Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1547079
20 OCT. 17, 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED "He's making some huge plays for us," Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman said. "It's a credit to, yeah, his God-given ability, but the way he is working his tal- ent and his gift. He's playing really well." The Cardinal failed to reach midfield until its fourth drive of the game and didn't do so again until its 10th drive, its lone touchdown drive of the game. Notre Dame limited an opponent to fewer than 100 rushing yards for a sev- enth consecutive game. Stanford man- aged just 58 yards on 21 carries. The Irish remained stingy on defense despite the absence of a pair of impact juniors: All-American cornerback Leon- ard Moore and linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa. Both sat out with inju- ries — a concussion for Moore and a left thumb injury for Viliamu-Asa — suf- fered the previous week. Sophomore cornerback Jayden Sanders broke up 2 passes in replacing Moore as a starter. FIRST QUARTER NOTRE DAME 14, STANFORD 0 Top moment: Stanford should have accounted for Boubacar Traore. On the first play from scrimmage, the Notre Dame senior defensive lineman went unblocked and recorded a strip sack of Stanford quarterback Davis Warren. The Irish offense capitalized four plays later with a 2-yard rushing touchdown by sophomore running back Nolan James Jr. Feature performers: Senior wide receiver Jaden Greathouse was the hot hand early, catching 3 passes for 30 yards and 1 touchdown. Sophomore cornerback Jayden Sanders had 2 passes broken up, including one on third down. Stats: Irish junior quarterback CJ Carr completed 5 of 8 passes for 43 yards with 1 touchdown … Notre Dame outgained Stanford 90-27. Items: Sanders started in place of ju- nior cornerback Leonard Moore, who was ruled out with a concussion. SECOND QUARTER NOTRE DAME 37, STANFORD 0 Top moment: The first play of the second quarter was even more elec- tric than Traore's strip sack. Freshman running back Jonaz Walton looked like Jeremiyah Love against Indiana during the 2024 College Football Playoff, going untouched for a 97-yard touchdown. Feature performers: Junior run- ning back Aneyas Williams poured it on with a 70-yard touchdown reception out of the slot. Senior linebacker Drayk Bowen had 3 tackles on Stanford's third offensive drive of the quarter, including a third-down stop. Stats: Stanford was 0 of 7 on third down in the first half; Notre Dame was 1 of 3 in the quarter … The Irish racked up 230 yards on just 13 plays … Stanford had the ball for 10:04 but gained only 59 yards. Items: Traore notched his second ca- reer interception. Junior kicker Spencer Porath missed an extra point but made a 33-yard field goal. THIRD QUARTER NOTRE DAME 44, STANFORD 7 Top moment: Sophomore wide re- ceiver Elijah Burress did his best to dress up an otherwise uninspiring quarter for the Irish with a 30-yard touchdown. Feature performer: Carr completed 5 of 5 passes for 48 yards and had 3 car- ries for 30 yards, including a 14-yard first-down run. Stats: Notre Dame had 68 rushing yards … Stanford averaged 10.6 yards per play on 8 plays … The Irish held the ball for 11:10. Items: Stanford recorded its first third-down conversion with 3:49 re- maining in the third quarter, with most of Notre Dame's defensive starters still in the game. The Cardinal scored its only touchdown two plays later. FOURTH QUARTER NOTRE DAME 58, STANFORD 7 Top moment: Walton did it again, this time bursting through the hole for a 40-yard touchdown to extend Notre Dame's lead to 44 points. Feature performers: With 5 carries for 68 yards, Walton finished with 181 rushing yards on the day, the most in a single game by an Irish true freshman. Sophomore cornerback Mark Zackery IV intercepted Stanford backup quar- terback Charlie Mirer. Stats: Notre Dame had 132 yards compared to Stanford's 31 … The Irish had 8 first downs, while the Cardinal had 2 … Notre Dame possessed the ball for 11:25. Items: Freshman running back Javian Osborne scored his first career rushing touchdown from 3 yards out. ✦ Senior defensive end Boubacar Traore set the tone for Notre Dame's 58-7 win over Stanford with a strip sack on the opening play from scrimmage and added an interception in the second quarter. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER