September 12, 2026 Week 2 · Regular Season Belt defended

Notre Dame defends the belt, 52–0, at home over Rice.

Home · Defending Holder

Notre Dame 52

Away · Challenger

Rice 0

AI-Written

Recap

Notre Dame dominated Rice from start to finish, posting 21 points in the first quarter alone behind an efficient passing attack led by C. Carr. Rice's offense was plagued by turnovers throughout the game, fumbling away possession multiple times including critical mistakes by J. Brown in the second quarter that led directly to Notre Dame touchdowns. Notre Dame's defense forced four Rice turnovers while the Fighting Irish offense methodically moved the ball, posting another 21 points in the second quarter with touchdown passes to J. Faison, runs by N. James Jr., and a late-half strike to M. Gilbert. Rice's defense offered minimal resistance, as Notre Dame added another touchdown in the third quarter and a field goal, while Rice mustered only 128 total yards and failed to score a single point. The belt stayed in South Bend as Notre Dame's defense suffocated Rice's struggling offense throughout a thoroughly one-sided affair.

C. Carr to J. Faison 25-yard TD pass (Q1 10:30) - Notre Dame's first score set the tone for a dominant first quarter
J. Brown fumble at Rice 6-yard line (Q2 4:55) - turning point that led to Notre Dame's fourth touchdown and 28-0 lead
Rice's four total turnovers - crippled any offensive rhythm and prevented any legitimate scoring threat
C. Carr to M. Gilbert 39-yard TD pass (Q2 1:17) - capstone to a devastating first half with Notre Dame leading 35-0

Written by Claude from the box score and play-by-play on this page — a plain-English recap of the numbers below, not a substitute for them.

By Quarter

Line score

Team	1	2	3	4	Final
Notre Dame	21	21	10	0	52
Rice	0	0	0	0	0

Pulled directly from CFBD’s play-by-play record, the same source as every score in the lineage.

Full Box Score

Team stats

CFBD box score

Notre DameRice

Total yards478128

Rushing yards11864

Passing yards36064

First downs247

3rd down conv.7/122/12

Turnovers04

Penalties–yards2–204–37

Time of possession32:1827:42

Full team box score from CFBD’s /games/teams data. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have team-level stats that far back.

Play By Play

Key plays

CFBD play-by-play

When	Team	Yards	Play
Q1 14:46	Rice	+24 yd	Boubacar Traore 24 Yd Fumble Return (Spencer Porath Kick)
Q1 14:00	Rice	+11 yd	(14:00) Shotgun #11 J.Brown rush left for 11 yards gain to the Rice40 fumbled by #11 J.Brown at Rice40 forced by #28 L.Talich recovered by Rice #11 J.Brown at Rice40, End Of Play, 1ST DOWN
Q1 11:36	Rice	-4 yd	(11:42) Shotgun Rice rush middle for 4 yards loss to the Rice38 fumbled by Rice at Rice38 recovered by UND #4 J.Ausberry at Rice38, End Of Play
Q1 10:30	Notre Dame	+25 yd	(10:36) No Huddle-Shotgun #13 C.Carr pass complete deep left to #6 J.Faison caught at Rice00, for 25 yards to the Rice00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 10:30, 1ST DOWN #35 S.Porath kick attempt good (H: #39 J.Scaife, LS: #96 J.Vinci)
Q1 7:11	Notre Dame	+23 yd	(07:20) No Huddle-Shotgun #13 C.Carr pass complete deep left to #1 J.Greathouse caught at Rice28, for 23 yards to the Rice27 (#3 K.Akui), 1ST DOWN
Q1 3:51	Notre Dame	+11 yd	(03:56) No Huddle-Shotgun #13 C.Carr pass complete short left to #6 J.Faison caught at Rice14, for 11 yards to the Rice00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 03:51, 1ST DOWN #35 S.Porath kick attempt good (H: #39 J.Scaife, LS: #96 J.Vinci)
Q2 13:43	Notre Dame	+1 yd	(13:46) No Huddle-Shotgun #2 N.James Jr. rush middle for 1 yard gain to the Rice00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 13:43 PENALTY Rice Offside declined #35 S.Porath kick attempt good (H: #39 J.Scaife, LS: #96 J.Vinci)
Q2 8:48	Notre Dame	+20 yd	(08:54) Shotgun #13 C.Carr pass complete deep right to #3 M.Graham caught at UND40, for 20 yards to the UND40, out of bounds at UND40, 1ST DOWN
Q2 4:55	Rice	-6 yd	(05:01) Shotgun #11 J.Brown rush left for 6 yards loss to the Rice06 fumbled by #11 J.Brown at Rice06 recovered by UND #27 K.Viliamu-Asa at Rice06, End Of Play
Q2 4:26	Notre Dame	+1 yd	(04:30) No Huddle-Shotgun #2 N.James Jr. rush middle for 1 yard gain to the Rice00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 04:26 #35 S.Porath kick attempt good (H: #39 J.Scaife, LS: #96 J.Vinci) #35 S.Porath kick attempt good (H: #39 J.Scaife, LS: #96 J.Vinci) PENALTY #35 S.Porath kick attempt good (H: #39 J.Scaife, LS: #96 J.Vinci) PENALTY Rice Personal Foul (#57 A.Clemmons) #35 S.Porath kick attempt good (H: #39 J.Scaife, LS: #96 J.Vinci) PENALTY Rice Personal Foul (#57 A.Clemmons) 15 yards from Rice00 to UND50
Q2 1:59	Rice	+37 yd	(02:13) #29 C.Durkin punt 39 yards to the UND25 #6 J.Faison return 37 yards to the Rice38 (#57 A.Clemmons; #3 K.Akui), out of bounds. #26 M.Amey III injured on the play
Q2 1:17	Notre Dame	+39 yd	(01:25) No Huddle-Shotgun #13 C.Carr pass complete deep right to #14 M.Gilbert caught at Rice00, for 39 yards to the Rice00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 01:17, 1ST DOWN #35 S.Porath kick attempt good (H: #39 J.Scaife, LS: #96 J.Vinci)
Q3 12:59	Notre Dame	+56 yd	(13:11) No Huddle-Shotgun #13 C.Carr pass complete deep left to #8 J.Bettis Jr. caught at Rice33, for 56 yards to the Rice06 (#7 A.Brown), 1ST DOWN
Q3 11:41	Notre Dame	+2 yd	(11:44) No Huddle-Shotgun #13 C.Carr pass complete short middle to #87 C.Flanagan caught at Rice00, for 2 yards to the Rice00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 11:41 #35 S.Porath kick attempt good (H: #39 J.Scaife, LS: #96 J.Vinci)
Q3 4:21	Notre Dame	+36 yd	(04:24) #35 S.Porath field goal attempt from 36 yards GOOD (H: #39 J.Scaife, LS: #96 J.Vinci), clock 04:21
Q3 2:38	Notre Dame	+21 yd	(02:49) Shotgun #10 N.Grubbs pass complete short right to #19 L.Saldate caught at UND38, for 21 yards to the Rice47 (#2 J.Chavez), 1ST DOWN
Q4 11:40	Rice	+30 yd	(12:03) Shotgun #11 J.Brown pass complete deep right to #7 B.Jackson Jr. caught at Rice39, for 30 yards to the Rice39, End Of Play, 1ST DOWN
Q4 5:54	Rice	+4 yd	(06:01) No Huddle-Shotgun #11 J.Brown rush right for 4 yards gain to the UND16 fumbled by #11 J.Brown at UND13 forced by #43 K.Kia recovered by UND #44 R.Dunham at UND16, End Of Play
Q4 4:23	Notre Dame	+20 yd	(04:33) No Huddle-Shotgun #9 T.Jarrard pass complete short left to #11 D.Fitzgerald caught at UND41, for 20 yards to the Rice43 (#34 K.Blanton), 1ST DOWN

Scoring plays, turnovers, and gains of 20+ yards, pulled from CFBD’s play-by-play. This section only appears for belt games with play-by-play on file (2003 onward).

Box Score

Player stats

CFBD player stats

Passing

Player	C/ATT	YDS	AVG	TD	QBR
C.J. CarrNotre Dame	16/20	253	12.7	4	95.7
Noah GrubbsNotre Dame	7/11	78	7.1	0	25.1
Teddy JarrardNotre Dame	2/2	29	14.5	0	--
Jacurri BrownRice	8/12	64	5.3	0	17.8

Rushing

Player	CAR	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Jonaz WaltonNotre Dame	8	48	6.0	0	15
Nolan James Jr.Notre Dame	6	29	4.8	2	15
Aneyas WilliamsNotre Dame	9	29	3.2	0	7
Kedren YoungNotre Dame	4	8	2.0	0	3
Javian OsborneNotre Dame	5	4	0.8	0	6
Jacurri BrownRice	16	32	2.0	0	11
Tyvonn ByarsRice	7	24	3.4	0	7
DAndre Hardeman Jr.Rice	9	13	1.4	0	3
Davis LaneRice	1	-1	-1.0	0	0
TeamRice	1	-4	-4.0	0	0

Receiving

Player	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Jerome Bettis Jr.Notre Dame	2	61	30.5	0	56
Jordan FaisonNotre Dame	4	54	13.5	2	25
Jaden GreathouseNotre Dame	3	48	16.0	0	23
Micah GilbertNotre Dame	2	47	23.5	1	39
Logan SaldateNotre Dame	3	36	12.0	0	21
Elijah BurressNotre Dame	3	33	11.0	0	16
Matt JefferyNotre Dame	2	28	14.0	0	18
Mylan GrahamNotre Dame	2	24	12.0	0	20
Devin FitzgeraldNotre Dame	1	20	20.0	0	20
Kedren YoungNotre Dame	1	8	8.0	0	8
Cooper FlanaganNotre Dame	1	2	2.0	1	2
Nolan James Jr.Notre Dame	1	-1	-1.0	0	0
Barry Jackson Jr.Rice	1	30	30.0	0	30
Chris BruceRice	1	19	19.0	0	19
Braylen WalkerRice	2	12	6.0	0	10
Payton MatthewsRice	1	6	6.0	0	6
Jordan ClarkRice	1	5	5.0	0	5
Ben GriceRice	2	-8	-4.0	0	0

Show more stats (6 more categories)

Defense

Player	TOT	SOLO	SACKS	TFL	PD	QB HUR	TD
Jaiden AusberryNotre Dame	5	2	0	1	0	0	0
Kyngstonn Viliamu-AsaNotre Dame	5	2	0	1.5	0	0	0
Luke TalichNotre Dame	4	3	0	1	0	0	0
Jaylen SneedNotre Dame	4	2	0	0	0	0	0
Bryce YoungNotre Dame	3	2	1	2.5	0	0	0
Rodney DunhamNotre Dame	3	2	0	0	0	0	0
Keon KeeleyNotre Dame	3	1	0	0	0	0	0
Elijah HughesNotre Dame	3	1	0	0	0	0	0
Teddy RezacNotre Dame	3	1	0	0.5	0	0	0
Ethan LongNotre Dame	3	1	0	0	0	0	0
Adon ShulerNotre Dame	2	2	0	1	0	0	0
Kahanu KiaNotre Dame	2	1	0	0.5	0	0	0
Mark Zackery IVNotre Dame	2	1	0	0	0	0	0
Drayk BowenNotre Dame	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Loghan ThomasNotre Dame	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Joey O'BrienNotre Dame	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Armel MukamNotre Dame	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Francis BrewuNotre Dame	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Sean Sevillano Jr.Notre Dame	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Dylahn McKinneyNotre Dame	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Christian GrayNotre Dame	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Tionne GrayNotre Dame	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Madden FaraimoNotre Dame	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Cole MullinsNotre Dame	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Boubacar TraoreNotre Dame	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Cooper KingRice	10	5	0	0	0	0	0
AJ BrownRice	7	3	0	0.5	1	0	0
Kyren CondollRice	5	4	0	0	0	0	0
Braden BaysRice	5	3	0	2	0	0	0
Stone CombsRice	5	2	0	0	0	0	0
Koa AkuiRice	5	2	0	0	1	0	0
Jo ChavezRice	4	3	0	0	0	0	0
Aquantis ClemmonsRice	4	1	0	0	0	1	0
Chibby NwajuakuRice	4	0	0	0	0	0	0
Beau BartonRice	3	2	0	0	0	1	0
Jamir BenjaminRice	3	1	0	0.5	1	0	0
Joseph MutomboRice	2	2	0	0	0	0	0
Jordan ClarkRice	2	2	0	0	0	0	0
Zach CodyRice	2	1	0	0	0	0	0
Austin HarnetiauxRice	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Ahran OgborRice	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Brock ReddicRice	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Kaleb BlantonRice	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Caden VermaasRice	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Christopher Clark-JolivetRice	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Jerrick HarperRice	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Dillan BottsRice	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Tariq MayRice	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Chris BruceRice	1	0	0	0	0	0	0

Fumbles

Player	FUM	LOST	REC
Jaiden AusberryNotre Dame	0	0	1
Boubacar TraoreNotre Dame	0	0	1
Kyngstonn Viliamu-AsaNotre Dame	0	0	1
Rodney DunhamNotre Dame	0	0	1
Jacurri BrownRice	3	2	0
TeamRice	1	1	0
Davis LaneRice	1	1	0

Kick Returns

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	LONG	TD
Caden VermaasRice	1	8	8.0	8	0

Kicking

Player	FG	PCT	LONG	XP	PTS
Spencer PorathNotre Dame	1/1	100.0	36	7/7	10

Punt Returns

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	LONG	TD
Jordan FaisonNotre Dame	3	41	13.7	37	0
Dallas GoldenNotre Dame	2	6	3.0	6	0

Punting

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	TB	In 20	LONG
Jasper ScaifeNotre Dame	1	46	46.0	0	1	46
Charlie DurkinRice	6	275	45.8	1	0	58

Full player stats from CFBD’s /games/players data. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have player-level stats that far back.

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