Riley Leonard totaled 297 yards of offense and three touchdowns as No. 17 Notre Dame overcame a slow start to defeat Miami (Ohio) 28-3 on Saturday.
Leonard capped off the scoring for the Fighting Irish (3-1) with a 50-yard run up the middle with 5:39 remaining in the game. He ended the game with 143 rushing yards on 12 carries, including two touchdowns, and completed 12 of 25 passes for 154 yards and one touchdown.
Struggling with inaccurate passes and penalties, Notre Dame fell behind 3-0 early in the second quarter after a 26-yard field goal from Miami’s Dom Dzioban.
The Fighting Irish, who lost 16-14 to Northern Illinois in their last home game, faced boos from the crowd during their first three drives, as they went three-and-out twice and turned the ball over on downs.
“That’s part of the game, right? If you don’t do your job, people are going to boo you,” Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said. “But if you let that affect the way you go out and execute the next play, then, man, you’re not the right person for this job, or to be our quarterback at Notre Dame.
So, I hope (Leonard) handled it the exact way that I would expect him to. What do you need to do to refocus, to go out the next play and get your job done?”
The Irish finally found their rhythm offensively late in the half. Leonard, who mentioned he blocked out the noise, led a strong 87-yard drive in 10 plays and scored on an eight-yard run with 3:33 left in the second quarter.
After a punt from Miami, Notre Dame quickly extended its lead. Leonard connected with Beaux Collins for a stunning 38-yard touchdown catch with 1:05 remaining in the second quarter, giving the Irish a 14-3 lead at halftime.
Notre Dame finished with 270 rushing yards and 158 passing yards. Leonard praised the defense for keeping the game competitive early on.
“I think obviously, with the way the defense plays, that takes a lot of pressure off us as an offense,” Leonard said.
“We would go out there and maybe take risks and play freely, because we know we have such a great defense that will complement our game if we were to make a mistake. And then up front with the offensive line. I thought they did an outstanding job.”
Notre Dame fumbled and punted on its first two possessions of the second half. However, a leaping interception by Christian Gray gave the ball back to the Irish offense at their own 40-yard line. This set up Jeremiyah Love’s 15-yard touchdown run, increasing the lead to 21-3.
Notre Dame’s defense made sure the RedHawks (0-3) couldn’t gain any momentum after their early lead.
Junior Tuihalamaka intercepted a Miami pass that Gray broke up, stopping a RedHawk threat that had reached the Notre Dame 5-yard line in the first quarter. Notre Dame also forced a turnover on downs at its own 36 in the first quarter.
In his first career start, defensive lineman Boubacar Traore had an impressive performance with two sacks, two tackles for loss, a forced fumble, and a quarterback hurry — all in the first half.
Miami coach Chuck Martin was upset that his team let early chances slip away, especially the interception in the red zone.
“I really love the way we came out,” Martin said. “We had a chance. You play these games, you have to jump on them and take advantage of your opportunities.
“It should be a two-score advantage for us. They’re (Notre Dame) kind of sleepwalking through it a little bit. It’s hard if you’re at Notre Dame and you’re playing Miami of Ohio. Those kids didn’t get recruited by Miami of Ohio.”
