No. 8 BYU held strong defensively to hold off No. 2 Notre Dame in a 28-24 home victory over the Fighting Irish.
The Cougars had to fight till the very last play on defense, with a CJ Carr pass to the end zone landing harmlessly to the turf.
But did officials miss a potential game-extending defensive pass interference call?
As Carr lobbed his pass to receiver Jaden Greathouse, it seemed as though the primary player in position to defend him, cornerback Evan Johnson, not only impeded Greathouse's ability to catch the pass, but also never turned his head around to make a play on the ball.
the final play pic.twitter.com/AWXG1yNJX6
— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) October 18, 2026
Was this pass interference? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/WVHPkWmDxi
— uSTADIUM (@uSTADIUM) October 18, 2026
As it was, officials decided to swallow their whistles and allow the players to determine the outcome of the game. That ultimately ended in a 28-24 victory for the Cougars, who avenged last season's bowl game snub by the Fighting Irish in their win.
Quarterback Bear Bachmeier completed 23 of 36 passes for 224 yards and one touchdown to one interception, while his Notre Dame counterpart, Carr, completed 27 of 49 passes for 261 yards. Credit to the Fighting Irish for fighting back from a 21-10 halftime deficit: They whittled away at the lead in the second half before Jonaz Walton gave them a fourth-quarter lead, 24-20.
But it was Bachmeier's 7-yard pass to Walter Lyons at the 1:47 mark — and BYU's defensive stand — that proved the difference in the game.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Did BYU commit pass interference vs Notre Dame? See final play here
