Notre Dame Opponent Roundup: Week 10 Edition

Rounding up the week ten results for Notre Dame's 2023 opponents

“Separation Saturday” brought plenty of drama with multiple matchups between ranked opponents highlighting an incredible weekend of football. Here’s a quick summary:

• #7 Texas blew a 20-point lead to #23 Kansas State, but stopped the Wildcats on fourth down in overtime, keeping its playoff hopes alive
• #10 Ole Miss survived Texas A&M at home, setting up a massive trip to #2 Georgia next weekend
• #25 Air Force was dominated by Army and suffered its first loss of the year, ending the Falcons’ hopes for a New Years Six bowl
• #2 Georgia was tested by #12 Missouri, but leaned on its defense to hold off the Tigers 30-21
• #22 Oklahoma State scored arguably the sweetest win of the day, ending rival Oklahoma’s playoff hopes and securing perhaps eternal bragging rights, in a 27-24 win
• #13 Louisville dominated Virginia Tech 34-3, giving the Cardinals sole possession of second place in the ACC
• #3 Michigan surrendered the most points it has all season to Purdue in its first game without “analyst” Connor Stalions whispering the opponent’s play in the ear of the defensive coordinator
• #5 Washington took a major step toward the CFP with a 52-42 victory over #20 USC, who turned in another putrid defensive performance
• #8 Alabama trailed #14 LSU 28-21, but rallied to score the final 21 points of the game in a 42-28 win that gave Brian Kelly’s team its third loss

It was another up-and-down week for Irish opponents. Not counting Clemson’s victory over Notre Dame, Fighting Irish opponents went 6-5, with NC State and Duke gaining bowl eligibility, Ohio State staying undefeated, and Louisville seizing sole possession of second place in the ACC.

Notre Dame Opponent Overall Record: 64-44

Let’s take a look at the Week 10 action for Notre Dame opponents.

NAVY MIDSHIPMEN

Record: 3-5
Week 10 Result: Lost 32-18 at Temple

Recap: Navy missed an opportunity to get back to .500 for the season and find its bowl hopes on life support after a 32-18 loss to Temple. The Midshipmen defense held temple to just 46 yards rushing on 27 carries and forced 4 turnovers but had no answer for Owl QB E.J. Warner through the air. Warner finished with 402 yards passing and 4 touchdowns. Navy hosts UAB next weekend in a must-win game in the quest for bowl eligibility.

TENNESSEE STATE TIGERS

Record: 6-3
Week 10 Result: Lost 35-21 at Charleston Southern

Recap: Tennessee State saw its four-game winning streak come to an end in a road loss to Charleston Southern, which also all but ended the Tigers’ hopes for a Big South-OVC title. The Tigers outgained the Buccaneers 269-192 and after falling behind 14-0 in the first quarter, fought back to tie the game 21-21 with 7:53 remaining in the fourth quarter after a Deveon Bryant touchdown run. However, Charleston Southern took the lead back on the ensuing drive, and after the Tigers turned the ball over on downs, the Buccaneers tacked on another late touchdown. Eddie George’s squad travels to 6-3 Eastern Illinois next weekend.

NC STATE WOLFPACK

Record: 6-3
Week 10 Result: Won 20-6 vs. Miami

Recap: The Wolfpack defense turned in another excellent effort in a 20-6 victory over Miami. NC State kept the Hurricanes out of the end zone, in large part due to 4 forced turnovers, 3 of which were Tyler Van Dyke interceptions. On the offensive side of the ball, the Wolfpack played complementary football, posting just 231 total yards but making big plays when needed. A 31-yard touchdown run from Kendrick Raphael capped off an 8-play, 97-yard drive to put the game away with 5:03 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Wolfpack are bowl eligible with the win, and with Wake Forest, Virginia Tech, and rival North Carolina remaining on the schedule, could play their way up the ACC bowl pecking order.

CENTRAL MICHIGAN CHIPPEWAS

Record: 5-4
Week 10 Result: Won 37-31 vs. Northern Illnois

Recap: Central Michigan rebounded from an ugly loss to Ball State with a 31-31 victory over Northern Illinois. On a snow-covered field in Mount Pleasant, the Chippewas leaned on the rushing attack, rolling up 331 yards rushing. Marion Lukes posted 202 yards and a touchdown on the ground, while QB Jase Bauer added 106 yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground to go along with 116 yards and a score through the air. The Chippewa defense surrendered 506 total yards but forced 3 turnovers and held Northern Illinois to 0-10 on third down, which was the difference in the game. Central Michigan needs one more victory to get bowl eligible, and has its best remaining opportunity next week against Western Michigan in Kalamazoo.

OHIO STATE BUCKEYES

Record: 9-0
Week 10 Result: Won 35-16 at Rutgers

Recap: Ohio State debuted at #1 in the initial CFP rankings but the Buckeyes were not impressive in a sleepy 35-16 victory over Rutgers. Ohio State trailed 9-7 at halftime and Rutgers drove into the red zone on the opening drive of the second half, but Jordan Hancock intercepted Gavin Wimsatt and returned it 93-yards for the go-ahead touchdown. RB TreVeyon Henderson was the star on offense, accounting for 202 total yards and a touchdown, and even though WR Marvin Harrison Jr. was limited to just 25 yards on 4 catches, 2 of those did go for fourth quarter scores to put the game out of reach. Ohio State has games against Michigan State and Minnesota to get untracked offensively before the massive matchup against Michigan. Ryan Day needs to figure out how to get his team to play better situational football on offense – since the Notre Dame game, the Buckeyes are converting just 27% of third-down conversions, which as a point of reference, is the same rate that Iowa converts third downs.

DUKE BLUE DEVILS

Record: 6-3
Week 10 Result: Won 24-21 vs. Wake Forest

Recap: The Blue Devils earned a well-deserved bowl bid with a walk-off field goal by Todd Pelino. Without QB Riley Leonard, Duke scuffled on offense for most of the day, but finally found a rhythm in the fourth quarter. Backup Grayson Loftis found Jordan Moore for a 29-yard touchdown with 11:40 remaining to tie the game, and then Pelino’s field goal capped off a 10-play, 54-yard drive to win the game. With Leonard projected to be out at least a few more weeks, the Blue Devils have a tall task next weekend on the road at North Carolina.

LOUISVILLE CARDINALS

Record: 8-1
Week 10 Result: Won 34-3 vs. Virginia Tech

Recap: Jeff Brohm may be known as an offensive coach, but the Cardinals defense dominated an opponent for the second weekend in a row in a 34-3 victory over Virginia Tech. The win gave Louisville sole possession of second place in the ACC and put the Cardinals on a collision course with Florida State for the ACC Championship. Louisville held Virginia Tech to just 140 total yards and 12 first downs, and the defense gave the offense good field position all game, as the Cardinals had three scoring drives go less than 50 yards. QB Jack Plummer threw for just 141 yards but completed 11 of 12 passes, and Isaac Guerendo paced a Louisville rushing attack which posted 231 yards on the ground with 146 yards of his own and 3 touchdowns. The Cardinals host Virginia next week before a road game at Miami and the annual Governor’s Cup against Kentucky.

SOUTHERN CAL TROJANS

Record: 7-3
Week 10 Result: Lost 52-42 vs. #5 Washington

Recap: The Trojans loss to #5 Washington was the perfect microcosm of a season quickly going off the rails in Los Angeles. Caleb Williams was once again brilliant, throwing for 312 yards and accounting for 4 touchdowns, but with such a porous defense, the Trojans just had no margin for error against Washington’s explosive offense. Alex Grinch’s game plan focused on limiting Washington through the air, and the result was that USC was absolutely gashed on the ground. The Huskies ran for 316 yards and averaged 7.5 YPC, with RB Dillon Johnson going for 256 yards and 4 touchdowns. With a road game at Oregon before the season finale against UCLA, USC could very well be looking at a 7-5 season, which would be a massive disappointment for a team that entered the season with the reigning Heisman Trophy winner and national title expectations. With Williams universally expected to declare for the NFL Draft after the season, this could be an offseason of change for a program that has been in what seems like a constant state of turbulence since Pete Carroll departed over a decade ago.

PITTSBURGH PANTHERS

Record: 2-7
Week 10 Result: Lost 24-7 vs. #4 Florida State

Recap: It turns out Pat Narduzzi did not lose the locker room with his comments after the Notre Dame loss last weekend, as Pitt played hard all game against Florida State. Ultimately though, the Panthers just don’t have the horses to play four quarters with the Seminoles. The Panthers struck first with a 9-yard touchdown pass from Christian Veilleux to Bub Means, but Florida State rallied to score 10 points in the past 4:10 of the first half. Then, Seminole touchdowns on back-to-back drives late in the third quarter, the last one coming on a 55-yard touchdown run by Trey Benson put the game out of reach. The loss ended Pitt’s faint bowl hopes, though the Panthers have three very winnable games remaining against Syracuse, Boston College, and Duke.

WAKE FOREST DEMON DEACONS

Record: 4-5
Week 10 Result: Lost 24-21 at Duke

Recap: The Demon Deacons lost a heartbreaker on the road at Duke as Todd Pelino’s last second field goal split the uprights and gave the Blue Devils the walk-off win. Wake Forest outgained Duke 400-267 and took a 21-14 lead on Mitch Griffis’ 5-yard touchdown run with 4:35 left in the third quarter, but then on the next four drives went fumble, punt, punt, and interception. Griffis, who had been benched earlier in the season before regaining the starting job, was better, completing 16-19 passes for 241 yards and rushing for 55 yards and 2 touchdowns, but his interception in Duke territory with 4:22 remaining in the game gave Duke the chance to drive for the game-winning field goal. With NC State, Notre Dame, and Syracuse remaining, the Demon Deacons have an uphill battle for bowl eligibility.

STANFORD CARDINAL

Record: 3-6
Week 10 Result: Won 10-7 at Washington State

Recap: Stanford kicker Joshua Karty hit the game-winning field goal with 5:56 remaining in the fourth quarter to lift the Cardinal to victory over reeling Washington State, which dropped its fifth consecutive game. The Cardinal offense managed just 217 total yards but possessed the ball for 34:25 and committed just one turnover, playing complementary football with a Stanford defense that turned in a dominating performance. Stanford held Washington State to just 4 rushing yards on 24 attempts, making the Cougars completely one-dimensional on offense. Stanford travels to Oregon State next weekend, and if the Cardinal can bring that same defensive effort against a physical – but not explosive – Beaver offense, they have a shot to pull off the upset.  

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