The Notre Dame Fighting Irish’s offense had been a huge problem through the first three games of the season. As it turns out, the solution they needed was to play the North Carolina Tar Heels.
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have been one of the more disappointing teams three weeks into the 2022 season. They picked up just one win, against the California Golden Bears, but lost to the Ohio State Buckeyes and Marshall Thundering Herd. One area of concern that has stuck out with the Fighting had been their lackluster offense, who put up minimal yardage and points on the board.
After weeks of figuring out what exactly it would take for Notre Dame to break out of their offensive slump, a solution has been found. That solution, is to play the North Carolina Tar Heels.
In Week 4, Notre Dame led North Carolina 24-14 entering halftime. That’s right, they scored 24 points in two quarters. It’s a miracle.
Notre Dame’s solution to fixing offense: play North Carolina
If there was any opponent to put up yardage and points against, it is the Tar Heels. Through their first three games of the season, North Carolina surrendered an average of 468.3 total yards per game, ranking their defense 123rd in the nation entering Saturday, Sept. 24. They also surrendered an average of 37.7 points per game. Perhaps their most notable game was giving up 61 points to Appalachian State, but the offense bailed them out by scoring 63.
After trailing 7-0, Notre Dame scored 14 unanswered points on touchdown passes from Drew Pyne to tight end Michael Mayer and wide receiver Lorenzo Styles. Once North Carolina tied things up, Notre Dame reached the end zone once again on a one-yard run by Audric Estime.
In the first half, Notre Dame picked up 301 yards of total yardage. Pyne completed 15-of-22 pass attempts for 181 yards and two touchdowns. Additionally, Notre Dame picked up 120 rushing yards on 17 carries.
Yes, while the Tar Heels defense has had trouble stopping the opposing offense, that didn’t necessarily mean that they would shut out the Fighting Irish. As it turns out, Notre Dame had no issue facing off against this defense.
For more NCAA football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.