Notre Dame football didn’t have the most inspiring win on Saturday evening, as it held off upset minded Michigan State at home 27-10.
The Irish didn’t look like the No. 3 overall team in the country at times, as there are clearly some aspects of this team that have to be worked out. There were some positives that we saw from this one, as it looks like a WR1 is emerging early in the season for Notre Dame.
Find out below my immediate reactions to the Irish escaping the Spartans during Week 3.
Notre Dame’s run game still isn’t explosive
Aneyas makes it happen 👏#GoIrish☘️ | @AneyasW pic.twitter.com/g6s3xZTOnG
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) September 20, 2026
It wasn’t an easy road for the Irish running backs, as once again they struggled to get anything going on the ground. Nolan James was given plenty of opportunities, but had an up and down
game, although he did score a touchdown. Aneyas Williams was called for excessive celebration after his score, but also wasn’t effective. Notre Dame needs much more from this group, but it did look like James has taken over as the lead back.
Notre Dame’s defense carried the load
Strength in numbers 💪#GoIrish☘️ | @LoghanThomas1 | @24era24 pic.twitter.com/RixusJOjYu
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) September 20, 2026
Take out one big pass play from the Spartans night, and this defense did exactly what you’d expect them to do, lock down the opposition. Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa looks like he’s completely back, an absolute terror for opposing offenses. Luke Talich showed they won’t miss Brauntae Johnson while he recovers from an injury. The line was disruptive, even without a big sack total.
CJ Carr didn’t look right
Micah Gilbert, oh my goodness!
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) September 20, 2026
📺 Michigan State at Notre Dame on NBC & Peacock pic.twitter.com/MMN3rrGk6B
Carr didn’t have a bad game, but he wasn’t really pushing the ball down the field aside from a few big plays to Micah Gilbert. The two connected eight times for 170-yards, which was a very big positive. Carr was efficient, but didn’t really spread the ball out to many of his pass catchers. There were a lot of short throws that didn’t get much yardage, as only three receivers caught passes all night. This area has to be better going forward.
Notre Dame escaped upset minded Michigan State
Irish win! ☘️#GoIrish☘️ | @Gatorade pic.twitter.com/sI5j1dGcM8
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) September 20, 2026
After the first half, you had a feeling that the Spartans wouldn’t be backing down, as they kept themselves in the game despite not being able to do much on offense. Notre Dame matched them however, as its own offense couldn’t get into a groove and muster much. This isn’t the Irish that we saw last week or in the second half of Wisconsin. To me, this isn’t a bad thing, as Notre Dame still won despite not playing its best. There are things to work on as well, which the coaching staff will try and fix.
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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Notre Dame beats Michigan State: Immediate reactions to Irish escaping
