Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM SEPT. 19, 2026 31 G iven Rice's proclivity to use the forward pass sparingly on offense and, in general, do it poorly when the Owls do dabble in it, throwing at Notre Dame All-American cornerback Leonard Moore on its first snap of the game, at best, constituted a trick play that tricked no one. At worst, it looked like Rice head coach Scott Abell pulled someone out of the stands to call plays — and maybe even an Irish fan, at that. Then again, when Rice turned to its staple — the running game — on play No. 2, Irish safety Adon Shuler deliv- ered a crushing hit on slot man Davis Lane, who fumbled. Irish defensive end Boubacar Traore scooped it up, raced 24 yards for a touchdown, and No. 3 Notre Dame drew first blood 14 seconds into a 52-0 domination of the Owls (1-1) at Notre Dame Stadium. What followed that dreamlike start was exactly the kind of reality head coach Marcus Freeman wanted from a game Notre Dame (2-0) was never sup- posed to lose. The first shutout by an Irish football team since Freeman's first season (2022) and its 12th straight vic- tory, all by double digits dating back to Game 3 of last season, unfolded the way Notre Dame needed it to. That is, not wasting an opportunity to get better, even against an opponent that was as overmatched as the Owls appeared to be in the sixth-ever meet- ing between the two schools. The opportunity was not about re- deeming the imperfect aesthetics of a 41-13 win over Wisconsin six days ear- lier, but about reaffirming that this team truly lived its "Leave No Doubt" offsea- son slogan and a team that will continue to find ways to play up to a standard, not risk playing down to a heavy underdog of an opponent. One of the ways Notre Dame ac- complished that against Rice was by exploring and testing the depth chart the Irish figure they'll need when the temperatures get colder, the spotlight gets hotter and even the healthy players are playing through pain. Against Rice, excluding players who only played on special teams, Freeman was able to use 62 players on offense and defense, 21 more than logged snaps against Wisconsin Sept. 6. Freshman quarterback Noah Grubbs made his college debut, replacing starter CJ Carr on Notre Dame's second offen- sive series of the third quarter. He went 7-of-11 passing for 78 yards, 14 more than Rice starting quarterback Jacurri Brown, who played the whole game. Fellow freshman signal-caller Teddy Jarrard debuted in the fourth quarter, completing both of his pass attempts for 29 yards. The leading rusher in the game was Notre Dame's fourth-string running back Jonaz Walton, with 48 yards on 8 carries. His 6.0 average per carry also was the best of anyone who ran the ball for either team. Sophomore wide receiver Jerome Bettis Jr. had the most receiving yards of anyone on either team (61 on 2 receptions). Fifth- string tight end Ian Premer is still looking for his first reception, but he got his first college snap on offense and 17 more of them before much of the 21st consecutive sellout crowd had departed. "It's hard to single out one guy," Free- man said, "but it was good to see those young guys go in and compete." Some of those players receiving meaningful snaps for the first time have the potential to make Notre Dame bet- ter in 2026, when the schedule toughens later in the season. Yet even the depth experiment had boundaries. This wasn't about empty- ing the bench. It was about expand- ing the number of players Freeman can trust when the circumstances aren't nearly this forgiving. "Defensively, we had to be smart," Freeman said in limiting substitutions on that side of the ball, "because, if you didn't practice against this type of of- fense [modernized triple option] maybe on scout team, we didn't want to put them in a position to fail. So, we were very intentional about who we rotated in. They had to be guys who had gotten some scout [team] work. I'm just proud of the way they competed." By the end of his 14th start, Carr almost felt like an afterthought, but didn't play like one. The junior and second-year starter completed his first nine pass attempts on the day and fin- ished 16-of-20 passing for 253 yards with no interceptions. His 4 touchdown passes tied a career high. And that's the part of Notre Dame's depth display that shouldn't get lost: Carr and the starters earned it. If they don't take care of business quickly and convincingly, Freeman doesn't get nearly as much time to turn the Rice win into a meaningful developmental exercise. "I think it's a great opportunity for us to coach them, to evaluate them on a dif- ferent level than practice," Freeman said, particularly of Carr's backup quarter- backs, "where the play clock matters, the formations matter, everything matters." Everything indeed matters for a team with national-title aspirations, includ- ing what it can squeeze out of a Sep- tember afternoon when the outcome is never seriously in doubt. Notre Dame didn't merely empty its bench Saturday. It expanded it. And somewhere down the road, when the margin for error is much thinner, what the Irish gained against Rice might matter a whole lot more than 52-0 ever did. ✦ Notre Dame's dominant performance against Rice allowed talented younger players like fresh- man running back Jonaz Walton (8 carries for 48 yards) to gain some valuable experience. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER Irish Turn Rice Rout Into An Investment In Bigger Moments Eric Hansen covers Notre Dame athletics for On3, with a focus on Irish football. He can be reached on X @ EHansenND THE DEEP READ ERIC HANSEN