WATCH: Kevin Austin gives Notre Dame a lead with impressive touchdown catch

Notre Dame and UNC appear to be headed for a shootout, and Irish wide receiver Kevin Austin hauled in the most recent score to give the Irish a touchdown lead.

With 1:23 remaining in the second half, quarterback Jack Coan threw the 21-yard score to Austin, who quickly got one foot down to ensure the score counted. It was Austin’s fourth touchdown catch of the year. 

Perfect placement on the back shoulder TD! 👌

📺: NBC and @peacockTV // @NDFootball pic.twitter.com/gDtC6qlk6k

— Notre Dame on NBC (@NDonNBC) October 31, 2021

Per Pete Sampson of The Athletic, the completion is Coan’s first 20-yard completion (air yards) since he connected with Austin for a 36-yard touchdown against Wisconsin on Sept. 25.

Neither defense has been very effective thus far. After two punts to start the game, both teams scored on every possession up until halftime.

The game had 439 yards of total offense in the first half, with UNC outgaining the Irish 240 to 199. Notre Dame has been consistently alternating between Coan and backup Tyler Buchner at quarterback, making for a very choppy offense. The freshman threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to wideout Avery Davis in the first quarter. Davis leads Irish receivers with five catches for 51 yards.

Wide receiver Braden Lenzy is out for the remainder of the game with an upper body injury, which leaves Notre Dame with five scholarship wide receivers, and three of the five are freshmen.

UNC quarterback Sam Howell is 8-for-10 with 149 yards.

Of course, the Irish are without their best player in safety Kyle Hamilton. It is evident that the Irish secondary is missing him, as four UNC receivers have a competition of at least 15 yards. Receiver Josh Downs has the game’s longest play, a 41-yard reception completed as a result of a missed offensive pass inference call on the Tar Heels.

Notre Dame has a 17-13 lead at halftime. UNC gets the ball to start the second half.