#10 Notre Dame Hosts #18 Virginia in Second-Straight Ranked Matchup

ˆ Includes 20 regular-season wins and two postseason appearances vacated under discretionary NCAA penalty

RANKED MATCH-UP DETAILS

• Since the start of the 2017 season, Notre Dame is 5-2 in games between ranked teams when the Irish are the higher-ranked team.
• The Irish notched a top-10 ranking for the 20th-consecutive week – the fourth longest active streak in college football (behind Alabama, Clemson and Georgia). This is the most-consecutive weeks within the top 10 for Notre Dame since 1994 (21).
• Notre Dame has been ranked in the top 25 for 33-consecutive weeks, the longest such streak for the Irish since the 1997 season.
• The contest vs. Virginia is the highest-ranked matchup of the week, marking the second-consecutive week Notre Dame has appeared in the week’s highest-ranked matchup (lowest total of both squads’ rankings). From 2015-2018 among all FBS teams, it has only happened three times: Alabama (Weeks 7-8, 2016; Weeks 10-11, 2018) and Penn State (Weeks 8-9, 2017). As the current AP rankings stand, the only other team with scheduled  back-to-back top-ranked matchups in 2019 is Florida in Weeks 6-7.
• Saturday’s contest will be the fourth time a ranked ACC team visits Notre Dame Stadium when the Irish have also been ranked. Notre Dame has won each of those matchups; when the Irish boast a top-25 ranking, they have never been defeated by an ACC team at home.

NOTRE DAME vs. VIRGINIA

• Notre Dame and Virginia meet for the third time on Saturday afternoon. It will mark the first time the Irish will host Virginia and the first time both squads have been ranked.
• Saturday’s contest will be the fourth time a ranked ACC team visits Notre Dame Stadium.

1989 KICKOFF CLASSIC AT GIANTS STADIUM

• Notre Dame bested the Cavaliers, 36-13, in Kickoff Classic VII. The game marked the first time the Irish took the field since the National Championship victory in 1988.
• Notre Dame was the fourth defending national champion to begin the subsequent season in the Kickoff Classic.
• The Irish scored touchdowns on their first five drives, also holding the Cavaliers to 60 yards in the first half against Notre Dame’s 333.
• Current Notre Dame Pat and Jana Eilers Family defensive backs coach Todd Lyght notched two interceptions in the game to lead the Irish defense. In both that season and the one following, Lyght was named a consensus All-American.

2015 NOTRE DAME AT VIRGINIA

• In Notre Dame’s first trip to Charlottesville, the No. 9 Irish came away with the 34-27 win after a DeShone Kizer 39-yard touchdown pass to Will Fuller with 12 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.
• Earlier in the game, Kizer threw his first-career touchdown pass on a fake field goal in the first quarter to Durham Smythe, marking Smythe’s first-career score.
• Starting QB Malik Zaire suffered a season-ending ankle injury in the second half, setting up backup Kizer for a starting role for the remainder of the season, which resulted in a trip to the Fiesta Bowl against Ohio State.
• C.J. Prosise made his first-career start in the place of injured RB Tarean Folston, running for 155 yards and a touchdown. Fuller led the receiving attack, hauling in five passes for an impressive 124 yards (24.8 average).
• In all, the Irish rallied from injuries to tenured starters with a 460-yard offensive performance, scoring 22 points in the second half to take back the lead and seal the victory.

ALL-AROUND EXCELLENCE

• The University of Notre Dame was recently ranked 15th in the U.S. News and World Report rankings for Top Colleges.
• Of all teams that have made a College Football Playoff appearance, Notre Dame is the only school in the top 25 of those rankings. The university closest to Notre Dame in the rankings that has also made a CFP appearance is Georgia, which comes in at a tie for 50th.

IAN BOOK NOTABLES

• Junior quarterback Ian Book ranks 10th (tied) in points responsible for per game among all FBS players with 20.0. Book also ranks 14th in the FBS in total offense (324.3 yards per game) and 18th in passing yards per completion (14.28).
• In Notre Dame’s most recent home matchup, Book’s 406 yards of total offense against New Mexico was just the 11th time an Irish quarterback has compiled over 400 yards of total offense since 1996. It was the most since Book posted 399 at Northwestern last season, while DeShone Kizer’s 472 yards against Syracuse in 2016 marked the most recent game with a QB reaching over 400 yards of total offense. Six of the top 12 single-game yardage performances from a quarterback since 1996 have occurred during the Brian Kelly era.

Book Solid Late

• In the fourth quarter over the past 12 games, Book leads all FBS quarterbacks with a 194.6 passer rating over his 70 attempts. The FBS average passer rating in the fourth quarter stands at 127.7.
• Book also boasts six touchdown passes in close and late situations since the start of 2018, which ties for the fourth-highest mark among FBS quarterbacks. Virginia’s Bryce Perkins leads the FBS in this category.

NOTEWORTHY DEFENSIVE NOTABLES

• Notre Dame’s defense held Georgia to just 34 total yards of offense in the first quarter last Saturday. The Bulldogs gained at least 150 yards in the first quarter during each of their first three games this season.
• Notre Dame has held 17-consecutive opponents below 30 points entering the game at Georgia. The Irish are tied with Washington for the FBS lead in that category.
• The Irish defense ranks 10th in the FBS in passing efficiency defense (95.12), allowing just one passing touchdown total by opponents over the last three games. Notre Dame’s three previous opponents have combined for 20 passing touchdowns on the season, the lone passing touchdown allowed by the Irish delivered by Georgia.
• Notre Dame has forced opponents to an FBS-leading 44.9 passing attempts per touchdown  allowed over the last 12 games. The average over the FBS is 18.8 attempts per touchdown.

NOTEWORTHY OFFENSIVE NOTABLES

• Notre Dame remains perfect in redzone-scoring percentage, converting on 11-of-11 visits down the field. Nine of those scores were touchdowns (six rushing, three passing). The nine touchdowns tie for fifth-most among redzone-perfect teams.
• With help coming from both sides of the ball, the Irish rank sixth (tied) in the FBS in turnover margin at +5, averaging +1.67 per game. Notre Dame running backs have gone 1,056 carries without losing a fumble – dating back to Nov. 21, 2015. It is the second-longest active streak in FBS behind Northwestern’s 1,120-carry streak.
• The last time Notre Dame played at home, the 66 points scored by the Irish against New Mexico were the most for Notre Dame since they scored 69 points against Georgia Tech in Notre Dame Stadium on Nov. 5, 1977. It was only the third time Notre Dame has surpassed 66 since the 1932 season when the team scored 73 points against Haskell.

NOTEWORTHY INDIVIDUAL NOTABLES

• Chase Claypool has logged 12 receptions for 20 or more yards over the last 8 games, which is the ninth-best among FBS WRs.
• Claypool has totaled 99 career receptions for 1,378 yards (13.9 average). His next catch will earn him the 100-career-reception distinction.
• Lending voice to the importance of veteran players making their mark on special teams, in the first quarter at Georgia, Claypool recovered a Georgia muffed punt return at the Bulldog eight-yard line to set up a Notre Dame touchdown drive (QB Ian Book one-yard pass to TE Cole Kmet). It was Claypool’s first-career fumble recovery. He also added 6 catches for 66 yards and a touchdown at Georgia.
• Cole Kmet returned from injury with a bang, snagging the first three Irish receptions of the game at Georgia, including the first on the game’s first play from scrimmage. He also recorded his first-career touchdown on the game’s opening score.
• Kmet continued to impact the contest, finishing the night with a career-high nine catches, which tied the program mark for receptions in a single game by a tight end. He tallied 108 receiving yards and a touchdown (seven receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown coming in the first half). On Tuesday, Kmet was named the John Mackey Award Tight End of the Week.
• Irish special teams players have made their mark, especially stepping up into roles once filled by tenured veterans Justin Yoon and Tyler Newsome. Jonathan Doerer remains perfect on the season after netting his second field goal of the season, and third of his career, at Georgia on Saturday. Also connecting on 14-of-14 PAT attempts, Doerer totals 20 points on the season over three games. His season-long for FGM stands at 36 yards (vs. New Mexico).
• In his third contest for the Irish, Jay Bramblett boasted a 47.5-yard average on four punts, including a 58-yard career long. Prior to Saturday’s game, Bramblett’s average punt traveled 39.9 yards.
• First Touches – A number of Irish players have recorded touchdowns on either their first career touch – or the first touch of the season:
• Sophomore Jahmir Smith scored on his first carry of the season, a three-yard plunge in the season opener at Louisville.
• Sophomore Tommy Tremble’s first-career reception ended up as a 26-yard touchdown catch against Louisville.
• Junior Avery Davis, who switched from defensive back to running back due to injuries in the Irish offensive backfield, caught his first pass (a short shovel pass from Ian Book) and ran 59 yards untouched for a touchdown against New Mexico.
• While not his first ‘touch’ – freshman Kyle Hamilton had two pass break ups in the opener at Louisville – Hamilton’s first full touch – an interception – he returned for a touchdown against New Mexcio last Saturday.
• Do second touches count? Sophomore Braden Lenzy caught a 22-yard touchdown pass on his second reception of the season versus New Mexico while senior Javon McKinley’s second and third receptions of the season were both turned into scores against the Lobos.
• In his first game returning from injury, junior Cole Kmet recorded his first catch of the season on the first play from scrimmage at Georgia, also recording his first-career touchdown in the same game.

HOME FIELD WIN STREAK

• Notre Dame completed an undefeated season at Notre Dame Stadium in 2018 for the second time in four seasons (2015, 6-0) after finishing 6-0 following a 42-13 win over Florida State. From 1990-2011, only the 1998 campaign (6-0) saw a perfect Notre Dame home slate.
• Notre Dame has won 12 straight games at home dating back to Sept. 30, 2017, starting with a victory over Miami (Ohio). It is the third-longest home winning streak for the Irish since Notre Dame Stadium opened in 1930 (28 straight from 1942-50; 19 straight from 1987-90).

NOTRE DAME ATTENDANCE RECORDS

• Notre Dame leads all FBS teams in attendance-record-setting games (10) after setting yet another record in the matchup at Georgia, with another possible record-setting game coming up this season (at Michigan).
• Georgia installed additional seating at Sanford Stadium last weekend to set a new attendance record of 93,246 Saturday – which was the FBS-leading 10th college football stadium in which Notre Dame helped set an attendance record (and second this season after the visit to Louisville to start the year)

ON THIS WEEKEND

• Noteworthy historical games/performances for Notre Dame football on and around September 28:
• September 27, 1941 – Frank Leahy notches his first win as head coach, beating Arizona 38-7 en route to his first of seven undefeated seasons.
• September 28, 1918 – Notre Dame gives head coach Knute Rockne his first victory in his first game, a 26-6 win against Case Tech.
• September 29, 2018 – The No. 8 Irish host No. 7 Stanford in a primetime matchup and total 550 total yards of offense in a decisive 38-17 victory over the Cardinal. Notre Dame held Stanford to 229 offensive yards. The Irish went on to earn a spot in the College Football Playoff, and Stanford was 5-3 to finish the season.

NOTRE DAME ACC SCHEDULING AGREEMENT

• In a partnership that began in 2014, the University of Notre Dame and the Atlantic Coast Conference agreed to schedule the Irish to play, on average, five ACC opponents each sesason. Orginally scheduled through the 2025 season, the games have now been scheduled through the 2037 campaign.
• Notre Dame is 19-7 (.731) against ACC opponents since the scheduling agreement began during the 2014 season.
• So far in 2019, the Irish have defeated Louisville as part of the scheduling agreement. Notre Dame is set to face Virginia (Sept. 28), Virginia Tech (Nov. 2), Duke (Nov. 9) and Boston College (No. 23) this season.
• There have been, and in the future there will be, seasons when the Irish face just four ACC opponents but will eventually even out the agreement by facing six ACC teams in another year (this occurred in 2014 and 2015 and is set to occur in 2021-22 and 2022-23.

NFL CAPTAINCY

• Three Notre Dame football alums have been named team captains for the 2019-20 NFL season. Jaylon Smith and Zack Martin were named captains for the Dallas Cowboys, while Kyle Rudolph was named a captain for the Minnesota Vikings.