Notre Dame Holds Off Tar Heels, 37-26

Saturday, October 3

Chapel Hill

Noon

North Carolina

2-2 , 0-1

#3 Notre Dame

5-0 , 0-0

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Notre Dame	14	7	6	10	37
North Carolina	7	7	6	6	26

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Photo by: DALTON T WAINSCOTT

October 3, 2026 | Football

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By: Matt Bowers

CHAPEL HILL, N.C.—Third-ranked Notre Dame ran for 166 yards in the second half and topped North Carolina, 37-26, on a wet Saturday afternoon at Kenan Stadium.

Carolina started with a bang and led, 7-0, but the Fighting Irish scored 21 unanswered points to take a 21-7 lead early in the second quarter. They then allowed UNC to pull back within a point at 21-20 just after halftime before dominating the second half. The Irish leaned on their running game the rest of the way and held off a late UNC rally.

Notre Dame has won 66 consecutive games over unranked opponents when leading at halftime.

"Obviously a hard-fought game, proud of the way our guys competed," Tar Heel head coach Bill Belichick said. "We just weren't able to make enough plays, really in any area. Missed some opportunities on offense, too many easy touchdowns on defense, a couple of good plays in the kicking game but then missed a couple in the kicking game as well. Just needed to play a little more consistently. They didn't turn the ball over, like they usually don't. Very few penalties in the game, a clean game from that standpoint. We just need to take advantage of a few more opportunities than we were able to today."

Carolina tallied 74 offensive yards on its first drive but had under 20 on its next three before using a 15-play, 97-yard effort to pull within a touchdown at 21-14 just before halftime. Tar Heel Jaden Jefferson ran the second-half kickoff back for a TD to cut the deficit to 21-20 and give UNC a pair of scores in 35 seconds of game time.

After the Tar Heels closed to within a point to start the second half, Notre Dame scored 16 straight points in the third and fourth quarters to take a 17-point lead and put the game out of reach.

The Irish outgained Carolina, 475-285, overall, including 241-77 on the ground, while controlling time of possession by a margin of 37:04 to 22:56.

As the weather worsened, Notre Dame relied increasingly on its ground game to control the second half, outscoring Carolina, 17-6, over the game's final 20:36. UNC scored a late touchdown to make things interesting but could get no closer.

Notre Dame improved to 5-0 this season with the win, and the Tar Heels fell to 2-2. The Fighting Irish are 21-4 against current Atlantic Coast Conference teams under head coach Marcus Freeman.

Fighting Irish quarterback CJ Carr excelled with 234 passing yards for four touchdowns. He was 13-for-18 for 169 yards and three scores in the first half, then controlled the game effectively in the rainy second half.

Carolina QB Billy Edwards Jr. also played well in the opening half, completing 11 of 17 throws for 139 yards and two scores despite a pair of interceptions. Notre Dame's defense clamped down in the second half, and Edwards finished 17-for-28 for 208 yards and three TDs.

Jonaz Walton ran it 23 times for 120 yards for Notre Dame, with Nolan James Jr. adding 65 yards on the ground. Jordan Faison caught eight passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns.

Jordan Shipp snared seven passes from Edwards for 109 yards. Tight end Jelani Thurman made five receptions for 50 yards and a pair of TDs. Carolina struggled on the ground, running the ball 23 times for 77 yards.

Up Next
The Tar Heels will play their second ACC road game of 2026 when they visit Pitt next Saturday October 10.

How It Happened
First Quarter
• Carolina blasted out of the gate with a strong start, as it won the opening coin toss and elected to kick to Notre Dame, then forced the Fighting Irish to punt. The Tar Heels then raced down the field to take a 7-0 lead on a seven-yard scoring toss from Edwards to Shamar Easter for the junior's first career touchdown reception. A pair of catches for 57 yards by Shipp, including a 44-yarder (UNC's longest to date this season) highlighted the seven-play, 74-yard drive.
• The Irish responded quickly and tied the score at 7-7 on a 28-yard TD pass from Carr to Jordan Faison that capped a seven-play, 75-yard march in 2:53.
• On the first play of the ensuing drive, Notre Dame defensive end Boubacar Traore hit Edwards as he released the ball, and Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa intercepted the wobbly pass to give the ball back to the Irish at the UNC 12-yard line. On the very next play, Carr connected with Jaden Greathouse on a fade pattern for Notre Dame's second TD in just 15 seconds, making it 14-7.
• Luke Talich picked off a long passing attempt down the left sideline by Edwards on the next UNC drive, giving the ball back to the Irish.

Second Quarter
• After the interception near the end of the first period, Carr hit Faison for their second scoring connection of the day, this one from 39 yards away, to make the score 21-7 less than 10 seconds into the second quarter.
• Two minutes later, the Tar Heel defense got a big stop on an incompletion by Carr on fourth down and goal from the UNC two-yard line to stay within two scores.
• Carolina pulled within a touchdown in the final seconds of the half when Thurman caught a 14-yard toss, his second of the year, from Edwards to make it 21-14 with 21 ticks on the clock. The Tar Heel QB passed 7-for-8 for 77 yards on the drive.

Third Quarter
• The Tar Heels exploded out of the locker room when Jefferson ran the second-half kickoff back 98 yards for a score. A botched snap on the extra point attempt kept Carolina behind by a point at 21-20 just 14 seconds into the half.
• It was UNC's first kickoff return for a TD in two seasons. Between the TD with 21 seconds left in the first half and the special teams score only 14 seconds into the second, UNC posted two touchdowns in just 35 seconds of game time.
• Notre Dame responded with a grinding, 17-play, 75-yard scoring drive to extend its lead to 27-20. The Irish had a botched snap of their own on the extra point attempt, but their drive included two fourth-down conversions and 13 rushes for 73 yards in the rain.

Fourth Quarter
• After a Tar Heel punt late in the third quarter, Notre Dame kept running the ball down the wet field for 62 more yards. Carr capped an eight-play drive with a six-yard toss to Nolan James Jr. that made the score 34-20 six seconds into the fourth.
• Spencer Porath's 31-yard field goal with just over seven minutes remaining gave the Irish a 37-20 lead, capping another long drive.
• Thurman snagged his second TD pass of the day from 10 yards out with 2:36 on the clock, but Notre Dame blocked the extra point to leave the score at 37-26 Irish in Carolina's last gasp.

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