchdowns. Leonard led Notre Dame to the most dominant win by an opposing team in Purdue history, besting the Boilermakers 66-7.
It was Leonard’s sixth-career game with multiple rushing touchdowns, which is tied for third-most among active FBS quarterbacks. Only three FBS quarterbacks totaled more rushing yards than Leonard this weekend, and just one scored a singular rushing touchdown. Leonard was the only one of those four quarterbacks that did not see a snap in the second half.
Notre Dame was the only FBS squad with three separate rushers (Jeremiyah Love – 109, Jadarian Price – 86) at 86 or more rushing yards against a Power 4 defense this weekend, and one of just two FBS teams overall to achieve the feat this weekend.