Tarean Folston (25) is one of several Notre Dame players to find the end zone Saturday. (
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — In a game filled with turnovers, penalties and other miscues, No. 6 Notre Dame set up its showdown next week in Tallahassee, Fla., against No. 1 Florida State by surviving pesky North Carolina 50-43 on Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium.
The Irish moved to 6-0 courtesy of three touchdown passes from Everett Golson, but the Notre Dame quarterback also kept North Carolina (2-4) in the game with three turnovers.
After Golson’s third turnover near the end of the third quarter, North Carolina took the lead on a flea flicker from the Notre Dame 23-yard line.
It began with quarterback Marquise Williams tossing the ball to junior wide receiver Quinshad Davis, who lofted a 23-yard touchdown pass to Williams to push North Carolina ahead, 36-35, during a roller-coaster second half.
The Irish responded with a touchdown drive of 81 yards as Golson hit tailback Tarean Folston with a 9-yard touchdown pass. Notre Dame took a 43-36 lead after Golson completed the two-point conversion with a pass to senior tight end Ben Koyack.
North Carolina drove inside Notre Dame’s 30-yard line, but cornerback Cole Luke made a spectacular interception to end the threat. Notre Dame used the subsequent drive to put the game away by driving 81 yards in 10 plays, with Folston scoring his third touchdown of the afternoon for a 50-36 lead.
Folston, a sophomore, ran 18 times for 98 yards and caught five passes for 71 yards.
Even though the Tar Heels entered the afternoon as heavy underdogs, they jumped to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter after converting two Notre Dame turnovers into touchdowns.
North Carolina scored 92 seconds after the opening kickoff.
Tar Heels defensive end Jessie Rogers smacked Golson into a fumble when the Notre Dame quarterback attempted a pass on third-and-7 from Notre Dame’s 28-yard line. North Carolina safety Sam Smiley recovered at the 37.
Three plays later, North Carolina tailback Elijah Hood ran six yards for a touchdown.
North Carolina had its 14-0 advantage soon after that. On Notre Dame’s third possession, North Carolina linebacker Jeff Schoettmer returned Golson’s errant pass 29 yards for a touchdown.
Notre Dame responded with 21 unanswered points.
Golson’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Fuller completed a five-play, 88-yard drive with 7:09 left in the first quarter. The Irish tied things at 14-14 just inside the second quarter on a 1-yard run from senior running back Cam McDaniel. Then, on Notre Dame’s next possession, the Irish went 77 yards in seven plays, capped by a 7-yard touchdown run from sophomore running back Greg Bryant.
During Notre Dame’s scoring streak, the Irish outgained North Carolina 223 yards to 14, with 12 first downs to the Tar Heels’ zero.
North Carolina wouldn’t die easily, though. Courtesy of a fast-paced offense, the Tar Heels kept Notre Dame defenders on their heels with a 75-yard drive that ended with Williams powering his way to a touchdown on third-and-1 from the Notre Dame 3-yard line. The PAT was blocked by Notre Dame’s Jarron Jones to keep the Irish ahead 21-20.
The scoring began to see-saw from there.
Notre Dame’s Joe Schmidt forced Hood into a fumble that was recovered at the North Carolina 6-yard line by Notre Dame’s Elijah Shumate, and Folston quickly scored on a 6-yard run to push the lead to 28-20.
The Tar Heels responded with a 75-yard drive on seven plays, with Williams firing a 20-yard pass to Davis to pull North Carolina to within two at 28-26. North Carolina went for two, but the Irish held.
Notre Dame scored on its opening drive of the second half to take a 35-26 lead, when wide receiver Will Fuller took a pass from Golson and weaved his way 35 yards to the end zone for his second touchdown.
NOTES: Notre Dame junior CB KeiVarae Russell wrote on Instagram that he will not play this season due to findings by the university during its investigation into academic misconduct of students. Four other Notre Dame players are involved in the investigation, but their status is not known. … North Carolina LB Jeff Schoettmer returned the second interception of his career for a touchdown in the first quarter. … The 54 halftime points were the most in a Notre Dame game since Oct. 8, 2011, when Notre Dame and Air Force combined to score 58 points (Notre Dame 42, Air Force 16). … The 26 first-half points by North Carolina were the most the Irish yielded since Michigan scored 27 in 2013.
