While the Notre Dame defense struggled in the first quarter — giving up 14 points — they tightened up over the next three quarters . They only allowed three points — a fourth quarter field goal — after the first 15 minutes. The Irish defense had a total of three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles.
Notre Dame’s defense was nowhere near as dominant as fans were expecting it to be in the season opener. They made adjustments, which was nice to see. With that being said they still had plenty of struggles — including missed tackles and giving up 249 yards on 47 rushing attempts.