#16 Notre Dame Returns Home To Face Virginia Tech

Notre Dame Notes | Virginia Tech Notes

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

LAST TIME: VIRGINIA TECH

• October 6, 2018 – The No. 6 ranked Irish traveled to Lane Stadium and defeated No. 24 Virginia Tech, thanks to 28 second-half points compared to the Hokies’ single touchdown in the final two quarters.
• RB Dexter Williams rushed for 178 yards and three touchdowns, while QB Ian Book completed 25-of-35 passes for 231 yards and two touchdowns.
• LB Te’von Coney and LB Asmar Bilal led the Irish with nine tackles each, while DL Khalid Kareem accounted for 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble that resulted in an Irish touchdown. CB Julian Love also recorded an interception.
• K Justin Yoon also became Notre Dame’s all-time leading scorer, connecting on a field goal and five extra points. Yoon finished his Notre Dame career with 367 total points.

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 15 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).

ENTERING GAME 8

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS

• Prior to the break, Notre Dame defeated rival Southern Cal at home, 30-27, on an impressive effort from all three phases. RB Tony Jones rushed for a career-high 176 yards, while K/P Jonathan Doerer sent his name to the Irish record books as the first Notre Dame kicker to make three field goals of 40 yards or more in a single game.
• For the first time in Notre Dame history, an Irish team recorded six touchdown passes in two games during the same season (vs. New Mexico and vs. Bowling Green). The six touchdown passes match the Irish team record for passing touchdowns in a game.
• With 52 total points vs. Bowling Green, it marked the second time this season the Irish recorded at least 50 points. The last time Notre Dame reached that plateau in multiple games in a season was in 2011 when the Irish did it twice (vs. Air Force and vs. Navy).
• Against Bowling Green, Notre Dame’s 35-0 halftime lead was the largest since opening a 35-0 halftime margin over Rutgers in 1996.
• Notre Dame has been ranked in the top 25 for 38-consecutive weeks, the longest such streak for the Irish since the 1997 season.
• The contest vs. Virginia marked the second-consecutive week Notre Dame 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 back-to-back top-ranked matchups in 2019 was Florida in Weeks 6-7. No other team is currently scheduled to take on the same slate.

IAN BOOK NOTABLES

• Junior quarterback Ian Book’s turnover rate of a giveaway on 1.1% of plays ranks sixth among Power 5+ND quarterbacks.
• Book is the first Notre Dame quarterback to start and win consecutive matchups vs. Southern Cal since Rick Mirer (played 1989-92).
• Book opened the game vs. Bowling Green with nine consecutive completions and recorded nine passes of 15 yards or more in the first half. That week, Irish quarterbacks totaled nine completions for 20 or more yards, which tied for the FBS lead (Texas Tech and Miami, Fla.). Book accounted for seven passes of 20 or more yards.
• In Notre Dame’s matchup against New Mexico, Book’s 406 yards of total offense 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.

HEADED FOR THE RECORD BOOKS

• Book threw five touchdown passes in the first half vs. Bowling Green, matching his career high (vs. New Mexico, 2019) and marking the first time in program history an Irish QB recorded five touchdown passes in a half.
• Brady Quinn, Tommy Rees, Jimmy Clausen, Ron Powlus and Ian Book are the only quarterbacks in Notre Dame history to record four or more touchdown passes in three games in their career.
• Book’s 38 career touchdowns put him in eighth place in Irish history.
• Book received the game ball for his performance vs. Bowling Green, the first game ball of his Notre Dame career, and was selected to the Davey O’Brien Award Great 8 list for Week 6. Book also was named a Top 20 finalist for the 2019 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, presented by A.O. Smith, recognizing player performance on and off the field.

NOTEWORTHY DEFENSIVE NOTABLES

• The Irish forced a shutout vs. Bowling Green for the first time since 2014 (vs. Michigan, 31- 0), scoring 35 points in the first half. Notre Dame’s 35-0 halftime lead was the largest since opening a 35-0 halftime margin over Rutgers in 1996. It is Notre Dame’s largest shutout margin since that game, when Lou Holtz’s Irish won, 62-0.
• Notre Dame’s defense held Bowling Green to just four drives that ended in Notre Dame territory (out of 11 total), the farthest point reached by the Falcons being the ND 23-yard line.
• In 2019, Notre Dame has outscored opponents 48-16 in the third quarter.
• Only 16 FBS teams have gained more turnovers than the Irish, who have recorded 12 fumble recoveries and six interceptions on the season.

FOLLOW HIS LEA-D

• Notre Dame has held 19 of 20 opponents during Clark Lea’s tenure as defensive coordinator to 30 points or less. That includes includes ranked opponents LSU, Michigan, Stanford, Virginia Tech, Syracuse, Clemson, Georgia and Virginia.

BORN TO (STOP THE) RUN

• The Irish defense held Virginia to just four total rushing yards, marking the fourth-lowest total by an opposing team of Notre Dame since 1996, and the fewest in the Brian Kelly era. Notre Dame produced tackles for loss on 44.8 percent of Virginia’s rushing attempts, a rate which led the FBS. The four yards was also the lowest total against a ranked team since Nov. 26, 1966 (Southern Cal, 51-0 win, -12 rushing yards).
• In the first half, Notre Dame held Virginia to -2 rushing yards. In their previous four games, the Cavaliers had rushed for an average of 55.75 yards in the first half.
• Notre Dame’s defense held Georgia to just 34 total yards of offense in the first quarter two weeks ago. The Bulldogs gained at least 150 yards in the first quarter during each of their first three games this season.

NOTEWORTHY OFFENSIVE NOTABLES

• Notre Dame remains perfect in redzone-scoring percentage, converting on 24-of-24 visits inside the 20. Twenty-one of those scores were touchdowns (11 rushing, 10 passing). No other team in FBS remains perfect in the redzone this season.
• With help coming from both sides of the ball, the Irish stand at a turnover margin of +8, averaging +1.14 per game. The per game mark is seventh in FBS.
• Notre Dame running backs have gone 1,260 carries without losing a fumble – dating back to Nov. 21, 2015. It is the longest active streak in the FBS, trailed by Northwestern’s 1,222-carry streak.
• The Irish totaled 573 yards of total offense vs. Bowling Green, having a 100-yard receiver (Javon McKinley) and 100-yard rusher (Tony Jones Jr.) for the first time since 2018 at Virginia Tech (WR Miles Boykin and RB Dexter Williams).
• In the first half vs. Bowling Green, Notre Dame recorded 339 yards of total offense, 255 in the air. The Irish averaged 10.6 yards per play and scored five touchdowns. The five touchdown passes in the first half are the most by an Irish team in a single half.

NOTEWORTHY SPECIAL TEAMS NOTABLES

• K/P Jonathan Doerer inscribed his name in Notre Dame record books vs. Southern Cal, becoming the first Irish kicker to make three field goals of 40 or more yards in a single game since 1996.
• Doerer made a career-long 52-yard field goal on the opening drive of the second half vs. Southern Cal, also making a 45-yard field goal with 15 seconds remaining in the first half. Doerer added a 43-yard field goal in the fourth quarter. All three surpassed his previous career-long (36 yards).
• Doerer’s 52-yarder also places him in the Irish record books, matching the third-longest field goal made in Notre Dame history. Dave Reeve (1976 vs. Pittsburgh) and Kyle Brindza (2013 vs. Arizona State in Arlington, Texas) both had 53-yard field goals for the Irish.
• Notre Dame’s last made field goal of 50 yards or longer came in 2015, when Justin Yoon netted a 52-yarder against Navy.
• Lending voice to the importance of veteran players making their mark on special teams, in the first quarter at Georgia, WR Chase 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.

NOTEWORTHY INDIVIDUAL NOTABLES

• LB Drew White made a career-best 11 tackles in the effort at Michigan.
• RB Tony Jones Jr. posted a career-high 176 rushing yards vs. Southern Cal, marking his fourth 100-yard rushing performance of the season and the fifth of his career. His previous rushing career-high came this season vs. Virginia (131 yards).
• Jones Jr. surpassed 100 rushing yards with fewer than three minutes remaining in the first half vs. Southern Cal, and is now tied for 14th in Notre Dame history with four 100-yard rushing games in a season.
• LB Asmar Bilal recorded five tackles in the first quarter vs. Southern Cal, totaling 11 (8 solo) on the game and leading the Irish defense. His 11 total tackles mark his single game career high, passing his previous total of nine.
• LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah notched his first career sack on Southern Cal’s opening drive, setting up an eventual punt for the Trojans.
• K/P Jonathan Doerer made three field goals of more than 40 yards vs. Southern Cal, becoming the first Irish kicker ever to do so in a single game. (See Noteworthy Special Teams Notables for more details.) Doerer was awarded a game ball, the first of his career.
• WR Braden Lenzy notched his first career rushing touchdown (second career TD), a 51-yard score, in the second quarter vs. Southern Cal. It was Notre Dame’s longest rushing touchdown of the season, as well as the longest rushing play of the season.
• WR Chase Claypool caught two touchdown passes vs. Bowling Green, totaling 61 yards on three total receptions, while catching three passes for 47 yards vs. Southern Cal. Claypool surpassed the 100-career receptions mark on his first catch vs. Virginia, and on his 108 career receptions, Claypool has recorded 1,469 yards (13.6 average) and 10 touchdowns in four seasons. He joins a group of just 14 other Irish players who have reached the 100-career receptions mark since 1996. The most recent receivers to reach the benchmark were Chris Brown and Will Fuller V.
• Claypool also plays a role on special teams, 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.
• TE Cole Kmet has totaled 21 receptions over the last four games, which tied for the most among FBS tight ends during that timespan. Kmet missed the first two games of the season with a collarbone injury. With his second catch vs. Southern Cal, Kmet doubled his career total entering the 2019 season (17) in those four games.
• Kmet recorded his second touchdown of the season vs. Bowling Green, and posted four catches for 65 yards vs. Virginia, totaling 13 receptions over two games (vs. Virginia and at Georgia. Just two Irish tight ends have totaled more receptions over a two-game span (most was 16 by Kyle Rudolph in 2010 vs. Michigan and Michigan State) since 1996.
• Kmet totaled a career-high nine catches at Georgia, 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), and was named the John Mackey Award’s Tight End of the Week in Week 4.