Notre Dame earned a second straight dominant win to improve to 2-2 on the season. The 56-13 victory over Arkansas was impressive, and the Irish had standouts in all three phases of the game. It was the most balanced team performance of the season to date, and this game was a glimpse of what we thought this Notre Dame team could be coming into the season.
In a win this dominant there will always been a high number of standouts, and that was certainly true in the win over Arkansas. But there were a few players who stood out above the rest. Here are my thoughts on the top performers from this win.
OFFENSE - Jeremiyah Love - Jadarian Price, Running Backs
Love Stats: 127 total yards (70 receiving, 57 rushing), 6.7 YPT, 4 TD
Price Stats: 121 total yards (86 rushing, 35 receiving), 8.6 YPT, 2 TD
Runners Up: QB CJ Carr (354 yards, 4 TD), G Billy Schrauth
There is no more debate about who has the best backfield in college football. There is no better one-two punch in the country than the duo of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price, and they showed that for the third straight game. Love and Price combined for 248 total yards and six touchdowns. They racked up 218 of those yards and five of those touchdowns in the first half alone.
It was an incredibly balanced performance as well, one that we haven't seen in a long time at Notre Dame. Love and Price combined for 143 rushing yards and 105 receiving yards. They rushed for three touchdowns and caught three touchdown passes. They grinded out tough yards when needed, they gashed Arkansas when the opportunities were there and as expected, they remain big play backs.
What is even more impressive is that it was clear Arkansas had a game plan to keep the backs from going off, but the game plan allowed them to still get their chances in space and they made Arkansas pay dearly. This also marks the third straight game that Love and Price have combined for at least 200 yards of offense and at least four touchdowns in a game.
Quarterback CJ Carr was also outstanding in the performance, throwing for 354 yards and four touchdowns, which are both career highs. Carr also completed over 70-percent of his throws for a second straight game. Guard Billy Schrauth was also outstanding in the performance, especially in the run game.
DEFENSE - Adon Shuler, Safety
Stats: 9 tackles, 1 forced fumble, 1 break up
Runners Up: DT Gabriel Rubio, LB Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, CB Mark Zackery IV
Redshirt sophomore Adon Shuler missed the first half of the win over Purdue, so he seemed to want to make up for lost time against the Razorbacks. He was all over the field and the combination of Shuler and Tae Johnson was impactful, and Shuler was on top of his game. He was very active in the run game, far more confident in coverage than we've seen in earlier games and his leadership was evident on the back end as well.
It's not just about numbers for Shuler, he also made impactful plays. His lone pass break up came when the game was 21-10 and Arkansas had a chance to continue moving the ball and making it close. Shuler was sticky in coverage and forced an incomplete pass, which forced a third-down that Arkansas could not commit.
If there was any doubt about the outcome, Shuler ended it with a late second quarter forced fumble that DeVonta Smith recovered. The offense answered with a 35-yard touchdown pass to Price that ended any doubt about the outcome.
Linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa was impactful as a pass rusher and made the biggest coverage play of his career. That's an area of his game that must improve, but Viliamu-Asa reading and jumping a wheel route blew up an Arkansas play that they thought was going to go for a huge play. It was a crucial moment in the game and helped the Irish force a second punt in the game. Gabriel Rubio also had a second straight strong performance.
SPECIAL TEAMS - Erik Schmidt, Kicker
Stats: 9 kickoffs - 9 touchbacks, 1-1 extra points
Freshman kicker Erik Schmidt booted all nine of his kickoffs into the end zone, eliminating any chance for Arkansas to make a play on special teams to get back in the game. He also nailed his only extra point attempt after Noah Burnette made his first eight.
Jordan Faison and Malachi Fields connected on a 40-yard gain on a fake punt in the third quarter. It was a great play, but it was already 42-13 so it didn't have much impact on the game.
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