The No. 5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (1-0) have their home opener this weekend in South Bend, hosting the Northern Illinois Huskies (1-0) for these teams’ first-ever meeting. Live coverage will begin Saturday at 3:00pm ET on NBC and Peacock. Keep reading for how to watch and key storylines for the game.
Notre Dame
The Irish are coming off what may prove to be their biggest win of the season last week at Texas A&M, where they were able to beat the #20 Aggies 23-13 in a tough defensive contest in College Station. Notre Dame jumped from No. 7 to No. 5 in this week’s AP Poll following the win.
Week 1 saw the Irish debut for Duke transfer QB Riley Leonard, who was a huge playmaker for Duke in 2022 before missing quite a bit of the 2023 season with injury. In his first start for Notre Dame, Leonard threw for 158 yards, ran for another 63, and did not turn the ball over – not exactly a Heisman performance but a strong enough showing to lead the Irish to a 1-0 record in a hostile Texas A&M environment.
Leonard should have an easier time making plays this weekend at Notre Dame Stadium, and it’s likely head coach Marcus Freeman will also lean on running backs Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price, who each scored on long TD runs in Week 1.
The defense was the true standout unit for Notre Dame last week. The Irish allowed only 13 points, the fewest the team has allowed in a true road game since Freeman took over in 2022. The defense was especially strong against the pass game, limiting the Aggies to 100 yards in the air and intercepting the ball twice. One of those takeaways came from All-American Xavier Watts, who tied for the most interceptions in FBS last season with seven.
Notre Dame is coming off of a 2023 season that saw the team drop games to Louisville and Clemson in the second half of the fall that took the team out of playoff contention. Now following a resume-building win in Week 1, the Irish are looking at a favorable schedule for the majority of this season, putting them in great position to make it to the new 12-team College Football Playoff. The Irish can’t be seeded 1-4 in the Playoff because they can’t win a conference title as an independent team, but if they are seeded 5-8, they’ll host their first-round matchup in South Bend.
Northern Illinois
The NIU Huskies are seeking their first-ever win over a top-10 opponent in their inaugural visit to Notre Dame Stadium. A win would also be historic for the Mid-American Conference as Notre Dame is 7-0 all-time against MAC opponents.
The Northern Illinois program has been a bit volatile in its five seasons under head coach Thomas Hammock, who led the team to a conference title in 2021 and to bowl eligibility in 2023, but notched losing records in his other three seasons at the helm.
Northern Illinois rolled to victory in Week 1 over Western Illinois, winning 54-15 thanks in large part to redshirt junior QB Ethan Hampton, who won the starting job after the departure of Rocky Lombardi following last season.
Hampton looked very comfortable in that spot last week, throwing for a career-high 328 yards and five touchdowns with only two incompletions on 20 attempts and no turnovers. NIU finished with 706 total yards on the day in an impressive offensive performance, but the Notre Dame defense is going to be a tall order for the Huskies.
How to watch the Northern Illinois Huskies vs. the Notre Dame Fighting Irish
- When: Saturday, September 7
- Where: Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana
- Time: 3:30 p.m. ET (Pregame coverage begins at 3:00pm ET)
- Watch: NBC, Peacock
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