No. 17 Notre Dame shakes off slow start and wins 28-3 against Miami (Ohio)

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Riley Leonard totaled 297 yards and three touchdowns as No. 17 Notre Dame shook off a sluggish start on offense to beat Miami (Ohio) 28-3 on Saturday.

Leonard capped the scoring for the Fighting Irish (3-1) when he ran 50 yards up the middle for a touchdown with 5:39 left in the game. He finished the day with 143 yards on 12 carries and two touchdowns. Leonard completed 12 of 25 passes for 154 yards and a touchdown.

Due to missed passes and penalties, Notre Dame fell behind 3-0 early in the second quarter with a 26-yard field goal by Miami's Dom Dzioban.

The Fighting Irish, who lost their last home game 14-16 to Northern Illinois, were booed several times by the crowd during their first three drives when they had two three-and-outs and lost the game on one down.

But towards the end of the first half, the Irish woke up offensively. Leonard marched 87 yards with the offense in 10 plays and brought the ball into the end zone in a zigzag run of eight yards with 3:33 minutes left in the second quarter.

After a Miami punt, Notre Dame needed just 56 seconds to extend the lead. Leonard threw a perfect pass to Beaux Collins, who made a 38-yard over-the-shoulder touchdown catch with 1:05 left in the second quarter, giving the Irish a 14-3 halftime lead.

Notre Dame dropped the ball and punted on its first two possessions of the second half before Christian Gray made a diving interception that put the ball back into the hands of the Irish offense at their own 40-yard line, setting up a 15-yard touchdown run by Jeremiyah Love to extend the lead to 21-3.

Notre Dame's defense prevented the RedHawks (0-3) from gaining any ground after their early lead.

Junior Tuihalamaka intercepted a Miami pass intercepted by Gray, ending a RedHawks threat that had reached the Notre Dame 5 in the first quarter. Notre Dame also forced a turnover at the 36 in the first quarter.

In his first career start, defensive lineman Boubacar Traore recorded two sacks, two tackles for loss, a forced fumble and a quarterback hurry – all in the first half.

The conclusion

A week after scoring 42 first-half points in a 66-7 win at Purdue, Notre Dame managed just 40 total yards on its first three drives against Miami, Ohio. Notre Dame must work on continuity on offense to force its way back into the College Football Playoffs.

Impact of the survey

Notre Dame will likely remain in the top 20, but don't expect a big jump forward after early struggles against a Miami team still looking for its first win.

Next

Notre Dame: Hosts No. 19 Louisville on Saturday, September 28

Miami (Ohio): Hosts UMass on Saturday, September 28