CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Pouring rain took the deep ball off the table, so No. 3 Notre Dame lined up and ran it anyway. The Fighting Irish beat North Carolina 37-26 Saturday, their 15th straight win, after a second half that looked more like a statement than a shootout.
Quarterback CJ Carr threw four touchdown passes and ran for another. He completed 21 of 29 passes for 234 yards. Jordan Faison caught eight of them for 132 yards and two scores. The Irish rushed for a season-best 241 yards on 45 carries. Freshman Jonaz Walton had 120, and Nolan James Jr. added 65 on the ground plus a 6-yard touchdown catch that made it 34-20 early in the fourth. Notre Dame had entered the week ranked 98th nationally in rushing at 141.8 yards a game, a long way from last year’s attack built around first-round picks Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price.
It was not tidy. Notre Dame was close to a 28-7 lead before a goal-line stand, and North Carolina scored just before halftime. Jaden Jefferson then opened the third quarter with a 98-yard kickoff return that made it 21-20 after a failed two-point try. Carr answered with a 3-yard keeper on fourth down to finish a 17-play, 75-yard drive that took more than nine minutes. Sam Porath’s 31-yard field goal pushed the lead to 37-20. North Carolina got a late touchdown, but the extra point was blocked.
Billy Edwards Jr. threw three touchdown passes and two interceptions for the Tar Heels, who managed only 77 rushing yards. Jordan Shipp had seven catches for 109 yards, and Jelani Thurman had five for 50 and two scores. Coach Bill Belichick said his team was competitive and missed chances against a good opponent. Marcus Freeman said the Irish defense, which had been allowing 199.3 yards and 8.3 points a game, was not crisp in the pass game. Notre Dame hosts Stanford next Saturday. North Carolina, now 2-2, visits Pittsburgh.