PALO ALTO, Calif. — The 16th-ranked University of Notre Dame football team overcame a 10-point deficit and scored 24 unanswered points to close out the regular season with a 45-24 victory over Stanford on Saturday at Stanford Stadium.
The Irish (10-2) reached the 10-win plateau for the third straight season and the fourth time in five years.
Quarterback Ian Book became the first Notre Dame quarterback to throw for at least four touchdowns five times in a season, going 17-for-30 for 255 yards. Wide receiver Chase Claypool snared two touchdown passes, surpassing Jim Seymour to move into 10th place in the Irish record books with 18 career touchdown receptions. He finished with three catches for 63 yards, while tight end Cole Kmet led all Irish receivers with five catches for 77 yards.
Linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah led the Irish with nine tackles, while defensive lineman Ade Ogundeji had six tackles, 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble and Khalid Kareem had five tackles and recovered a fumble for a touchdown.
How It Happened
After Stanford scored on its opening drive when quarterback Davis Mills connected on a five-yard pass to Brycen Tremayne, the Irish responded on their first possession to tie the game at seven. On the 75-yard drive, Book was 4-for-5 for 70 yards, including the screen pass to Jones that went for a 16-yard touchdown. It was Book’s 30th TD pass of the year, making him the second Notre Dame quarterback to reach the milestone (Brady Quinn did it twice). It was also the 53rd of his career, moving him past Ron Powlus for fourth all-time in program history.
The Irish offense struggled throughout the rest of the half, but a blocked punt with 4:45 left in the half injected new life into the Irish attack. The Cardinal had taken a 17-7 lead, settling for a field goal after an 82-yard drive at the end of the first quarter and adding a Mills touchdown pass to Michael Wilson on their first possession of the second stanza. On the next Stanford drive, however, the Irish forced a three-and-out to induce a Cardinal punt from their own 24. Freshman Isaiah Foskey blocked the attempted and recovered it at the Stanford one-yard line.
A false start penalty pushed the Irish back to the six, but Book found Tremble on third down to pull the Irish within 17-14.
It appeared to be the boost the Irish needed, as the offense erupted on the next drive, covering 76 yards in three plays and ending in a 41-yard touchdown reception by Claypool to make it 21-17 with 1:20 left in half.
Book and Claypool hooked up again on the next Irish scoring drive late in the third quarter with an eight-yard touchdown to cap an eight-play, 86-yard possession with 3:10 to go. Jonathan Doerer made it 31-17 at the 13:34 mark of the fourth quarter after Irish long snapper John Shannon recovered a muffed Stanford punt return.
After the Irish forced Stanford into another punt, the Irish scored their first rushing touchdown of the night when C’Bo Flemister punched it in from one yard out with 5:10 remaining. The play capped a 10-play, 72-yard drive and was preceded by rushes of 28 yards by Jafar Armstrong and 24 yards by Braden Lenzy.
Stanford tacked on a touchdown on its next possession, but after the Irish backed up the Cardinal with a punt to the two-yard line, they removed all doubt in the final minute after Kareem recovered a fumble forced by Ogundeji in the end zone to account for the final 45-24 score.