The fighting Irish survive a thriller
It was truly the luck of the Irish in Charlottesville, VA today and it couldn’t have come at a better time. With their backs against the wall and without starting quarterback Malik Zaire, Notre Dame still rallied in the clutch to beat UVA 34-27 with only second left in the game.
Things were looking shaky after Zaire exited the game in the third quarter with an ankle injury (ND coach Brian Kelly said after the game x-rays determined it to be a broken right ankle and he will be missing the rest of the season), and the team squandered the lead late in the fourth. Virginia spent the fourth quarter rallying for the upset and made the magical comeback real when they went up 27-26 with 1:54 remaining on the clock.
It was all in the hands of DeShone Kizer at that point, who couldn’t get the offense to move and almost got picked off with less than a minute remaining. After a big first down, Notre Dame continued driving up field and sealed the victory with an incredible 39 yard pass to star wide receiver Will Fuller, who beat coverage and caught an open look to win the game.
The crowd at Scott Stadium was stunned. They couldn’t believe the upset slipped from their hands.
Fuller ended the game for the Irish with five receptions, 124 yards receiving and two touchdowns, and running back C.J. Prosise rushed for 155 yards and one touchdown on 17 carries. On the Virginia side of things wide receiver Canaan Severin finished the game with 153 yards on 11 receptions, and quarterback Matt Johns threw for two touchdowns and 289 yards.
Virginia drops it’s second straight and back-to-back to ranked opponents, while Notre Dame remains undefeated after two games.
FINAL: ND 34 | UVA 27