No. 8 Notre Dame clobbers Virginia, wins eighth straight game

The Jumbotron at Notre Dame Stadium showed Jeremiyah Love walking into the end zone with three Virginia defenders in hopeless pursuit while the loud speakers blared the 1967 Beatles hit song, “All You Need Is Love.”

As it turned out, Love was almost all the Irish would need.

The 7 points scored on the sophomore running back’s opening-drive touchdown and another 7 on his 76-yard score in the third quarter were nearly enough for No. 8 Notre Dame to win the game. Why? Because its defense put Virginia (5-5) in a blender.

The Irish intercepted sophomore Cavaliers quarterback Anthony Colandrea 3 times — all in the final three minutes of the first half — and recovered 2 fumbles, leading to 28 points off turnovers. And, like defensive coordinator Al Golden’s group has done so many times this season, they didn’t let up until the starters left the field.

Notre Dame beat Virginia 35-14, winning its eighth-straight game and improving to 9-1. The Irish are two wins away from securing a spot in the College Football Playoff, and likely an opportunity to host a game.

“We haven’t lost the turnover margin other than one game this year, and that was Northern Illinois,” Irish head coach Marcus Freeman said. “That’s what complementary football is.”

The carnage began on the opening kickoff when graduate student Cavaliers wide receiver Chris Tyree officially made his return to South Bend.

Tyree ran up to catch a short kick and booted it directly into the hands of graduate student Notre Dame special teamer Max Hurleman, who recovered it at the 25-yard line. Love scored five plays later, and before long, it was the defense’s turn to take the ball away.

With 2:34 to go in the second quarter and the Irish up 14-0, Colandrea thought he had a wide receiver open over the middle. He did not see sophomore Notre Dame safety Adon Shuler in perfect position to jump in front of the route, leap into the air and intercept his pass.

Shuler nearly took it to the house, returning it to the 2-yard line. Senior quarterback Riley Leonard found sophomore tight end Cooper Flanagan wide-open for a score on the next play, putting the game out of reach. But Notre Dame wasn’t done.

On the Cavaliers’ next possession, freshman Irish cornerback Leonard Moore picked off a deflected Colandrea pass deep in Cavalier territory. Three snaps later, a scrambling Leonard hit senior tight end Mitchell Evans on the right sideline. Evans faked inside, turned upfield and dove head-first over a Virginia defender for his second touchdown in as many weeks, as well as Leonard’s third of the game.

“It makes you hungry to get back out there,” graduate student linebacker Jack Kiser said. “When those short series happen, you want to get right back on the field. We were flying around, having a lot of fun tonight.”

On Senior Day, though, graduate student safety Xavier Watts wasn’t about to let the underclassmen create turnover without him. He had already recovered a fumble forced by fellow graduate student safety Rod Heard II, but he joined the pick party shortly after Evans scored.

With graduate student defensive tackle Rylie Mills breathing down his neck, a panicked Colandrea chucked the ball in Watts’ direction and paid the price. Watts intercepted his fourth pass of the season, and it was the last one Colandrea threw Saturday night.

“He’s really good at getting the ball and always being in the right spot,” Shuler said about Watts. “If you watch film, X is always in the right spot.”

Notre Dame harassed Colandrea and later his backup, graduate student quarterback Tony Muskett, all game. The Cavaliers totaled 172 yards on 36 passes, averaging a pitiful 4.8 yards per attempt.

A sack from Kiser, playing his program-record 63rd game in a blue-and-gold uniform, was the finishing touch.

“Any time you step on the field at Notre Dame Stadium, you’re gonna go all-out,” Kiser said. “That mindset doesn’t change.”

With two more wins, Kiser and company could experience that feeling one more time.