Box Score (PDF) | Notre Dame Postgame Notes | Brian Kelly Post-Game Press Conference Transcript
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The No. 9/7 Notre Dame football team dropped its first game at home in four years as its comeback bid fell short in the 24-13 loss to No. 7/8 Cincinnati Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium.
Notre Dame’s offense took the ball and marched down the field on the opening drive but the Bearcats picked off a pass at the one-yard line to end the threat.
Both defenses controlled the remainder of the opening quarter, as the game was scoreless after the end of the first quarter.
Cincinnati managed to capitalize on two Notre Dame turnovers, scoring a touchdown and a field goal to take a 10-0 lead with over 10 minutes left in the half.
The Bearcats tacked on another touchdown just before the half on an 80-yard drive to take a 17-0 lead into the halftime intermission.
Midway through the third quarter Cincinnati drove into Notre Dame territory when Isaiah Foskey made a huge strip sack that Drew White scooped up and returned 22 yards to the Bearcat 38-yard line.
The Irish turned the turnover into points, scoring a touchdown four plays later off a three-yard run into the endzone from Kyren Williams to cut the deficit to 17-7 with 1:19 left in the third.
Notre Dame continued to chip away and pulled within a score after Drew Pyne hit Braden Lenzy for a 32-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. The Irish trailed by just four, 17-13, with 8:20 remaining in the game.
The Bearcats put the game out of reach on the ensuing drive that ended with a six-yard touchdown rush from Ritter. It put Cincinnati back up by double-digits and the Irish were unable to overcome the deficit.
The Irish head to Blacksburg, Virginia, to take on Virginia Tech at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Oct. 9. The game will air on ACCN.
—ND—
🏈 FOURTH QUARTER
HERE WE GO 👏@blspeedy21 | #GoIrish pic.twitter.com/6cr6UPSeqc
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) October 2, 2021
🏈 THIRD QUARTER
Touchdown @Kyrenwilliams23!#GoIrish pic.twitter.com/SE1jwUq1wj
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) October 2, 2021
.@Drew_white11 with the fumble recovery#GoIrish pic.twitter.com/br6VfYvdZv
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) October 2, 2021
🏈 PRE-GAME
| GAME DAY INFORMATION | |
|---|---|
| Date | Saturday, October 2, 2021 |
| Time | 2:30 p.m. ET |
| Site: | Notre Dame Stadium | South Bend, IN |
| TV: | TV: NBC (national) Mike Tirico (play-by-play) Drew Brees (analyst) Kathryn Tappen (sideline) |
| Radio: | Notre Dame Radio Network |
😤#GoIrish pic.twitter.com/wOZIMGXAZm
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) October 2, 2021
📍 HOME#GoIrish pic.twitter.com/X6vmIw8qhK
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) October 2, 2021
mindset #GoIrish pic.twitter.com/2366aTZBSF
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) October 2, 2021
A Top Ten Showdown in South Bend. It’s 𝙜𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙙𝙖𝙮!
🆚 No. 7 Cincinnati
⏰ 2:30 p.m. ET
📺 NBC#GoIrish pic.twitter.com/oW8A7BbYGh— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) October 2, 2021
