Notre Dame's Defense Rises From The Ashes Against Arkansas

Irish hold down potent Taylen Green-led Arkansas offense in a big day for Chris Ash's defense.

Sep 20, 2025; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive coordinator Chris Ash shouts towards the field against the Purdue Boilermakers during the first half at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Caterina-Imagn Images | Michael Caterina-Imagn Images

Notre Dame Defense Rises Up In Win Over Arkansas

Notre Dame had a tough task in front of it entering Saturday's season-saving game on the road against Arkansas.

Figure out a way for the Irish's previously questionable at best, horrific at worst, defense to slow down a Razorback offense that averages over 44 points per game behind one of the country's most dangerous QBs, Taylen Green.

Notre Dame holds Razorbacks to 13 points

Many in the media, myself included, figured this game would be very high scoring and would feature high-powered offenses and bad defenses. To the surprise of almost everyone, the Notre Dame defense put together its best performance of the year by far and held Arkansas to a measly 13 points.

For as impressive as the Notre Dame offense was in this game, I'm almost more impressed with the defensive effort, given how low the expectations were for this unit heading into the ballgame. This kind of game was exactly what this group needed to build confidence moving forward.

HERE COME THE IRISH ☘️#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/Yba4WQCHyD

— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) September 27, 2025

The Irish defense is not fixed, but showed signs of life

While the Irish defense definitely deserves credit for its performance Saturday, it's still a long way from where Notre Dame wants it to be and where it'd need to be to accomplish any big picture goals.

Notre Dame will have to find a way to apply more pressure on opposing QBS the rest of the season. Whether it be with or without blitzes, this is a must.

The Irish secondary, which features many young players, is still very much a work in progress, but it made strides against the Razorbacks. They seemed more physical than we've seen so far this year, more free to go make a play and lay a big hit on a receiver. This is progress.

Sep 27, 2025; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman leads the team in celebration after the game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Notre Dame won 56-13. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images | Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

While there are still lapses in the pass coverage and some missed chances in the run defense as well, the Irish defense exceeded expectations in this game by a wide margin, which is the absolute best-case scenario as the team boards its flight back home to South Bend.

Now, after two wins in a row, the Irish can settle down and settle in for what will be a tough battle with Boise State, a program that made its name in the sport by beating bigger brands.

Due to the 0-2 start Notre Dame had, each game remaining is a playoff game, and the pressure is on to win out.

This won't be easy, but playing a complete game like this one provides reason for hope that this outcome can be achieved.

For more Irish news & notes, follow John on Twitter @alwaysirishINC, Always Irish on Youtube, Patreon and on your preferred audio podcast provider