Notre Dame football didn’t get caught up in the post-big game letdown, as it took care of business on Saturday afternoon, defeating Boston College 41-7 in the No. 29 edition of the Holy War.
The Irish improved to 9-1 on the year, and are in a great position to continue its very good ranking in the College Football Playoff. The game is to make the 12-team tournament after missing out on it last year, and the chances for Notre Dame look very promising right now.
It was a very fun afternoon in South Bend, one that while it’s memorable, will be an important win the grand scheme of things. Find out below my five instant reactions to Notre Dame’s 41-7 win over Boston College.
No big-game hangover for Notre Dame
That’s an Irish victory!#GoIrish☘️ | @Gatorade pic.twitter.com/B0j9kqcPZd
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) November 15, 2026
Sure,
it was a “quiet” start in the first quarter, leading just 7-0 after a quarter, but a 21-point explosion in the second showed that this wouldn’t be much of a game. Miami struggled to beat Duke, as the Hurricanes won by just 11-points after playing the Irish last week. It was nice to see a game that wasn’t close, as this is how it always should have been. It’s the sign of a good team to not have a letdown after an emotional win the week prior.
This isn’t 1993, this Notre Dame team is much better
Notre Dame is in full control. This is not 1993 @jasonbenetti !!!
— Bruce Straughan (@bruce_straughan) November 14, 2026
I cannot tell you how many times the 1993 loss to the Eagles was brought up to me over the last week, and I just kept laughing it off. Look, there are some eerie similarities (beating a No. 1 ranked Florida team the week before), but that’s where this all ends, as Notre Dame had no issues with Boston College at all. There are times during the course of a season, where if a team can check off a box, in my eyes they’re legit title contenders, and this Irish team is getting close to checking all those boxes.
CJ Carr will be in New York, but won’t win the Heisman
CJ Carr is talented, absurdly impressive, but I don’t think he has a chance at the Heisman because of how effectively Notre Dame runs the ball
— TheDannyHammerTTV (@dannywoz) November 14, 2026
There is an argument that can be made the Carr is the best player in the country, but won’t be treated as so. It’s due to the fact that he’s never going to have gaudy stats, he just cares about the offense doing the right thing and moving the chains. Could he have 300-yards passing games every outing like he did against Miami, sure, but that’s not what this team needs. Carr is the ultimate leader, sacrificing his own stats for team glory and he should be pretty happy with that decision this evening.
Notre Dame’s defense is championship-level
Watch these guys work 🔥#GoIrish☘️ | @24era24 | @sneed_jaylen
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) November 14, 2026
📺: NBC pic.twitter.com/6CXVg5YGTW
Three stars really stood out on the Irish defense: edge Boubacar Traore, linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa and safety Luke Talich. An elite performance from each level is most likely going to translate over into a victory, and that was exactly the case for the Irish. Overall, the unit would give up just 136 total yards, and you can’t really put the points on them, as the short field made it almost impossible to not give up a score.
SMU might not be a real test anymore
— SMU Football (@SMUFB) November 14, 2026
Early in the year, it very much looked like SMU could be one of the tougher games on the schedule for the Irish, but after this weekend, a lot of juice has been lost from this game. Notre Dame has done what it had to do, but the Mustangs have not held up their end of the bargain. They started off 6-1, but have lost two of its last three, with its worst one coming this weekend against Wake Forest, 49-7. The Irish have to have more talent than them, and next weekend could be another blow out. One that won’t help Notre Dame’s ranking in the CFP.
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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Instant reactions to Notre Dame football trouncing Boston College 41-7
