Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 22, 2025 9 UNDER THE DOME ✦ BY THE NUMBERS PHOTO BY NICK GRACE 2 Is the number of national awards Notre Dame sophomore cor- nerback LEONARD MOORE was named a semifinalist for in early November, making a total of three after being named a Thorpe Award semifinalist Oct. 28. Moore was named one of 17 semifinalists for the Bednarik Award, given annually to the top defensive player in college football. He also was one of eight named as a semifinalist for the Lott Impact Trophy, which recognizes the nation's top defensive player who makes an impact on and off the field. The Thorpe Award honors the nation's top defensive back, and Moore is one of 15 semifinalists for that honor. Linebacker Manti Te'o is Notre Dame's only previous winner for both the Bednarik and Lott honors. An Irish player has never won the Thorpe Award since its inception in 1986. No. 3 Was where ESPN ranked Notre Dame's women's basketball recruiting class heading into the early signing period Nov. 12. Only Southern Cal (No. 1) and Duke (No. 2) were rated higher. "Notre Dame's 2026 high school class is head- lined by four high-level forwards with varied skill sets and one of the nation's premier shoot- ers," ESPN's Shane Laflin noted. "This group will fill a considerable void with four of ND's top five interior players graduating af- ter this season." The five-woman Irish class includes Frisco (Texas) Lib- erty wing Jacy Abii (the No. 12 overall player in Rivals Industry Rank- ings), Johnston (Iowa) High guard Jenica Lewis (No. 21), DeSoto (Texas) High forward Amari Byles (No. 22), Hoschton (Ga.) Mill Creek wing Isabella Ragone (No. 24), and Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Pine Crest School forward Isa- bella Sangha (No. 78). 8 Straight Senior Day victories for Notre Dame heading into this year's matchup with Syracuse at Notre Dame Stadium. The last time the Irish lost on Senior Day was 2016, when Virginia Tech took down the Irish, 34-31, in a 4-8 lost season under head coach Brian Kelly. 20 Was the ranking for Notre Dame graduate student guard Iyana Moore among ESPN's top impact transfers in women's college basketball heading into the 2025-26 season. "The transfer portal was a net negative for Irish coach Niele Ivey, who lost Miles and Kate Koval," ESPN's Charlie Crème noted. "But Moore makes the deficit more palatable. Her consistency and versatility should make her a good fit play- ing alongside Hannah Hidalgo. She played with another high- scoring guard in Mikayla Blakes at Vanderbilt last season and still managed to score 12.4 points per game." +26 Margin of victory for Notre Dame during its seven-game win streak from Week to Week 11. That was tied with Ohio State for the larg- est average margin of victory among undefeated FBS teams during that time period, per CBS Sports. In their seven wins the Fighting Irish won by an average score of 40-14. In six victories, the Buckeyes outscored their foes 34-8. In addition, Notre Dame became the first school to win seven straight after starting the season 0-2 since Washington State in 2016. 33 FBS teams (out of 136 total) Notre Dame has yet to play or schedule in football after recently scheduling a home-and- home with Auburn in 2027 and 2028. That breaks down to five Power Four teams and 28 Group of Six teams, 13 of the latter from the Sun Belt Conference. 41 Times ESPN's College GameDay has been onsite at a Notre Dame football game — home, away or at a neutral site — since the pregame staple became a traveling show in 1993. That includes the matchup at Pitt Nov. 15. Ohio State has the most GameDay appearances with 67, followed by Alabama (61), Florida (43), Oklahoma and Georgia (42 each), and then Notre Dame and Michigan tied at 41. 44 Points and 16 steals for junior guard Hannah Hidalgo in Notre Dame's 85-58 win over Akron Nov. 12. She is the first player in NBA, WNBA or NCAA history (men or women, any division) with 40+ points and 15+ steals in a game, per OptaStats. No. 47 Recruiting class in the country for Notre Dame men's basketball in the early signing, per Rivals Team Industry Rankings. It was the ninth-best group in the ACC. The three-man Irish class includes La Porte (Ind.) La Lumiere standout Jonathan Sanderson (No. 11 point guard and No. 70 overall player in the Rivals Industry Rankings), La Porte (Ind.) La Lumiere big man Gan-Erdene Solongo (No. 15 center and No. 138 overall player) and South Bend Saint Joseph three-star Nick Shrewsberry (No. 82 shooting guard and No. 350 overall). 67th Was where Jay Bilas of ESPN ranked the Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team in his season-opening "Bilas Index" that lists the top 68 teams in the country. "Is this the season Markus Burton's team finally lives up to his individual play?," Bilas asked. "The junior guard has been a star throughout his college career, averaging 21.3 points last season, and he could be a sneaky ACC Player of the Year pick. But Notre Dame hasn't won behind him — yet. If the Irish can make a jump this season, Burton will shine." — Eric Hansen