No. 8 Notre Dame continues its College Football Playoff chase on Saturday in South Bend, Indiana, against a Virginia team that is 3-1 and has led every game this season.
The Fighting Irish (8-1) are on a seven-game winning streak since a two-point loss to Northern Illinois on Sept. 7 and have won all four past meetings with the Cavaliers (5-4).
Notre Dame improves to 4-0 this season against Virginia’s fellow Atlantic Coast Conference members after defeating Florida State 52-3 last weekend, while also defeating once-ranked Louisville, Georgia Tech and Stanford .
Riley Leonard passed for 215 yards and a touchdown and ran for 70 yards and two scores against the Seminoles. The balanced Fighting Irish offense had over 200 rushing yards and 200 passing yards for the third time in the last four games. The defense collected eight sacks and two additional tackles for loss and finished the blowout with a 79-yard pick-six by Luke Talich.
The last time Leonard faced Virginia he posted similar stats. Playing for Duke in 2022, he threw a touchdown pass and ran for two scores in a 38–17 loss to the Cavaliers.
Virginia snapped a three-game losing streak to then-No. 1 with a 24–19 win last weekend. 18 Pittsburgh. Xavier Brown had a 1-yard touchdown run and a 24-yard touchdown catch and former Notre Dame wideout Chris Tyree had his best game as a Cavalier with four catches for 42 yards and a run for 13 yards.
“I’m excited to get back,” said Tyree, a graduate transfer who gained 3,284 all-purpose yards with 17 touchdowns in 49 games with the Fighting Irish from 2020-23.
Tyree’s fourth quarter catch for 25 yards on third-and-15 allowed Virginia to extend a drive that took 8:26 and resulted in a field goal for the final margin.
“I think this is a really good start for us to finish out these last four games,” Tyree said. “So it’s up to us to go 1-0 each week, take it day by day.”
The Cavaliers have not played in a bowl game since the 2019 season. They need one more win to regain eligibility in the remaining games against Notre Dame, No. 14 SMU and rival Virginia Tech.
“Coach (Tony) Elliott has done a great job. His team is playing at a really high level, playing with confidence, being competitive,” Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said.
“…They had a big win against Pitt last week, and they’re a talented group and they’re playing that way with confidence and physicality. So, we’re expecting the best from them and Saturday at Notre Dame. “We’re looking forward to a big challenge at the stadium for our Senior Day.”
Freeman said Fighting Irish defensive lineman Howard Cross, who is second on the team with four sacks, will not play because of an ankle injury.
The Notre Dame community mourned the loss this week of former head coach Gerry Faust, who died Monday at the age of 89. Faust compiled a record of 30–26–1 from 1981–85 before being replaced by Lou Holtz.
–Field Level Media
