How Notre Dame’s 2016 opponents fared: Week 2
By Greg Hadley
See how Notre Dame’s opponents for the rest of the season played in Week 2 and how that could affect their future matchups with the Irish.
Notre Dame’s 2016 opponents compiled a 5-4 record in Week 2, a significant step back from the opening weekend of the season, when they went 10-1. But perhaps the two most difficult teams remaining on the schedule: Michigan State and Stanford, were on bye. Here’s how the other nine teams performed.
Related Story: Grade book: How Notre Dame did against Nevada
Week 1: Texas 41, UTEP 7
Well, at least it wasn’t a fluke. Notre Dame fans have to hope that Texas spends the rest of the season winning, thus proving to the nation that a double-overtime loss to the Longhorns is not much a blemish on the Irish’s record.
And Charlie Strong’s bunch did just th at this weekend, flattening the underdog Miners despite missing several offensive linemen to injury. Shane Buechele looked sharp in his second career start, completing 22 of 27 passing attempts for 244 yards and four touchdowns. Texas never trailed and is now 2-0 for the first time since 2012.
In Week 3, the Longhorns will face Oklahoma State on the road.
Week 3: Michigan State BYE
The Spartans had the week off prior to traveling to South Bend next Saturday. Michigan State has not won at Notre Dame since 2007, and the Irish have won the previous three matchups between the teams.
Week 4: Wake Forest 24, Duke 14
The Blue Devils dropped what should have been an easy win against a perennial cellar dweller in the ACC, as Wake Forest forced three turnovers and rushed for 239 yards en route to one of their biggest wins in recent memory.
Freshman running back Cade Carney scored three times for the Demon Deacons while racking up 107 yards on the ground, which bodes well for Notre Dame’s ground game. Meanwhile, Duke surrendered five sacks and 10 tackles for loss. The Blue Devils totaled just 37 rushing yards on the game.
Duke will travel to the Midwest in Week 3 to face Northwestern.
Week 5: Louisville 62, Syracuse 28
Nobody thought Syracuse was very good entering this season, but Week 2 exposed just how vulnerable the Orange can be when facing a dynamic playmaker. Louisville QB Lamar Jackson absolutely shredded the Syracuse D to the tune of five touchdowns and 610 total yards.
Syracuse sophomore quarterback Eric Dungey just couldn’t keep pace, needing 51 throws to compile 25 completions, 255 yards and three touchdowns. The Orange also did not have any rusher with more than 40 yards and averaged 3 yards per attempt. But the defense is obviously the most glaring hole, and playmakers like Josh Adams, CJ Sanders and DeShone Kizer have to be licking their chops after this one.
Syracuse will attempt to regain its footing next week against South Florida at home.
Week 6: East Carolina 33, North Carolina State 30
In a black eye for the ACC, NC State, who looked very strong in Week 1, stumbled against ECU. The Wolfpack offense was fine, as quarterback Ryan Finley threw for 254 yards and one touchdown and running back Matthew Dayes racked up 103 yards on 14 attempts. NC State only had one turnover.
But the defense couldn’t stop the Pirates, who went 7-for-17 on third downs and 3-for-3 on fourth downs. Three East Carolina players had 40 or more rushing yards, and quarterback Philip Nelson tossed for almost 300 yards.
North Carolina State will face Old Dominion next week at home.
Week 7: Stanford BYE
The Cardinal have an early bye this season after topping Kansas State in Week 1. Stanford will stay in Palo Alto this week to face USC in a classic Pac-12 rivalry game.
Week 9: Miami 38, Florida Atlantic 10
Miami took care of business in Week 2, blowing out FAU by a score similar to that of Notre Dame’s vs. Nevada. Like the Irish, the Hurricanes took a little while to get going, enduring a scoreless first quarter before they exploded for 14 points in the second.
Leading the way was running back Mark Walton, who compiled 155 yards and four touchdowns for the Canes. Fellow back Joe Yearby was not far behind with 121 yards of his own. The Miami defense also had a lockdown performance, limiting FAU to fewer than 50 yards rushing.
Miami will go on the road to face Appalachian State in Week 3. The Mountaineers have already come close to upsetting one FBS team this season: Tennessee in Week 1.
Week 10: Navy 28, Connecticut 24
Navy escaped with a win against UConn on Saturday thanks to some spectacularly bad clock management on the part of the Huskies. After taking a 21-0 lead, led by new starting QB Will Worth, the Midshipmen allowed Connecticut to rally, permitting the Huskies to score 24 unanswered.
But Worth led a late drive and plunged into the end zone with 3:08 remaining to retake the lead, and then UConn’s final drive came up short, as the Huskies made it to the one-yard line with 17 seconds left, called their final timeout and were subsequently stuffed. While the game’s final seconds ticked away, the UConn players seemed to show no signs of urgency, gifting the win to Navy. It’s even weirder than it sounds.
Navy will travel to New Orleans to face AAC foe Tulane next week.
Week 11: Army 31, Rice 14
Army made its home debut in Week 2 against Rice and thrashed the Owls with ease, using a voracious run game that racked up 348 yards. The Black Knights attempted just six passes but had eight players with at least 20 rushing yards. After Rice scored first, Army rallied with three straight scores to take a lead it would never relinquish. Army also never allowed Rice into the red zone.
However, tragedy struck the Black Knights program on Sunday when starting cornerback Brandon Jackson died in a car crash. Army will have to play through its grief this week on the road against UTEP.
Week 12: Tennessee 45, Virginia Tech 24
In the biggest American football game ever in terms of attendance, Virginia Tech couldn’t keep up with Tennessee in the “Battle of Bristol.”
The Hokies took an early 14-0 lead at Bristol Motor Speedway, riding a 69-yard rush from Trevor McMillian, but came down to earth soon after, allowing 31 unanswered points from the Volunteers. From there on out, Tennessee cruised to victory. McMillian finished with 130 yards rushing to lead the Hokies.
Virginia Tech faces Boston College at home in Week 3.
Week 13: USC 45, Utah State 7
USC rallied from a Week 1 trouncing at the hands of Alabama to rout Utah State itself at home. JuJu Smith-Schuster caught two touchdowns, Adoree Jackson returned a punt for a score and the Trojan passing game chipped in four TDs total.
The Trojan defense was also dominant, allowing USC to roll to a 31-0 victory through most of three quarters. It was a welcome return to form for Southern Cal, and Notre Dame fans should be relieved. ND needs its schedule to be as tough as possible from here on out, and a good USC team is integral to that.
USC travels north to face Stanford in Week 3.
Next: Notre Dame thumps Nevada for first win of the season
Outlook: Remember how everyone was talking about how weak Notre Dame’s schedule was this summer? After an easy opening slate, Week 2 reinforced how much of a mixed bag this group of opponents really are. NC State, Syracuse and Duke look pretty weak now and Navy and Army shouldn’t be too much of a challenge. Miami and Texas are really the only ones who have exceeded expectations thus far. Of course, it doesn’t matter too much in the end: Notre Dame still needs to win out to make the CFP.