Louisville ‘grinded it out,’ improves to 6-0 with signature win against No. 10 Notre Dame

Jawhar Jordan ran for a season-high 143 yards, scoring on 45- and 21-yard runs on consecutive second-half possessions, and No. 25 Louisville defeated No. 10 Notre Dame 33-20 on Saturday night.

Louisville, at 6-0 off to its best start in 10 years, pulled away in a signature victory for first-year coach and former Cardinals great Jeff Brohm before a stadium-record 59,081. Many of those fans rushed the field at the final gun, with the celebration stretching the entire field for more than 15 minutes.

“I just think our players came out in the second half and understood what it meant, not only (for) us, but the entire town, city and university to win, and they grinded it out,” Brohm said.

Notre Dame (5-2) lost for the second time in three games. It had won 30 straight games against Atlantic Coast Conference opponents dating to 2017.

“We appreciate all the fans, all the support they’ve been giving us,” Jordan said. “It was electric once they stormed the field and the adrenaline, and we’re just thankful for the day.”

The Fighting Irish converted Cam Hart’s forced fumble and recovery into a 10-7 lead on Spencer Schrader’s 53-yard field goal midway through the third quarter before the Cardinals answered with Brock Travelstead’s 44-yarder. Jordan took over from there with explosive runs.

Jordan followed Amari Huggins-Bruce’s 19-yard run with a quick burst through the right side before finding another gear near the 20 to elude defenders for the go-ahead score at 17-10. Schrader’s 54-yard field goal got Notre Dame to 17-13, but Jordan answered with another big run.

Jordan appeared to hit the hole even faster on his second scoring run early in the fourth, going virtually untouched to make it 24-13.

Notre Dame turned the ball over on downs and Travelstead added his third field goal from 45 yards for the 17-point cushion. He followed with a 35-yarder late in the fourth to seal it.

A week after being held to just 36 yards rushing without a TD at North Carolina State, Jordan carried 21 times to top his previous high of 135 yards earlier this season against Murray State. He was 2 yards shy of his career high set against rival Kentucky last season.

Jamari Thrash caught a 9-yard touchdown pass from Jack Plummer on Louisville’s first drive set up by Quincy Riley’s interception of Sam Hartman’s sideline pass. That ended the quarterback’s impressive start of 14 touchdowns without a pick and set the tone for a difficult night for him and the Irish.

Notre Dame was outgained 330-298 with just 44 yards rushing after entering the game averaging 192 per contest. Hartman completed 22 of 38 passes for 254 yards and two TDs, but threw three interceptions and was sacked five times.

“We didn’t run the ball well and they did pressure him,” Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said of Louisville’s pressure on Hartman. “Nobody has put the pressure on the quarterback like Louisville. Give them credit, they were stacking the box and saying we refuse to let you run the ball. Then we have to make some plays in the passing game. We didn’t and we have to be sure not to let this happen again .”

THE TAKEAWAY

Louisville: The Cardinals endured a mid-game lull that allowed the Irish to tie and lead briefly. They then turned to their strength and found success that gave them their most significant win since beating Wake Forest with Hartman.

Notre Dame: The ground game never got going, essentially making the Irish one dimensional. Hartman was under pressure most of the night in a near-match of his previous visit here last season with No. 10 Wake Forest. That ended with three interceptions and two fumbles in a 48-21 defeat.

NAME IN LIGHTS

Louisville offensive coordinator Brian Brohm, who’s top-10 in school passing along with his older brother, had his jersey honored on the electronic ribbon board before the game.

CELEBRITY PRESENCE

Rapper Jack Harlow and former Cardinals quarterback Reggie Bonnafon, both Louisville natives, were in the crowd. Bonnafon, who guided Louisville past Notre Dame in the inaugural series meeting in 2014, sounded the train horn played after touchdowns.

UP NEXT

Louisville: At Pittsburgh on Saturday.

Notre Dame: Hosts Southern California on Saturday.

This story was originally published October 8, 2023 at 1:08 AM.