Riley Leonard rushed for two touchdowns and threw for 215 yards and one more touchdown as No. 10 Notre Dame crushed Florida State 52-3 on Saturday night.
Notre Dame (8-1) piled up 453 total yards of offense, while the defense recorded eight sacks and two more tackles for loss.
The win, which was the largest in this rivalry known for close games, evened the all-time series between the two teams at 6-6.
“I’m really proud of the guys,” said Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman. “I’m proud of the way they prepared. We knew we were facing a talented team, but it would’ve been easy to overlook them because of their record. But our seniors stepped up and led this team the right way. This game shows how well they prepared and their mindset.”
Leonard ran for 70 yards and passed for 215. His first touchdown came when he broke to the left side, sprinting 34 yards for a score on Notre Dame’s opening drive. In the third quarter, he added another touchdown with a 6-yard run through the Florida State defense.
Jadarian Price added a 65-yard touchdown run for Notre Dame’s second score. Tight end Mitchell Evans caught a 12-yard pass from Leonard, which made it 21-3 at halftime.
In the fourth quarter, Jeremiyah Love ran in a 1-yard touchdown, and backup quarterback Steve Angeli threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Deion Colzie to finish the scoring.
The final play of the game was a 79-yard interception return for a touchdown by Luke Talich with 1:23 left, sealing the blowout.
Florida State (1-9) put together a long 75-yard drive in the first quarter, ending with a 23-yard field goal by Ryan Fitzgerald. But after that, the Seminoles only managed 37 yards over their next seven drives combined.
Notre Dame’s defense dominated, sacking Florida State quarterbacks Brock Glenn and Luke Kromenhoek eight times for a total loss of 81 yards. Glenn completed just 5 of 18 passes for 51 yards and threw two interceptions, while Kromenhoek was 5 of 8 for 37 yards.
Rylie Mills led the defense with three sacks.
Florida State coach Mike Norvell expressed disappointment after the loss. “This is not the result we expected. It’s not the standard we want for our program,” he said. “We still have a choice in how we finish this season, and we need to work hard and improve.”
Notre Dame defensive tackle Howard Cross III was injured in the second quarter with an apparent ankle injury. He limped off the field and did not return. Cross leads Notre Dame with four sacks this season.
