Riley Leonard jokingly invokes Northern Illinois upset following win over Purdue

Unlike last week, Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard was all smiles postgame on Saturday after a 66-7 rout of Purdue. So much so that he even cracked a joke in his interview with CBS sideline reporter Jenny Dell about the Fighting Irish’s upset loss to Northern Illinois in Week 2.

Dell asked Leonard when the last time he had this much fun in a game was, prompting the hilarious response from the QB.

“It wasn’t last week,” he said. “It was probably two weeks ago.”

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Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard had a fitting response to Jenny Dell's question, "When's the last time you had this much fun on the field?"

"It wasn't last week. Probably two weeks ago." pic.twitter.com/RuB0c5dz4Q

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 14, 2024

Of course, it was a rough past week for Notre Dame after it lost 16-14 on a last second field goal to the Huskies. It killed all of the momentum the Fighting Irish had after a big Week 1 road win against Texas A&M.

Leonard admitted it was difficult on him as a leader as he took the loss to heart. However, it also caused him to come out with a renewed determination this week not to let it happen again.

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“Obviously, this was a tough week for us,” Leonard said. “Tough week for me mentally. But you’ve gotta have a quick mind. You’ve gotta be able to respond. I think my teammates did an outstanding job all around the field. We executed at a high level and that’s a really good football team.”

Riley Leonard and the offense put their foot on the gas and never let up to go up 42-0 by halftime. The QB finished the contest 11-of-16 passing for 112 yards, but his biggest contribution came on the ground.

He rushed for 100 yards and three touchdowns as the Fighting Irish finished with 362 yards rushing and six scored overall. The team was so dominant that even backup quarterback Steve Angeli and some of the other second string players got to see some action.

For that more than anything, Leonard is grateful.

“It’s big time,” he said. “I’m really happy for everybody. You’ve got Steve getting in there throwing touchdowns. Kenny gets in and throws a touchdown. Everybody played well. It’s very good for the moral of the team. I’m excited for the guys.”

Notre Dame will hope to extend its winning streak next week when it faces Miami (OH) at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.