Stats That Matter, Highlights and Photos From Notre Dame's Victory Over Pitt
Notre Dame improved to 5-0 with an impressive 45-3 victory over Pitt. The Irish rode a dominant performance from the defense, big plays from the offense and a savvy timeout and special teams play late in the first half to throttle the Panthers.
Below are some statistical takeaways from the game, highlights, videos and a photo gallery from the Notre Dame victory.
STATS THAT MATTER
** Notre Dame held Pitt to just 3 points in the victory. It's the second straight game that Notre Dame has held an opponent to single digits, and the third time in five games. Not since 2012 has Notre Dame held back-to-back opponents to single digits, something the Irish did twice that season (three games once, two games the second time).
** The Irish defense held Pitt to just 162 yards of offense, which is the best mark of the Brian Kelly era. The previous high was 163 yards against Texas to kick off the 2015 season.
** Pitt's 162 yards of offense was its lowest mark since it had just 120 yards in a 2011 loss to Utah.
** Notre Dame held Pitt to just 3.06 yards per play, which is the third best single-game mark of the Brian Kelly era. The previous best was 2.98 per play in the Nov. 23, 2019 win over Boston College, and the second best was 3.01 per play in an Oct. 4, 2014 win over Stanford.
** Pitt averaged just 3.6 yards per pass attempt and 2.2 yards per rush.
** Notre Dame out-gained Pittsburgh by 272 yards (434-162). It was Notre Dame's widest margin since it out-gained Boston College by 310 yards (501-191) on Nov. 23, 2019, a stretch of seven games.
** Notre Dame dominated the time of possession, holding the ball for 40:59, compared to just 19:01 for Pitt.
** The Irish offense converted 11 third-down opportunities, which tied the best mark of the Kelly era. It had been done four times previously, and the last time was in the Music City Bowl against LSU back in 2014.
** Notre Dame churned out 28 first downs (11 rushing, 11 passing, 6 penalty), its most since Sept. 29, 2018 against Stanford (29).
** Freshman tight end Michael Mayer set career highs with 5 catches for 73 yards.
NOTRE DAME vs. PITT HIGHLIGHTS
NOTRE DAME vs. PITT PHOTO GALLERY
Note: All video courtesy of Notre Dame Athletics. All photos courtesy of the Atlantic Coast Conference
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