Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 23, 2024 19 Marcus Freeman said. "That's what complementary football is." The carnage began on the opening kickoff when UVA graduate student wide receiver Chris Tyree officially made his return to South Bend. Tyree ran up to catch a short kick and booted it directly into the hands of Notre Dame graduate student special teamer Max Hurleman, who recovered it at the 25- yard line. Love scored four plays later, and before long, it was the defense's turn to take the ball away. With 2:34 to go in the second quar- ter and the Irish up 14-0, Colandrea thought he had a wide receiver open over the middle. He did not see Notre Dame sophomore safety Adon Shuler in perfect position to jump in front of the route, leap into the air and intercept his pass. Shuler nearly took it to the house, returning it to the 2-yard line. Senior quarterback Riley Leonard found soph- omore tight end Cooper Flanagan wide open for a score on the next play, put- ting the game out of reach. But Notre Dame wasn't done. On the Cavaliers' next possession, Irish freshman cornerback Leonard Moore picked off a deflected Colandrea pass deep in Cavalier territory. Three snaps later, a scrambling Leonard hit senior tight end Mitchell Evans on the right sideline. Evans faked inside, turned up the field and dove headfirst over a Virginia defender for his second touchdown in as many weeks, as well as Leonard's third of the game. "It makes you hungry to get back out there," graduate student linebacker Jack Kiser said. "When those short series happen, you want to get right back on the field. We were flying around, having a lot of fun tonight." On Senior Day, though, graduate stu- dent safety Xavier Watts wasn't about to let the underclassmen create turn- overs without him. He had already re- covered a fumble forced by fellow grad- uate student safety Rod Heard II, but he joined the pick party shortly after Evans scored. With graduate student defensive tackle Rylie Mills breathing down his neck, a panicked Colandrea chucked the ball in Watts' direction and paid the price. Watts intercepted his fourth pass of the season, and it was the last one Colandrea threw against the Irish. "He's really good at getting the ball and always being in the right spot," Shuler said about Watts. "If you watch film, X is always in the right spot." Notre Dame harassed Colandrea and later his backup, graduate student quarterback Tony Muskett, all game. The Cavaliers totaled 172 yards on 36 passes, averaging a pitiful 4.8 yards per attempt. A sack from Kiser, playing his pro- gram-record 63rd game in a blue-and- gold uniform, was the finishing touch. "Any time you step on the field at Notre Dame Stadium, you're gonna go all out," Kiser said. "That mindset doesn't change." With two more wins, Kiser and com- pany could experience that feeling one more time. FIRST QUARTER NOTRE DAME 7, VIRGINIA 0 Top moment: Former Notre Dame wide receiver Chris Tyree couldn't catch the opening kickoff, and Irish graduate student Max Hurleman fielded it cleanly to give the Irish offense the ball at the Virginia 25-yard line. Feature performer: Graduate stu- dent punter James Rendell booted a sea- son-long 64-yard punt for the Irish and averaged 47.0 yards on three kicks. Notable Stats: Virginia outgained Notre Dame 74 to 54 in total yards. The Cavaliers averaged 4.9 yards per play to the Irish's 4.2. Virginia possessed the ball for 7:49 while Notre Dame had it for 7:11. Items: Sophomore running back Jeremiyah Love scored a 4-yard touch- down to continue his streak of scoring in every game this season … Graduate student linebacker Jack Kiser broke up a pass on fourth-and-2 … Two holding penalties on different drives led to a pair of Irish three-and-outs. SECOND QUARTER NOTRE DAME 28, VIRGINIA 0 Top moment: Notre Dame perfectly executed a fake punt for a 73-yard touch- down run by sophomore wide receiver Jordan Faison, but it was called back for an illegal formation the Irish sideline did not agree with. For better or worse, it really was the top moment in the entire game let alone the second quarter. Feature performer: Graduate stu- dent safety Rod Heard II had 3 total tackles and a forced fumble recovered by graduate student safety Xavier Watts deep in Irish territory — a points-saving takeaway. Notable Stats: Notre Dame outgained Virginia 147 to 79 in total yards. The Irish averaged 6.7 yards per play to the Cava- liers' 3.4. Notre Dame possessed the ball for 8:38 while Virginia had it for 6:22. Items: Hurleman giveth, Hurleman taketh away; he muffed a punt to set Virginia up at the Notre Dame 42 … The Irish sustained a lengthy drive that ended in an 8-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Riley Leon- ard to graduate student wide receiver Jayden Harrison … Harrison had a 78- yard touchdown catch called back for an illegal hands to the face penalty on senior center Pat Coogan … Sophomore safety Adon Shuler intercepted a pass Sophomore running back Jeremiyah Love had 16 carries for a career-high 137 yards and 2 touchdowns against Virginia. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER