Virginia Football vs. Notre Dame Game Preview, Score Prediction

Matt Newton | 22 Hours Ago

Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Virginia will look to knock off a ranked team on the road for the second week in a row when the Cavaliers head to South Bend to take on No. 8 Notre Dame on Saturday evening at Notre Dame Stadium. There's plenty at stake in this week 12 matchup, as UVA needs one more victory to become bowl eligible, while the Fighting Irish are looking to pick up their eighth-consecutive win to keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive.

Read on for a full preview of Virginia vs. Notre Dame with everything you need to know, including game details and notes, an opponent scouting report, what to watch for, and a score prediction.

Virginia vs. Notre Dame Game Details

Who: Virginia Cavaliers (5-4, 3-3 ACC) at Notre Dame Fighting Irish (8-1)

When: Saturday, November 16th at 3:30pm ET

Where: Notre Dame Stadium (77,622) in Notre Dame, Indiana

How to watch: NBC

How to listen: Sirius XM 381, SXM App 971

All-time series: Notre Dame leads 4-0

Last meeting: Notre Dame defeated Virginia 28-3 on November 13th, 2021 in Charlottesville.

Virginia vs. Notre Dame Game Notes

• This will be the fifth-ever meeting between Virginia and Notre Dame, who leads 4-0 in the all-time series, which dates back to 1989.
• This will be UVA's second-ever trip to Notre Dame and first since 2019, when the Irish defeated the Cavaliers 35-20 in a top 25 matchup.
• Virginia nearly earned its lone victory in the series in 2015, but Notre Dame scored a touchdown in the last minute to defeat UVA 34-27 in Charlottesville.
• Notre Dame has been ranked in the top 10 in all four meetings against Virginia. The Fighting Irish are 33-0 in home games against ACC teams when they are ranked in the top 25.
• Virginia is 1-1 against teams ranked in the AP Top 25 this season and 2-3 against ranked opponents under Tony Elliott, with both of those wins coming on the road.
• Last season, UVA earned its first-ever road win over a top 10 opponent by defeating North Carolina in Chapel Hill. The Cavaliers will look to do that again on Saturday in South Bend.

Read Virginia's injury report for the Notre Dame game here: UVA Football Week 12 Injury Report: Antonio Clary Out for the Season

See below for UVA's week 12 depth chart for the Notre Dame game: Virginia Football Depth Chart vs. Notre Dame | Takeaways, Analysis

Virginia Athletics

Opponent Scouting Report: Notre Dame

2023: 10-3
2024: 8-1

Marcus Freeman's third full season as head coach at Notre Dame got off to a strong start, as the Irish earned an impressive road win at Texas A&M in the season opener, but they followed that up with a disastrous 16-14 loss at home to Northern Illinois, a shocking defeat that sent up all sorts of warning signs that maybe this Notre Dame team was in for a rough season.

False alarm. Since that loss to Northern Illinois in week 2, Notre Dame has won its next seven games by an average of more than 33 points per game. That win streak includes a 66-7 victory at Purdue, a 31-24 win over Louisville, and a 51-14 win over then-ranked Navy. Most recently, the Irish crushed Florida State 52-3.

A strong run game and a smothering defense are the headliners for this formidable Notre Dame football team. The Fighting Irish are ranked 12th in the country in rushing offense, averaging 214.8 rush yards per game, and have scored 30 rushing touchdowns, sixth-most in the nation. Their potent ground game is fueled by the two-headed monster of lead running back Jeremiyah Love, who has 583 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns and is averaging 5.9 yards per carry, and quarterback Riley Leonard, who is one of the better running quarterbacks in the nation, racking up 609 rushing yards and 13 rushing scores this season.

A transfer from Duke, Leonard is completing 64.4% of his passes for 1,575 yards and nine touchdowns while throwing just three interceptions in nine games. While Notre Dame's offense is run first, the Irish have the ability to beat teams over the top with Beaux Collins (374 receiving yards) and Jaden Greathouse (310 receiving yards).

Defensively, Notre Dame is allowing just 11.1 points per game, third-fewest in the country. The Irish have given up only 11 total touchdowns this season, second-fewest in all of college football. Notre Dame is especially good on third downs, allowing opponents to move the chains on just 28.2% of third down attempts, good for fourth in the nation. The Irish are also among the nation's best in takeaways, forcing 20 turnovers, including 12 interceptions as a team this season.

Notre Dame has a number of defensive playmakers, including safety Xavier Watts, who has three interceptions this season, defensive lineman Rylie Mills, who leads the Irish with six sacks, and linebacker Jaylen Sneed, who has 2.5 sacks and two forced fumbles.

What to Watch For in Virginia vs. Notre Dame

Turnover battle
If the Cavaliers want to have any chance of pulling off this upset, they'll have to take care of the football and, in all likelihood, come up with at least one or two takeaways. Notre Dame is +12 on the season in turnover margin, third-best in college football. Virginia, meanwhile, is -1 in the turnover margin department, having committed 12 turnovers while forcing only 11. It might be asking too much for the Cavaliers to beat the Irish at their own game in this particular category, but this game will undoubtedly get out of hand if UVA coughs up the football a couple of times in the first half.

Battle in the trenches
Virginia's ability to come away from Pittsburgh with a win last weekend had a lot to do with UVA's success on both sides of the line of scrimmage. With their offensive line finally healthy, the Cavaliers were able to run the ball effectively (170 rush yards, two touchdowns) and were able to hold Pitt to 127 yards rushing. As a result, Virginia dominated time of possession (35:17) en route to the victory. The Hoos will be at a disadvantage in the trenches on both sides of the ball against the Irish, but they must be able to at least contend at the line of scrimmage in order to give themselves an opportunity to stay in this game.

Red Zone efficiency
Virginia has scored only 14 touchdowns on 36 trips to the red zone this season, the second-worst red zone touchdown rate in the ACC. Notre Dame, on the other hand, has scored touchdowns on 26 of its 33 red zone trips and is ranked 24th in the country in red zone efficiency, scoring on nearly 91% of its trips to the red zone. It will require a total reversal of the season-long trends, but the Cavaliers have to find a way to punctuate their (likely few) red zone trips with touchdowns and hold the Irish to field goals.

Virginia vs. Notre Dame Prediction

Riding the momentum from their big win at Pitt last week, the Cavaliers would love to pick up another ranked road victory and beat a top 10 team on the road for the second season in a row... but it's probably not going to happen. Notre Dame's advantage in the trenches, punishing ground game, and speed on defense will likely be too much for the Hoos this time.

Score prediction: Virginia 17, Notre Dame 31

More Virginia Football News

Stat Comparison: How Virginia Stacks Up Against Notre Dame on Paper


UVA Football: Players to Watch in Virginia vs. Notre Dame

UVA Football Week 12 Injury Report: Antonio Clary Out for the Season

Virginia Football Depth Chart vs. Notre Dame | Takeaways, Analysis

Virginia Football: ACC Football Week 12 Power Rankings