Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1541365
12 NOV. 22, 2025 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME Charlie Codd — Soccer The junior midfielder from Waco, Texas, scored a goal in the 75th minute to pull No. 2 Notre Dame even with No. 1 Stanford 2-2 in the cham- pionship game of the ACC Tournament Nov. 9 in Cary, N.C., before the Cardinal prevailed 5-4 over the Fighting Irish on penalty kicks after three scoreless overtime periods. Codd entered NCAA Tournament play with 2 goals and 4 assists for the season. Grace Courtney — Diving The senior from Cincinnati earned ACC Wom- en's Diver of the Week honors Oct. 28, after she remained undefeated through two meets this season. In a 151-149 win over Northwestern Oct. 24, she won both the 1-meter and 3-meter springboard events. Her 3-meter score of 357.15 was the third-best mark in the country this season. Courtney also swept both events Oct. 10, during a three-way meet with Michigan and Wisconsin. Morgan Gaerte — Volleyball The sophomore outside hitter from An- gola, Ind., recorded 21 kills, posted a career-high 7 blocks and tied her career high with 4 aces in a 3-2 upset win at North Carolina State Nov. 9. It marked the first victory for an Irish team in Raleigh, N.C., since 1986, and it was the fifth time during the regular season that Gaerte recorded at least 20 kills in a match and the 22nd straight time she tallied at least 10 kills. Kyran Magimay — Tennis The junior from Hersham, England, went 3-0 in singles play at the Farnsworth Invitational Nov. 2 in Princeton, N.J. He was one of four Notre Dame players to earn an invite to the event, and he responded with wins over players from Old Domin- ion, Ole Miss and host school Princeton. Magimay never trailed in any of his three matches and lost only one of his seven sets on the day. — Todd Burlage TOP TOP OF THE CLASS OF THE CLASS Irish student-athletes excelling on the field and in the classroom ✦ GIMME FIVE The ways to measure redshirt freshman quarterback CJ Carr's success this season continue to grow for Notre Dame. He's become an efficient passer for the Irish while also bringing explosive plays to the offense. Perhaps that's best illustrated by Carr jumping into the FBS lead for yards per pass attempt through Week 11 among quarterbacks who have played in 75 percent of their team's games with a minimum of 15.0 pass attempts per game. Carr, who averaged 10.1 yards per attempt in his first nine games this season, was the lone quarterback with a double-digit average entering Week 12. The two quarterbacks directly behind Carr — Ohio State's Julian Sayin (9.9) and Southern Cal's Jayden Maiava (9.72) — are widely considered two of the most prolific quarterbacks in the country this season. Yet Carr, who completed 67.6 percent of his passes (152 of 225) for 2,275 yards with 19 touchdowns and 4 interceptions, jumped ahead of them in yards per pass attempt following his performance against Navy. The Navy game captured how Carr can be both efficient — completing 13 of 16 passes — and explosive — 5 passes of 20-plus yards. Part of what allows Carr to stretch the field is his recognition of coverage situations Notre Dame can exploit. "He puts our offense in that position to be able to execute those plays," Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman said. "If we're not in the position to do that, you never get the opportunity to throw them. It all goes back to the way he prepares." Carr completed 40 passes of 20-plus yards through nine games, which put him behind only six quarterbacks through Week 11. He was also third in the FBS in passing efficiency rating (176.8) behind Sayin (192.6) and Indiana's Fer- nando Mendoza (178.6). — Tyler James CHARTING THE IRISH TURNOVER MACHINE Turnover margin played a significant role in Notre Dame's run to a national championship game ap- pearance in last season's College Football Playoff. The Irish finished the 2024 season with the fifth-best turnover margin in the country with 1.13 turnovers per game in Notre Dame's favor. The 2025 Irish are keeping pace with last year's turnover margin. The Irish owned a 1.11 turnovers- per-game advantage through their first nine games. Only three teams claimed better turnover margins than Notre Dame entering Week 12: Southern Miss (1.78), Indiana (1.30) and UConn (1.30). Such positive turnover margins for those schools have clearly equated to successful seasons. The three schools ahead of Notre Dame all won at least seven games — Southern Miss (7-2), Indiana (10-0) and UConn (7-3) — through Week 11. The Irish were also 7-2. Notre Dame's 18 gained turnovers, which were tied for 10th in the country, through the first nine games were lopsided in favor of interceptions. The Irish totaled 16 interceptions, which was tied for third-most in the country. Notre Dame's 2 fumble recoveries came in games against Arkansas and Southern Cal. The Irish have also done a pretty good of limiting turnovers. Notre Dame's 8 turnovers lost were tied for 13th fewest in the FBS entering Week 12. The Irish lost 4 fumbles (2 by redshirt junior running back Jadarian Price, 1 by redshirt freshman quarterback CJ Carr and 1 by redshirt senior wide receiver Malachi Fields) and 4 interceptions (all by Carr). Notre Dame should have plenty of opportunities to force more turnovers in its final two games of the season. Syracuse lost 20 turnovers (12 interceptions, 8 fumbles) in its first 10 games. Stanford gave up 16 turnovers (11 interceptions, 5 fumbles) in 10 games. — Tyler James FBS LEADERS IN YARDS PER PASS ATTEMPT Yards Per Rk. Quarterback, School Attempt 1. CJ Carr, Notre Dame 10.1 2. Julian Sayin, Ohio State 9.9 3. Jayden Maiava, Southern Cal 9.72 4. Colton Joseph, Old Dominion 9.70 5. Tommy Castellanos, Florida State 9.5 Redshirt freshman quarterback CJ Carr keeps climbing national statistical rankings. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER TURNOVER MARGIN LEADERS Through Week 11 Rk. School Gained Lost Margin Margin Per Game 1. Southern Miss 25 9 16 1.78 2. Indiana 20 7 13 1.30 UConn 14 1 13 1.30 4. North Texas 20 10 10 1.11 Notre Dame 18 8 10 1.11 Alabama 16 6 10 1.11 7. SMU 26 15 11 1.10 Texas Tech 23 12 11 1.10 Temple 13 2 11 1.10

