Notre Dame football: 3 Surprises against Florida State in Week 1

The Notre Dame football team escaped Doak Campbell Stadium with a win in Week 1, and here are three surprises from the 41-38 victory.

It took overtime, but on Sunday night, the Notre Dame football team ran their record to 1-0 by beating the Florida State Seminoles by the score of 41-38. Ranked No. 9 in the country entering the game, and with the Seminoles being unranked, this was a game the Irish should have won, and they are lucky to have done so.

Anytime a game is this close, there are certain to be surprising factors, and here, we take a look at three of them.

Notre Dame football: 3 Surprises against Florida State in Week 1

The defensive struggles

Going into this game, the Irish had a ton of question marks on offense, including a brand new quarterback, a wide receiver group looking for a leader, and a revamped offensive line. On the other side of the ball, the Irish seemed set to dominate the Seminoles, boasting veteran talent at all three levels, and an elite coordinator in Marcus Freeman.

After holding the Seminoles to 14 first-half points, albeit giving up a bunch of big plays along the way, the defense really went off the rails in the second half. Given a 38-20 lead, the defense allowed 18 straight, sending the game into overtime, and nearly costing Notre Dame football their season in Week 1.

Against better competition like Desmond Ridder and Cincinnati, last night’s effort would not have worked.